Beef tartare. Protein and fat breakfast

Research confirms that breakfast prevents overeating during the day.

Everyone probably sees this significant difference, however, some of you surely are asking the question of what to do when just an hour after eaten porridge you feel even more hungry than before breakfast? The main player here is the metabolism and hormone levels – cortisol associated with stress.

What cortisol does overnight

Many processes in the human body occur in the context of the circadian rhythm. For example, cortisol reaches its highest level in more or less half an hour of morning awakening. I wrote about cortisol in the post about it being a friend and an enemy.

Cortisol stimulates the release of stocks of glucose so the body during the night has the energy for basic biological functions. If at night sugar levels fall considerably, our system apart from the increase of cortisol secretion will produce more glucagon and epinephrine (breaks down glycogen from the liver). This will slow down the digestion, so that the body can survive without an external energy supply. This results in a situation familiar to many people, when in the morning you do not feel hunger and it’s hard to accept the necessity of eating breakfast. Coffee instead of a meal enhances these processes and their effects.

Cortisol, epinephrine and glucagon increase the blood sugar level. A healthy body has a mechanism for self-regulating that level – insulin, of course, is doing the job. If for the first meal we eat carbohydrates, it will cause an additional increase in blood glucose and insulin burst, which after a short time will result in a decrease in blood sugar levels. We will feel hungry, we can even feel some weakness or drowsiness.

In addition, remember that intensive exercises also affect the secretion of cortisol, as well as in people stressed, or being on a low-calorie diets (including low carbohydrate), or in patients with sleep disorders.

Why protein-fat breakfasts appear on my table more often

Along with the passing years, we acquire more and more experience and enrich the knowledge. Based on these factors, plus an additional observation of my body, I know that personally protein-fat breakfast is best for me. Previously I was having mainly carbohydrates in the morning.

However, remember what I always say – there is no one diet for all of us. Each person has different requirements, depending on many factors and processes. The basic is the observation (!) of your body, conclusions and adjusting the diet to individual needs. In case of doubt and discomfort I recommend to perform specialized measurements of sugar levels and cortisol, and to consult a doctor.

When I trained as a professional athlete and competed in karate competitions, my cycle was very different from current one. Doing intense sports, the carbohydrates in the morning gave me a big shot of energy required to complete the training. Today, the demand of my body is completely different.

That does not mean, of course, giving up entirely the carbohydrates. They are needed to regulate many body processes. Basically, I recommend carbohydrates periworkout. For professional athletes I also recommend loading carbohydrates before important events, trainings, matches for the day or two days before the event. Then, before going to sleep it’s good to eat portions of carbohydrates.

Why I choose a protein-fat breakfast

Animal protein is an important component of an athlete’s diet. I usually recommend it as part of dinner, but during the training cycle, there are certain situations, ex. such as competition or match, when a protein boost of energy should be served for breakfast – ex. after an exhausting match or competition taking place in the afternoon or the evening before. Then protein-fat diet brings cortisol to the correct level for the rest of the day.

I experienced these reactions when I have reduced my training load.

The benefits of eating protein-fat breakfast:

• they do not cause spikes in blood sugar levels and therefore are a better choice for individuals with insulin resistance and diabetes.
• it gives a feeling of satiety for longer than carbohydrate meals
• promote fat reduction
• it works well in people with sleep disorders
• due to the above described cortisol are recommended for those neurotic and living in constant stress

On the blog you will find several recipes for breakfast made of fat and protein. You can use the rules of eggs, stew meat, etc. The reasoning behind all of them is written out at greater length in the post on the high-fat, high-protein breakfast. Enjoy! 🙂

Today a main star – tartare

This is obviously not an option for pregnant women, because this beautiful period is governed by completely different rules and we do not eat raw meat, fish or eggs 😉

Tartare should be made of, for example, beef, because it contains fatty acids, CLA and taurine, which assist muscle recovery.

How to prepare it?

I washed the beef, chopped into fine pieces (first cut it in thin strips and then into cubes). Tartare cut by you will have a completely different flavor than the ground one. While cutting add a little olive oil.

Tartare ingredients:

• beef, chopped by hand into fine cubes
• finely chopped onion
• chive
• egg yolk (chicken or quail)
• sea salt and black pepper
• 1 tablespoon of mustard
• veggie crisps

Choosing the beef

With raw meat the shopping matters more than the cooking, because there is no cooking to fall back on. Buy it on the day you plan to eat it, from a butcher you use rather than from a shelf, and say what it is for: tartare is a normal request and a good butcher will hand you a lean cut, usually tenderloin or a trimmed piece of sirloin, and trim the sinew for you.

Then keep it cold. It goes from the shop into the fridge and comes out when the onion and the chives are already chopped, not before. Chop it with a sharp knife rather than putting it through a mincer, which is the whole point of the texture, and season it at the last moment, because salt starts to draw water out of the meat as soon as it lands on it.

How about this for breakfast :)?

If a raw breakfast is a step too far for a weekday, the same idea works with fish: there is a salmon tartare with peas and avocado on the blog, and a salmon and avocado tartar steak. And if you would rather have the whole week of breakfasts decided in advance, with the amounts set from your own goal, that is what the Diet & Training by Ann app does.

Anna Lewandowska

Beef tartare

Beef chopped by hand rather than minced, dressed with onion, chives, mustard and a raw egg yolk, served with veggie crisps as a protein and fat breakfast.

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Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Total Time 20 minutes mins

Servings: 1 serving

Course: Breakfast

Cuisine: Polish

Calories: 420

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• beef chopped by hand into fine cubes
• 1 onion finely chopped
• handful of chives
• 1 egg yolk chicken or quail
• pinch of sea salt and black pepper
• 1 tablespoon mustard
• a few veggie crisps
• a little olive oil

Method

 

1. Buy the beef on the day you plan to eat it, from a butcher, and ask for a lean cut for tartare. Keep it in the fridge until everything else is ready.
   
2. Chop the onion finely and slice the chives.
   
3. Wash the beef and cut it into fine pieces: first thin strips, then cubes. Use a sharp knife rather than a mincer.
   
4. Add a little olive oil while cutting.
   
5. Season with sea salt and black pepper at the last moment, and mix in the mustard.
   
6. Form the tartare on the plate, top with the egg yolk and serve with veggie crisps.
   

Notes

Quantities follow the ingredient box of the post; the post gives no weight for the beef, so none is stated here. Raw beef and a raw yolk: not for pregnant women, and not a dish to make with meat of unknown origin. Calories assume 150 g of beef, since the recipe box does not give a weight, plus the onion, egg yolk, mustard, a little olive oil and a few veggie crisps.

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