Best Supermarket Beef Broth

Once again, I am relying on the wonderful test kitchens of Cook’s Illustrated to pin down the best supermarket beef broth. Of course, the best broth of any sort–beef, chicken, vegetable, fish–would be homemade. But for those of us with too little time for that, the next best thing has to be the supermarket “best.”

After testing 13 broths, Cook’s Illustrated narrowed their top picks to two broths which “delivered on rich, beefy flavor.” According to testers, the ingredients used to reach this beefy flavor were quite different for each broth.

The runner-up, College Inn, is said to rely on “beef, beef derivatives, and glutamate-rich additives.” These additives, which include yeast extract and tomato paste, give the stock flavor, while other additives give this brand its body.

The winner, made by Colavita, is Rachel Ray Stock-In-A-Box All Natural Beef Flavored Stock. It has a shorter list of ingredients that starts with concentrated beef stock, which means the stock has more fresh, real meat and a really beefy flavor. Tasters called it “steak-y” and “rich” with “thick, gelatin-like body.”