Bones simmered for many hours, often with a splash of vinegar, until a large proportion of their collagen has converted to gelatin. It sets to a firm jelly when chilled.
What it does in a recipe: Heavily gelatinous stock — as much about body and mouthfeel as about flavour. Pick the swap that covers that job — the ratios below are written so you can act on them without doing any arithmetic.
Also called: Long-simmered stock
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Broths & stockscategory
Quick answer
Regular chicken or beef stock + gelatin
1 cup bone broth = 1 cup ordinary stock + 1 tsp powdered gelatin
All substitutes, best first
4 ways to replace bone broth
Regular chicken or beef stock + gelatin
Closest match
1 cup bone broth = 1 cup ordinary stock + 1 tsp powdered gelatin
Gelatin is exactly what long simmering extracts, so adding it directly restores the body and the mouth-coating quality that distinguishes bone broth from ordinary stock.
MethodSprinkle the gelatin over a few tablespoons of the cold stock, let it bloom for five minutes, then stir it into the warm remainder.
Trade-offVery close on texture, though it misses the roasted, marrow-rich depth that hours of simmering produce.
1 cup bone broth = 2 cups ordinary stock, simmered down to 1 cup
Reduction concentrates whatever gelatin and flavour the stock already contains, which moves an ordinary stock a long way toward bone broth's density.
MethodReduce uncovered at a bare simmer and do not salt until the end, since the salt concentrates along with everything else.
Trade-offConsiderably saltier and more intense in flavour, which may need adjusting elsewhere in the dish.
CookingSaucesDairy-freeEgg-freeNut-freeSoy-free
Chicken broth
Reliable
1 cup bone broth = 1 cup chicken broth
The same basic savoury liquid with a comparable flavour profile; the difference is almost entirely in how much gelatin it carries.
Trade-offThinner in the mouth and it will not set when chilled, so a sauce made with it needs help to cling.
CookingSaucesDrinksDairy-freeEgg-freeNut-free
Allergen checkCartoned broths often include wheat, celery, soy or milk-derived flavourings even when the ingredient list looks short. Check the packaging if any of those matter to you.
Mushroom broth + a little miso
In a pinch
1 cup bone broth = 1 cup mushroom broth + 1 tsp white miso
The mushroom glutamates and the fermented miso together give the savoury weight that people drink bone broth for, though no plant source can supply collagen.
MethodStir the miso into warm, not boiling, broth so its flavour stays lively.
Trade-offNo gelatin at all, so it never has bone broth's silky, lip-sticking quality. Savoury but structurally a different drink.
Allergen checkMiso is soy, and most varieties are fermented with barley or rice koji — barley miso is not gluten-free. Look for tamari-style or rice-koji products if that matters, and read the tub.
Worth knowing
Bone broth is made from animals and is neither vegetarian nor vegan. A good one sets solid in the fridge; if yours stays liquid when cold, it simply did not extract much gelatin, and a teaspoon of powdered gelatin will fix it.
Cooking around an allergy? Diet tags here describe the ingredient itself, not any particular brand. Processed products change formulation without notice and shared production lines are common, so read the label on everything you use. A severe allergy is a medical matter — confirm with the manufacturer or your clinician rather than relying on a substitution chart.