Sip Your Way to Better Health: How to Make Homemade Nourishing Bone Broths for Cold Winter Days

Your guide to the right bones, key steps, and flavor- and nutrition-boosting add-ins for the best and most delicious results.

Bone broth is rich with protein and other nutrients, and can be used for soups or sauces, or seasoned and sipped on its own. Esin Deniz/Shutterstock

Steam rises from the cup, curling in the chilly morning air. Warm and savory, scented with aromatic herbs, it’s not tea or coffee in the mug, but broth.

Sipping broth on winter days is an age-old tradition, long reputed for its healing, restorative qualities. It’s a good source of protein, and its warmth helps relieve stuffy noses and soothe sore throats. Current research supports its use as a deeply healing food. A 2021 study found that bone broth’s plentiful amino acids help calm gut inflammation. Well-made broth is also rich in gelatin, which some research suggests may help strengthen inflamed tissues.