Canning Bone Broth Step by Step

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In this step-by-step picture tutorial, I’ll show you how easy canning bone broth at home is. In just a few simple steps you can have a lot of bone broth canned and stored at room temperature for months. Follow the picture tutorial or find the printable card at the end of this post.

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Every fall, I make a huge pot of bone broth (or a few of them). In the past, when we brought home a deer, we would butcher the deer, leave the meat on ice for a day or so, and then package the meat and send it to the freezer.

These days, I take one more step and before sending the meat to the freezer – I remove all the bones.

This allows me to make enough bone broth during the fall to last us until the next fall. It also makes it much easier for me when I want to cook the meat.

But, there is no way that I can find enough room in the freezer for all this broth and really, I prefer to can it anyway. Let me share why I prefer canning bone broth before we learn how to do this…

Canning Bone Broth…

First, I have to say that it’s oh so easy to can bone broth! If you have a little bit of experience with a pressure canner (bone broth is a low-acid food so we have to pressure can it) you’ll have this down in no time.

If you’re new to pressure canning, don’t worry! I have the step by step post for you below and actually, canning bone broth is a great way to start getting familiar with your canner because, again, it’s super easy.

Why I Love Canning Both Broth…

There are a few obvious reasons…

It saves me room in the freezer – oh the constant freezer real estate struggle! It’s a real thing on the modern homestead. Even more so in the fall when you know that fresh deer meat is coming (if you hunt).

Canning the broth makes it possible for me to keep the jars on the shelf at room temperature throughout the year. It’s one less thing that has to go in the freezer.

I don’t need to thaw it – I am terrible at remembering to thaw stuff. I’ll often go in my kitchen with the intention to cook a meal just to realize that I forgot, yet again, to thaw the ingredients.

So, one less thing to need to remember to thaw is a huge win in my book. Canning might take some time but once those beautiful jars of canned homemade bone broth are on the shelf they are ready to go anytime.

I can adjust the flavor – this is always one of the best things about doing things on your own… You can just do them however you want.

So if I want more black pepper, or more salt, or no salt at all, or if I want to add garlic or onion to my broth… Everything and anything goes! I can personalize my bone broth however I want.

It’s a good use for the bones – in this homesteading lifestyle, there is very little waste. As I do this more and more I discover that there is a great way to use many things (like parts of the animal, or rotten vegetables…) that otherwise would be trashed.

I always give deer bones to my dog. It’s a great toy and snack for her, but using the bones in the kitchen to produce one more thing just makes sense.

So I make bone broth for us and then still give my dog the bones after I strain the broth.

It saves me money – obviously, it’s one less thing to buy at the store. I already have the bones, the onions, the carrots, the garlic (from the garden), and water from the well.

I can use the money that I save to purchase things that I don’t currently grow like wheat.

Ok, so now that we’ve decided that it’s a great idea to can homemade bone broth, let’s do this! Here is what we are going to go over…

1. Equipment that we are going to need.
2. Homemade bone broth and how to make it.
3. Straining the bone broth before canning.
4. Preparing the canner and jars.
5. How to can bone broth.
6. Storing and using canned bone broth.

Equipment that we are going to need…

A large pot – to strain the bone broth into.

A strainer – to strain the bone broth.

A pressure canner – bone broth is a low acid food so we can’t process it in a water bath. We are going to have to use a pressure canner. I use a dial canner from Presto. Another canner that is very popular is the All American Pressure Canner which is a weighted gauge canner.

Quart jars – I used quart jars here but of course, you can use pint jars as well if you’d like.

Lids and bands – you can reuse bands if they are in good condition but it’s important to use new lids to make sure the rubber is new and that the jars seal.

A ladle – it will help us fill the jars with the bone broth.

Canning utensils – We will use the funnel and the jar lifters.

A paper towel – to clean the rim of the jar before we close it and process it.

Homemade Bone Broth…

I have another post for you on how to make bone broth and more information about all the amazing health benefits of bone broth.

Make sure to read that post if you are looking for a recipe for bone broth. In this post, we’ll concentrate on what to do with this huge pot of broth after it’s ready.

Of course, you can use some right away. Many people drink a cup of bone broth every morning or every night to support their immune system and for all the other benefits of bone broth.

However, if you are reading this it’s probably because you want to learn how to preserve some of your bone broth so let’s learn how to can bone broth…

Straining the Bone Broth Before Canning…

The first thing that I do after the bone broth is ready is to strain it. You can, if you’d like, keep the vegetables and can them too but we need to get rid of the bones.

I choose to not can the vegetables that I used in the broth and just can the liquid. The vegetables are usually very soft and falling apart after the many hours that I cooked the broth and I prefer to give them to the chickens.

Another note here… In some places, you’ll find that it’s suggested that you let your broth cool all the way so the fat will solidify. After that, it is suggested to remove the fat before you strain the broth and can it.

