British · Authentic-ish British
Full English Breakfast
441 kcal a serving, against 662 for the traditional version. That is 221 kcal off, or 33%, with 34.9g of protein. Serves 2. 35 minutes.
What the traditional version is
The classic: two fatty pork sausages and rashers of streaky bacon, all fried in the same pan, so the dripping coats everything. Eggs fried in the same fat, with mushrooms and tomatoes added to soak it up.
What changed, and what each change costs
Pork sausages to reduced-fat pork sausages
Standard sausages can run well over 25% fat and that's where most of the damage hides. The reduced-fat ones aren't scandalously dry if you grill them instead of pan-frying.
What it costs you. A genuine drop in flavour. The fat's gone, so they're not as juicy. You'll taste more herbs and filler, less meat. That isn't a compliment, but it's what gets the numbers down.
Streaky bacon to lean back bacon, trimmed
Back bacon has much less fat, especially once you trim the rind. It still gives you the smell and hit of bacon, but at half the grease.
What it costs you. You lose some of the crisp edges and the sticky bits you get from frying in bacon fat. It's bacon, so it's still good, but it's not the same.
Fried eggs to poached eggs
All the lovely frilly edges of fried eggs come from hot fat. Poaching takes the fat out completely. You're saving 100 kcal just on eggs.
What it costs you. You're missing the contrast between crisp white and runny yolk. The yolk's still there, but you've got to settle for smooth rather than crispy.
Fried bread to toast
Fried bread is basically toast doing a backstroke in animal fat. Toast gives you the crunch with zero of the swimming.
What it costs you. The first disappointment of any lightened fry-up. It's not a fair swap. There's nothing else like fried bread, so if that's what you crave, maybe just have one proper bit and call it balance.
Fried mushrooms and tomatoes to grilled
Mushrooms are sponges for fat, and tomatoes go slippery in the pan. Grilling keeps them intact and stops them gulping oil.
What it costs you. Less of the leftover fat running into the mushrooms, which means more actual mushroom taste. Some people will call that a benefit, but they're lying.
Butter out entirely
The only thing still fried is your pride. You don't need butter if you're not frying, and it's 150 kcal you won't miss after the first bite.
What it costs you. No browning on the bread or mushrooms, so the colour's paler. You're left with plain toast and grilled veg. Accept it, move on.
The numbers
| Per serving | Traditional | Lightened |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 662 | 441 |
| Protein | 34.4g | 34.9g |
| Fat | 38.3g | 14.1g |
| Saturated fat | 15.5g | 4.6g |
| Carbohydrate | 46.9g | 45.3g |
| Protein per 100 kcal | 5.2g | 7.9g |
Every figure is computed from the recipe's own weighed ingredient list against public food composition databases. The appendix in Authentic-ish British prints the exact database row used for each ingredient, so any number here can be checked.
Allergens. gluten, eggs, milk, mustard, celery.
The method is in the book
This is the first recipe in the book where you can't quite forget the original. A grilled breakfast is fine, but it doesn't have the power or thrill of the pan-fried one. You lose the mingled fat that brings everything together into a single plate. Still, you'll actually want to do something with the rest of your day. You won't need a lie-down and a statin. It's still a proper cooked breakfast: eggs, bacon, sausage, the works. But if you're the sort of person who picks at the mushrooms and saves the fried bread for last, this might just make you question your priorities.
The quantities and the method for this dish are in Authentic-ish British, along with 57 more. It is not out yet. The swap kit is free in the meantime.