What broth can you drink on a carnivore diet? A complete guide

October 24, 2025 •

4 min read

For nearly two million years, our ancestors relied on nutrient-dense animal products like marrow and bone broth to fuel their brain growth. Today, for those following a carnivore diet, understanding what broth can you drink on a carnivore diet? is key to mimicking this ancestral nutrition and avoiding plant-based pitfalls.

Quick Summary

An animal-based approach is required when choosing a broth on a carnivore diet. Bone and meat broths from various animals are compliant, providing essential nutrients like collagen and electrolytes. Homemade broth is often the best choice to ensure no non-carnivore ingredients are used.

Key Points

Carnivore-Compliant Broths: Only animal-based broths are allowed, such as bone broth made from beef, chicken, or fish, and simple meat broths.
Homemade is Safest: Many commercial broths contain non-carnivore ingredients like vegetables, herbs, and sugar, so making your own ensures purity.
Nutrient-Dense: Bone broth provides essential collagen, gelatin, and amino acids crucial for joint health, skin elasticity, and gut repair.
Electrolyte Support: Broth helps replenish electrolytes lost during the low-carb transition, which can alleviate common side effects like fatigue.
Supports Digestion: The amino acid glycine in broth aids fat digestion, helping the body adjust to higher fat intake on a carnivore diet.
Easy Recipe: Homemade bone broth can be made by simmering animal bones and salt in water for 12-72 hours, resulting in a gelatinous, nutrient-rich liquid.

The importance of broth on a carnivore diet

While a carnivore diet primarily consists of muscle meat, relying on this exclusively can lead to nutritional gaps. Broth, particularly bone broth, is a powerhouse for filling these deficiencies. Slow-simmering animal bones, joints, and connective tissues extracts valuable nutrients that are otherwise difficult to obtain. These include collagen, gelatin, and a range of essential minerals and amino acids that support overall health and ease the transition to a meat-only diet.

Why homemade is often best

Many commercially available broths are not carnivore-compliant because they contain plant-based additives like vegetables, herbs, and spices, as well as starches, sugar, and preservatives. To ensure your broth is 100% animal-based, making it at home is the safest option. This also gives you complete control over the quality of the ingredients, such as choosing bones from grass-fed or pasture-raised animals.

Compliant broths on the carnivore diet

On a strict carnivore diet, any broth must be derived exclusively from animal sources. The most popular and nutrient-rich options are:

Bone Broth: Made by simmering animal bones, joints, and connective tissues. This is the cornerstone of carnivore-friendly broths due to its high concentration of collagen, gelatin, and minerals. Bones from various animals can be used, including beef, bison, pork, chicken, lamb, goat, and fish.
Meat Broth/Stock: Created by simmering muscle meat, not just bones. This provides a flavorful liquid that is rich in protein and fat and is a simpler, faster alternative to bone broth.
Organ Meat Broth: For a significant nutrient boost, broth can be made using organ meats like liver, heart, or kidneys. This adds concentrated vitamins, minerals, and amino acids to the broth.

The crucial benefits of consuming broth

Incorporating broth into a carnivore diet offers numerous benefits that support health and address common challenges associated with the transition.

Electrolyte Replenishment: As the body shifts from burning carbohydrates to fat, it flushes out water and electrolytes. Broth is a natural and effective way to replenish essential minerals like sodium, potassium, and magnesium, mitigating side effects like fatigue.
Gut Health Support: The gelatin and amino acids, such as glutamine, found in bone broth help maintain and repair the gut lining. This can be particularly beneficial for those with digestive sensitivities.
Joint and Skin Health: Collagen and gelatin are vital for maintaining the health of joints, skin, and hair. Regular consumption can lead to reduced joint pain and improved skin elasticity.
Digestive Aid: Glycine, an amino acid plentiful in broth, plays an important role in fat digestion by synthesizing bile acids. This can ease digestive upset during the initial stages of the diet.
Nose-to-Tail Nutrition: Broth facilitates the consumption of nutrient-dense animal parts, such as bones and organ meats, which might otherwise be unpalatable for some individuals.