I don’t personally do this because I use deer bones for my broth and there is very little fat on a deer.

The issue with the fat is that when we process the jars in the pressure canner the broth is bubbling inside of the jars and the fat can get between the lid and the rim of the jar and prevent the jar from sealing.

Again, since there is very little fat on a deer I don’t bother letting my broth cool and I don’t skim the solid fat (it will float on top of the broth), but if you are canning broth that has a lot of fat you might want to take this extra step.

Just remember that if you let your broth cool so you can skim the fat, you are going to have to heat it back up after you strain it and before you can it since it’s very important to keep similar temperatures when canning.

You don’t want a cool liquid going into a hot canner. It’s a recipe for disaster. Don’t ask me how I know this…

So once my broth is done cooking, I place a strainer over a large pot and strain the broth into that large pot…

You can see that there is a little bit of fat on top of my broth but not too much. Also, real fat is very healthy so if I have the option to keep a little bit I prefer to keep it.

Preparing the Canner and Jars…

I usually leave the pot of strained broth on the stovetop on low heat just to keep it from cooling while I set up my canner.

I leave the rack in the canner and fill it with 2” of water (again, I have a Presto canner. If you are using a different canner you might need to check your manual and adjust the amount of water according to the instructions) and place it on the stovetop uncovered.

I turn the heat to high and wait a few minutes for the water to reach a simmering temperature (the water in the canner should be hot but not necessarily boiling).

While the water in the canner is heating up I wash my jars with hot water and dish soap, then I set them on my counter and make sure not to touch the rim of the jars from this point on.

I also make sure to wash my lids and bands. We want everything clean and ready to go.

How to Can Bone Broth…

Once the water in the canner is simmering, I bring my big pot of strained bone broth onto my counter (right next to my jars) and use the funnel and ladle to fill the jars with the hot broth. Make sure to leave a 1” headspace.

I used quart jars here but you can definitely use pints too if you’d like. I’ll give you processing instructions for both.

Once the jars are filled, use a clean paper towel to wipe the rim of the jars…

Then center the lid and close the jar with the band finger tight (not too tight).

Next, use the jar lifters to lift the jars into the canner. I place them on the rack, making sure they don’t touch each other and close the canner.

Now, the weight is off the vent. I lower the heat just a little bit to medium-high and wait until I see stem starting to come out of the vent.

Once steam starts escaping I set my timer for 10 minutes and just let the canner vent steam.

After 10 minutes, place the weight on the vent and watch the dial gauge.

For a dial gauge canner, we want the pressure to reach 11 pounds. Once it reaches 11 pounds, I adjust the heat to keep the pressure at 11 pounds of pressure and process my quart jars for 25 minutes (20 minutes if you are processing pint jars).

If you are using a weighted gauge canner, you will want to use 10 pounds of pressure.

If you live in an altitude above 1000 feet, you are going to need to adjust your pressure. Just follow the table below…

For both kinds of canners, the processing time stays the same.

After 25 minutes of processing, I turn the heat off and leave the canner right as it is. I do not remove the weight or move the canner.

I let it cool slowly to room temperature. This usually takes a few hours but that’s fine. I just go do something else. Again, when we can we want to be very mindful of temperature and pressure changes so we don’t cause a mess (like jars breaking in the canner, or half of the liquid seeping out of the jars. Don’t ask me how I know this…).

When the canner is back at room temperature (and the dial reads 0 pressure), I open the lid and leave the jars in the hot water for an additional 10 minutes.

Remember… Rapid temperature changes = a disaster.

After 10 minutes, I use my jar lifters to lift the jars out of the canner and set them on a kitchen towel on the counter or on my wooden cutting board (cause the counter itself is usually cold).

I then let the jars cool slowly. I usually leave them overnight, undisturbed on the counter.

Storing and Using Canned Bone Broth…

When the jars are cool I check if they have all sealed by pressing in the center of the lid. If there is no movement there it means that my jars sealed and are ready for storage.

I remove the bands (we don’t need them anymore) and wipe the jars before I store them on my shelves (cause I don’t have a pantry…).

These jars will last for a very long time. Some say years, some say 18 months. I personally try to use all my canned goods within a year. Then the next year, I can a fresh batch and so on.

I’ll use my canned broth in any recipe that calls for beef broth. I personally don’t just drink it, but I’ll use it in many dishes and soups. A lot of times, I’ll use it instead of using water because it adds great flavor.

For example, I’ll use it when I make bulgur or rice instead of using water.

I’ll use it when I make my BBQ venison neck recipe, when I make my pulled venison wrap, or when I make my Mediterranean stuffed peppers.

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These are just a few examples! I hope you liked this tutorial. Make sure to check some of my other canning tutorials like how to can meat, how to can chicken, and how to can milk.

If you are using a weighted gauge canner and are looking for more specific instructions for your type of canner you can find them here.

Here is the handy canning bone broth printable…