• Home
    • About
      • Home
      • About the Site
      • The Authors
      • Terms of Service and Privacy Policy
      • Email me
    • Reviews
      • List of All Reviews
      • Best of Portland by year
        • Reader Survey: Best of Portland Food 2017
        • Best of Portland 2015
      • Steakhouse Roundup
        • Steakhouse Reviews Introduction
        • El Gaucho Steakhouse
        • Morton’s Steakhouse
        • Ringside Steakhouse
        • Ruth’s Chris
        • Steakhouse – Results
      • Product/Business Reviews
        • Retailer Reviews
        • Product Reviews
    • Topics
      • Food Writing
        • Alcohol Related
          • Beer
          • Wine
          • Spirits
        • April Fools Stories For Portland
        • Contests and Competition
        • Food Memories
        • Travel Writing
      • Authors / Book Reviews
      • Cheese information
      • Interviews: Honest dialog with people in the Portland food industry
      • Portland Food and Restaurant News and Discussion
      • Recipes
    • Guides
      • Guide to Portland coffee
        • Portland Coffee Guide
        • A Map of our favorite Portland coffeehouses
        • Reader Survey: Best Coffeehouses in Portland 2017
      • Guide to Local Wine Shops
      • Guide to Portland Bakeries
      • Guide to Portland Distilleries
      • Guide to Portland’s Beer Shops
    Portland Food and Drink

    Portland Food and Drink

    Restaurant News and Information For Portland Oregon Area Restaurants and Bars

    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Send me email!

    “Bone Broth” Restaurant Opening in Portland

    By PDX Food Dude Last Update April 29, 2015 5 Comments

    Did I say “Stock”? Of course I meant this newfangled thing called bone broth. Stock is where leftover bones, herbs and water are cooked at a low gentle simmer for at least a few hours, the scum or ‘raft’ carefully skimmed off as it develops. It’s incredibly cheap to make, restaurants do huge batches, and for many culinary students, one of the first things you learn in school. Stock’s not a difficult thing to master, and is one of the building blocks of many other dishes.

    In the newest thing called “bone broth”, leftover bones, herbs and water are cooked at a low gentle simmer for at least a few hours, the scum or ‘raft’ carefully skimmed off as it develops. What? That’s the same thing? How about if I kick it up a bit with some soy, or miso, an egg… maybe throw in some noodles? Oh… I guess that would make it ramen.

    I’m being silly here, but no more so than this bone broth fad. It’s just stock, and it’s been around a zillion years. “Broth” usually means solid pieces of some of the ingredients remain… so maybe “bone broth” means there are still little bits, which would make it soup. I’m confusing myself, so let’s move on.

    You may have heard that a new “Broth Bar” is opening in Portland at NE 6th street and Couch, right around the corner from the newest Ristretto Roasters. You can read the press release here. That reminded me of a story I read a while back, so I did some digging.

    Stock Bone Broth is suddenly being touted as the next big health thing, with some people insisting it can do everything: rebuild your bones, reverse arthritis, make your body heal faster and more. From NPR’s The Salt:

    The problem is that there are precious few scientific studies of the specific healthful properties of bone broth. What’s more, there is no one bone broth recipe. It can be made with different animal bones (some with fatty marrow, some without), with different added flavors (like onions and herbs) and with different cooking methods (five hours of simmering versus 24 hours or more). All of those variables impact the nutritional properties and will give you a different broth.

    Still, [authors of Nourishing Broth] Daniel and Fallon Morell suggest that by boiling down animal and fish bones, skin, cartilage, tendons and ligaments, we create gelatin-rich liquid that provides the amino acids necessary to make collagen, or “the glue that holds the body together.” And, they add, “We need collagen to build the structure for a bone.”

    Scientists agree that bone broth’s so-called ability to heal and restore collagen is probably overblown.

    William Percy, an associate professor at the University of South Dakota’s Sanford School of Medicine, isn’t convinced that the collagen in the bones and joints that go into bone broth will do much for your skeletal system.

    “Since we don’t absorb collagen whole, the idea that eating collagen somehow promotes bone growth is just wishful thinking,” Percy says. Instead, he says, the digestive system will break down the collagen into amino acids, and the body will use these building blocks wherever they’re needed.

    The article goes on, to point out other flaws in the swooning claims of promoters. Obviously I’m no doctor, and I’m not a scientist, but I feel comfortable stating my opinion that other than rehydrating your body, and providing some of the vitamins and whatnot that you get from any good meal, it’s nothing special. The bone broth fad will be done in a few years; yes, it tastes good, but so do meatballs – remember when they were the next big thing? I wouldn’t be putting my money into a bone broth restaurant.

    Related

    Category: Portland Food and Restaurant News and Discussion.

    Previous Post: « Lake Oswego’s Tucci Expands, Adds Chef Firepower
    Next Post: Reader Survey 2015: Best New Restaurants in Portland »

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Mateu says

      April 30, 2015 at 8:54 pm

      I can’t wait for the StockStickler Twitter bot to find this restaurant. http://mobile.twitter.com/stockstickler
      Should be an interesting conversation. :-)

      Reply
      • PDX Food Dude says

        May 1, 2015 at 10:41 am

        Oh, I’ve already heard from several stock bots. I love it

        Reply
    2. Merina says

      May 5, 2015 at 4:27 pm

      Well, stock and bone broth are NOT the same. Bone Broth is cooked for a minimum of 24-48 hrs. It has healing properties that seal and cure leaky gut, a very common disease, believe it or not. It’s a vital part of AIP and Paleo diets that a HUGE in life changing ways for those with Hashimotos’s, Hypothroidism, Arthritis, and sooo many other common ailments. It contains Glucosamine and helps repair bones and joints. I could go on and on. BEFORE you write a snarky review, I recommend you do a lot more research!!!!!!! It’s the way our ancestors made “broth.” and it has so much healing potential. It’s changed my life. I’m sure many other people would say the same.

      Reply
      • PDX Food Dude says

        May 7, 2015 at 8:29 pm

        I actually did quite a bit of looking around the web, and didn’t come across any scientific studies from reputable sources that substantiated any of your claims. I did find quite a few debunking them, and others saying they are unproven.

        I think what it is all going to come down to, is whether the restaurant survives the test of time, or if this is merely another fad diet, like Atkins or Paleo

        Reply
    3. christian says

      May 9, 2015 at 8:35 am

      I think that if the stock is delicious, has maybe some tasty bits in it, and is well-priced, then there is no reason it shouldn’t go swimmingly! I do find deep comfort in a good brothy soup, and I’m looking forward to this new place, especially as winter approaches.

      Reply

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

    © 2023 · PortlandFoodandDrink.com • See Terms of Service and Privacy Policy