There’s no denying that eggs are a pretty perfect breakfast. They only take a couple of minutes to make, are delicious (especially when you know how to make them extra fluffy), and are nutrient-packed. Virtually every registered dietitian will tell you just how much they love eggs.
Melissa Rifkin, RD, says that the main reason why nutrition experts are so into eggs is that they’re a goldmine of nutrients. “In addition to protein, eggs provide a variety of vitamins, like A, D, E, K, and B12, choline, and lutein,” she says. “While we should be consuming these nutrients from multiple sources throughout the day, enjoying them at breakfast is a great way to ensure you reach adequate intake across the day and don’t start the day too far behind on the consumption of these important nutrients.”
Watch the video below to learn more about the health benefits of eggs:
Okay, so it’s abundantly clear that eggs are a breakfast win. But Rifkin also says that if you don’t pair anything with them, your morning meal isn’t as well-rounded as it should be. To really make sure you’re covering your nutrient bases in the morning, she recommends following a very simple three-step formula, which details what to eat with eggs.
The 3-step formula for making sure your eggy breakfast is a well-rounded morning meal:
1. Cook your eggs with herbs.
The first part of the three-step formula is the most obvious one: Cooking your eggs. Rifkin explains that eggs provide both the protein and healthy fats needed to give you enough energy until lunch. Both nutrients are also key for feeling satiated, too. A one-second way to make your eggs even healthier is to cook them with anti-inflammatory herbs. Have fun experimenting with different combinations. Some to try are turmeric and pepper, oregano and thyme, dill and chives, or garlic and red pepper.
2. Add a fiber source of your choice.
Eggs have a lot of nutrients, but one they don’t have is fiber. “Fiber is another nutrient that should be consumed throughout the day,” Rifkin says, adding that it’s another key nutrient for feeling satiated from your morning meal. “Additionally, fiber helps to bulk up the content processing through the digestive tract aiding in digestive regularity.”
When it comes to what to eat with eggs to up the fiber, Rifkin says there are lots of foods that can easily be integrated into your morning meal. “You can add veggies to an egg scramble, have a cup of fruit on the side, serve your eggs on a whole wheat tortilla or slice of whole wheat bread, have a savory eggy oatmeal bowl, or incorporate nuts or seeds,” she says. The key is just to add something with fiber to your meal.
3. Incorporate a carb.
Yep, carbs are good—important even. Rifkin says that they’re also another nutrient that eggs don’t have, so when it comes to the question of what to eat with eggs, this is the last part of the formula to think about. “Luckily, a lot of the same foods that have fiber have carbs too,” she says, listing oatmeal, whole-wheat toast, fruit, and nuts all as great carb sources.
Really when you think about it, this three-step formula is often a two-step formula because so many foods cover both your fiber and carb nutrient bases. How easy is that? It just goes to show that eating a well-rounded morning meal doesn’t have to take long to prep; your egg breakfast will be ready just as quickly when you follow the formula all the way through. And it will end up doing a better job of keeping you full until lunch, too.
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