We Put 9 Store-Bought Bone Broths To The Test And One Stood Out Among The Rest

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Chicken noodle soup is widely considered to be the quintessential "sick day" food. While it can't cure a cold, a bowl of hot soup can soothe your throat and provide some essential nutrients at a time when it may be difficult to eat much else. Optimize your protein intake by making sure your soup of choice is made using bone broth rather than just regular broth or stock. And of course, bone broth has other uses beyond soup. A cup of bone broth on its own can be a quick and comforting pick-me-up — but if you're not ready to down a straight cup of broth, you can always incorporate it into hot chocolate, per the TikTok trend. Other uses for excess bone broth include cooking rice, grains, noodles, etc.

If you're looking to add more bone broth to your diet, Chowhound ranked nine popular store-bought brands of chicken bone broth to help sort out the highs from the lows. On the low end, you'll find Dr. Kellyann's Classic chicken bone broth; an impressive 15 grams of protein per cup couldn't overcome its lack of taste. On a more positive note, Chowhound gave an enthusiastic thumb's up to Zoup!'s chicken bone broth. This broth had a promising amount of sediment on the bottom (which may not sound appealing, but contributes to a homemade illusion). And although Zoup!'s bone broth contained fewer ingredients than other brands on the list, it used them to more success, resulting in a complex and flavorful product.

While Dr. Kellyann's product was packed with protein but lacked flavor, Zoup's bone broth has the opposite issue. This obviously didn't affect its ranking, but do note that it had the lowest amount of protein out of all the options: just 4 grams in a cup. If protein is a priority, look for Roli Roti Butcher's Organic Chicken Bone Broth, which came in at No. 3 in the ranking and had a notable 13 grams of protein per cup. Beyond flavor, Chowhound appreciated that Zoup's bone broth came in a large, glass jar with a vibrant and appealing label design. And how can you fault the playful name: Zoup!

If you've never heard of Zoup!, the company actually originated as a soup restaurant that opened in the late 1990s before eventually franchising in 2002. If you live in one of eight U.S. states (Colorado, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Virginia) or in Ontario, Canada, you may have a Zoup! restaurant nearby (although they recently rebranded to Z!Eats). The company began bottling and selling its broth in 2014, due to customer demand, and began focusing more intensely on retail production in 2022. Now, in addition to the winning broths, you can purchase jars of Zoup! soups, chilis, and bisques, plus "culinary concentrates" (concentrated broth base). Besides the chicken bone broth, Zoup! makes beef bone broth, spicy chicken broth, and both reduced-sodium and vegan options.