How to make carnivore bone broth at home

Making your own broth is simple and ensures carnivore compliance. Here is a straightforward recipe for beef bone broth:

Ingredients: 3-4 pounds of high-quality beef bones (a mix of marrow bones, knuckles, and joints is ideal), filtered water, and salt.
(Optional) Roasting: For a richer flavor, roast the bones in the oven at 400°F (200°C) for 30-40 minutes until browned.
Simmering: Place the roasted bones in a large pot or slow cooker. Cover with filtered water and add a generous pinch of salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to a low simmer.
Slow Cook: Simmer for at least 12 hours, though simmering for 24-72 hours will produce a richer, more gelatinous broth. Add water as needed to keep the bones submerged.
Strain and Store: Once finished, strain the broth to remove all solid pieces. Let it cool before storing in jars in the refrigerator or freezer. When cooled, it should form a jelly-like consistency, indicating a high collagen content.

Carnivore-compliant vs. non-compliant broths


Feature	Carnivore-Compliant Broth (e.g., Homemade Bone Broth)	Non-Compliant Broth (e.g., Commercial Vegetable Broth)
Ingredients	Animal bones, connective tissue, meat scraps, water, salt	Vegetables, herbs, spices, water, salt, possibly sugar, yeast extract, and preservatives
Nutrient Source	Collagen, gelatin, essential amino acids, electrolytes, vitamins from bones and meat	Primarily vitamins and minerals from vegetables; often lacks gelatin and collagen
Diet Compliance	100% compliant with strict carnivore principles	Not compliant due to the presence of plant-based ingredients
Gut Health Benefits	High in gelatin and glutamine, which support gut lining repair	Does not offer the same gut-healing properties as gelatin-rich broth
Electrolytes	Excellent source of naturally occurring electrolytes to support a low-carb state	May contain some electrolytes but lacks the balanced mineral profile of bone broth
Hydration	Provides excellent hydration, with minerals aiding water absorption	Offers hydration but is not specifically optimized for carnivore electrolyte needs

Conclusion

For those on a carnivore diet, broth is a simple yet powerful addition to their nutritional regimen. The answer to what broth can you drink on a carnivore diet? is simple: exclusively animal-based broths like bone or meat broth. These provide crucial nutrients like collagen, gelatin, and electrolytes that a muscle-meat-only diet can lack. Making broth at home is the most reliable way to avoid non-compliant ingredients found in many store-bought options. By incorporating a high-quality animal-based broth, you can support your gut, joints, and overall health while staying true to the principles of your carnivore lifestyle.

For more information on the carnivore diet and food lists, resources like Healthline can provide additional context.

Frequently Asked Questions

You can, but you must read the ingredients label very carefully. Many store-bought broths contain non-carnivore ingredients like vegetables, spices, yeast extract, or sugar. Look for a product with only animal bones, water, and salt.

No, on a strict carnivore diet, vegetable broth is not considered compliant. The entire purpose of the diet is to eliminate plant-based foods, and even if you strain out the vegetables, the broth is still made from them.

For optimal nutrition and gelatin content, you should simmer bones for at least 12 hours. A longer simmering time, from 24 to 72 hours, will yield an even richer and more nutrient-dense broth.

Meat broth is made by simmering muscle meat, while bone broth is made primarily from bones and connective tissue. Bone broth typically has a higher concentration of collagen and minerals, while meat broth is often richer in flavor and protein.

A strictly followed carnivore diet excludes all plant-based products, including spices and herbs. Some individuals may choose to be more lenient, but for a true carnivore broth, only animal products and salt are recommended.

Both are excellent choices. Beef bone broth tends to have a slightly higher collagen concentration per serving. Chicken bone broth is a good source of collagen but may have a higher omega-6 ratio, though this difference is minor with high-quality bones.

You don't need to add organ meats. However, if you want the extra nutrients, you can start by adding a very small amount, such as an ounce or two of liver, to a larger batch of beef broth. This can mask the flavor while still providing the benefits.