Ingredient: yellow onion

A few years ago, when I participated in a 30 Day detox program through my yoga studio, someone gave me a recipe for detox broth. I had heard of juice cleanses, that crazy cayenne pepper and maple syrup cleanse, and the Betty Ford Clinic, but I had not as of yet, heard of a detox broth.

The recipe that fellow yogi gave me consisted of onions and a few root veggies and water and that was about it. I never actually prepared the recipe because it just didn’t sound that good and seeing as I don’t live atop a toxic waste dump, I don’t technically need a detoxing. But it did get me thinking about the idea of detox broth and set me on the path to a version that was not only drinkable, but actually enjoyable.

Detox Broth Recipe

In general, I aim for a broth that tastes like my midwestern grandma’s vegetable soup, which is no easy task considering the first ingredient in her vegetable soup is beef or pork shoulder. Oh, Iowa, I love you.

I’ve provided a list of ingredients and quantities for those of you who feel more comfortable cooking with an actual recipe, but honestly, I recommend just winging it. Add more of what you like the flavor of. My broth is never the same twice because I usually only make it when I have a bunch of vegetables laying around without a purpose in life.

If you are on an IBS diet, than you’ll want to steer clear of the vegetables that will cause a flare up. Here is a list. I have heard that tomatoes can bother people on anti-inflammatory diets, but I include them because a life without tomatoes seems hardly worth living.

I guess some people drink their broth cold, but that’s not my style. If you subscribe to ayurvedic philosophies, you’ll tell me the hot broth is good for my Vata dominant dosha. I love it, so you might be right.

Want more?

Visit the recipe section for vegan and vegetarian recipes

And don’t forget to comment below with what you put in your broth. I’m always looking for new variations to try.

This article originally  published on www.groundingup.com.

Print Recipe

Detox Broth

A vegetable based broth designed to aid in digestion and taste good. There really isn't much to this recipe from an instructions standpoint. I'm sure we could complicate it with lots of steps and timing, but that's really not necessary in this case.

Course

Breakfast, Dinner, Lunch

Cuisine

Cleanse, Detox, Vegan, Vegetarian

Servings

Ingredients

• 1 yellow onion
• 2 cloves garlic
• 4 ribs celery
• 4 carrots
• 1 cup fresh spinach
• 1 sweet potato
• 1-2 tomatoes
• 4 radishes
• 1 lemon sliced and include the rind
• 1/2 cups fresh parsley
• 1/4 cups fresh oregano
• salt & pepper to taste
• 12 cups water

Course Breakfast, Dinner, Lunch Cuisine Cleanse, Detox, Vegan, Vegetarian Servings Ingredients 1 yellow onion 2 cloves garlic 4 ribs celery 4 carrots 1 cup fresh spinach 1 sweet potato 1-2 tomatoes 4 radishes 1 lemon sliced and include the rind 1/2 cups fresh parsley 1/4 cups fresh oregano salt & pepper to taste 12 cups water

Instructions

1. Roughly chop all of the ingredients and combine in one large pot.

   
2. Cover the chopped vegetables in 10 cups of water. Bring the ingredients to a boil then reduce to a simmer for 60 minutes.

   
3. The vegetables will have lost much of their color and will be extremely soft when the broth is ready. At this point, a few cups of water will have cooked off, so you can add more water and continue to boil, or call it good and move on to the next step.

   
4. It's now time to separate the vegetables from the broth. I send it all through a colander first to separate the large vegetables from the broth. I then send the broth through a sieve with cheese cloth to remove a lot of the vegetable fiber that comes through the colander holes. You only need to do this if fiber from certain vegetables bothers you. You can also reduce the amount of fiber in your broth by cutting back on the cooking time. The longer you simmer, the more the vegetables break down and the more fibers you up drinking.

   
5. Pour the broth into some form of storage vessel and you are all set. I like to use 8 and 16 ounce canning jars. You can freeze the broth or just store it in the refrigerator if you plan to drink it in the next 5 days.

   

Recipe Notes

You'll notice that my broth is pink. That's because I use purple kale and tomatoes, which make it that color. If you have a sensitive stomach, I suggest you omit anything form the cabbage family.