I’d like you to meet my “Ugly Broth Bag.”

I know, it’s not exactly the most photogenic item to showcase on the internet, but this beat-up plastic bag is so much more than it appears at first glance.

And what’s inside this bag, you ask?

Onion skins
The tiny ends of garlic cloves
Celery bottoms and tops
Carrot peels
Mushroom stems
Wilted scallion tops
The tops of tomatoes that I sliced off
The bones from the chicken thighs we had for dinner last week
The rind from that block of parmesan I finished last month
You get the picture—just a collection of kitchen scraps.

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Every month, this little bag fills up until it’s bursting. When it’s full, I pull it out of the freezer and dump everything into a stockpot with cold water, a little salt, and some herbs. After about an hour of simmering, I have the most delicious, homemade, golden stock or bone broth—without all the chopping or making a special trip to buy ingredients.

This humble bag of kitchen scraps has kept me in healthy, homemade broth for ages, and it’s become one of my favorite ways to reduce waste while creating something nourishing and flavorful.