No. 11 — Broth Made from Bones Alone

The author describes this as an economical nourishing broth for dining halls organized by Americans for poor people. Split bones removed from raw beef lengthwise into small pieces with an axe. Fill an earthenware pot two-thirds with them, add cold water to the rim, cover and put into a Russian oven as soon as the bread is taken out.

After four hours strain the liquid: the first extraction is very rich and gelatinous. Cover the remaining bones with fresh water and place the pot in the oven after bread baking for six hours, then strain for a second-grade broth. Repeat with fresh water for eight hours to obtain a third-grade broth.

Mix all three. From 15 Russian pounds of bones, the book claims a yield of 50 pounds, or 100 plates of broth. Boil with a small quantity of roots, a large bunch of parsley, celery and leek greens, pepper and salt. The author estimates the cost at one kopeck per plate.

For a private household only the first two extractions may be used. Whatever the quantity of bones, they should occupy two-thirds of the pot, with water filling it to the top.