Green Tips how to Reduce Home Waste and Recycle More

[shireen]

10. bone meal

I hate throwing out the bones after making stock. Then I read about how you can make bone meal by roasting the bones till they're brittle, then pounding them. So I tried it for the first time a few weeks ago with after-stock chicken bones. It was surprisingly easy. I baked the bones in the oven for a few hours on low heat (300F), on two occasions (simply because i didn't want to leave the oven on when i went to bed), till i detected a burning smell. After letting it cool off, I pounded it using a granite mortar and pestle -- a very sturdy one from an online Thai grocery store called Import Foods. Brittle bones broke up quite nicely. The only thing I'll do differently is be more careful about excluding meat and fat remnants. Even if it's cooked to a crisp, it leaves an oily residue.

I'm saving some pork rib bones for my next bonemeal session. Not sure how the harder bones will break up.