Make Quick Chicken Broth in the Microwave

After years of threats, I finally joined the Costco community. I did this mostly for the inexpensive dog food and Diet Coke, but I’d be lying if I said the prospect of $5 rotisserie chickens didn’t have anything to do with my decision. I love this chicken and always have. I get four meals out of this thing: five if you count the leg I eat as soon as I get to the car, and six if you count the stock I make from the carcass. I cook the broth in the microwave, it turns out very tasty.

The broth, sometimes called ” bone broth ,” is easy to make: cover animal bones with a little water, season with salt, and add some flavor-enhancing vegetables. (I also add a little vinegar to extract the silky collagen.) Heat the water to extract the flavor (and the collagen from the bones). Done and wiped clean.

The broth is usually made on the stove in a large saucepan and needs to simmer for an hour or more. However, there is no law against using a microwave oven to heat water. Heating water is something that microwave ovens excel at. As I explained earlier, it’s up to them:

All microwave ovens are equipped with magnetrons, which are not a type of transformer, but a device that emits electromagnetic (micro) waves. These waves oscillate quickly—about a billion times per second—causing the water molecules in your food to spin at the same speed, aligning with the magnetic field. This rapid rotation raises their temperature and heats up your food.

How to make soup broth in the microwave

Cooking broth in the microwave is faster and, in my opinion, just as tasty. I might even prefer microwaved broth, if only because people tend to overcook it when cooking on the stove. (The drain shouldn’t be so dark and cloudy.)

All you need are chicken bones (either a whole carcass, a bunch, or legs/wings/whatever you have), some aromatic plant parts, salt and a little vinegar. Which parts of the plant you use is up to you. Carrots, onions, garlic and bay leaves are commonly used, but you can use whatever you have in the fridge.

Easy Microwave Chicken Broth Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1 chicken carcass, no meat (but still include skin, fat, and anything else that isn’t meat. Use a rotisserie chicken carcass for extra flavor.)
• 1/4 large onion
• 1 medium carrot, broken into 2-3 pieces
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 bay leaf
• 1-2 teaspoons Diamond Kosher Salt (use half if working with table salt).
• 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
• Enough water to cover

Add everything to a large microwave-safe bowl and cover with water. Microwave at full power for 10 minutes if the carcass came out of the refrigerator, and 15 if it was hanging out in the freezer. Remove large pieces of bones and vegetables with tongs and pour broth through a fine sieve. Enjoy immediately or refrigerate and skim off any hardened fat on top. (Personally, I don’t mind a little thickness, but to each his own.)