High Protein Breakfast Ideas

The week after turning fifty feels like the week after any big event: quieter, slower, the echo of the party still in the yard. I cleaned up. I put away the folding tables. I found a puff-puff under the porch chair, which means James's desserts have the same migratory tendencies as Mai's spring rolls. I composted it. The yard returned to normal.

Huy's watch is on my wrist. It's heavy — heavier than a modern watch, made of actual metal, the kind of thing men wore when things were built to last instead of built to be replaced. The crystal is scratched. The second hand ticks with a slight hesitation every few seconds, like it's thinking about whether to continue. I had it serviced at a watch repair shop on Bellaire — an old Vietnamese man named Mr. Thao who said, "This watch is older than you." I said, "It is." He cleaned it, oiled it, adjusted the movement. He didn't fix the hesitation. He said, "That's character." I agreed. Some things are better imperfect. The hesitation is Huy's ghost, and I want it there.

Work was normal. The routines of restaurant supply sales don't change because you turned fifty. Consultations, deliveries, phone calls, invoices. I sold a convection oven to a new Thai restaurant in Midtown and a walk-in freezer to a catering company in Sugar Land. The equipment moves through me like water through a pipe — I connect the people who make food with the tools they need to make it. It's not romantic work. But it's honest work, and I've done it well for thirty years.

Made a simple Vietnamese steak and eggs — bò bít tết — which is a Franco-Vietnamese dish from the colonial era. A thin steak pan-seared in butter, served with a fried egg, pâté, and a baguette, accompanied by a small salad. The French brought steak to Vietnam and the Vietnamese kept it but added fish sauce and chili to the plate. I eat this for breakfast sometimes, with Vietnamese coffee, and feel like I'm in a café in Saigon in 1960. Food is time travel. Every bite takes you somewhere. The trick is knowing where you want to go.

The morning after I found the puff-puff under the porch chair and put Huy’s watch on for the first time, I needed something that didn’t ask anything of me — something that just fed me, grounded me, and reminded me that I’ve been here long enough to know what a good morning looks like. High-protein, unfussy, and honest: a thin steak in butter, an egg in the same pan, a smear of pâté on a baguette, and a Vietnamese coffee to go alongside it. This is the breakfast that brings me back to myself. I’ve written down the version I make at home so you can bring yourself somewhere, too.

Prep Time: 5 min | Cook Time: 15 min | Total Time: 20 min | Servings: 1

Ingredients

1 thin-cut sirloin or ribeye steak (about 6 oz, 1/2 inch thick)
2 large eggs
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
1 teaspoon fish sauce
1/2 teaspoon soy sauce
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 small Vietnamese baguette (or 1/2 French baguette), split and lightly toasted
1 to 2 tablespoons chicken or pork liver pâté
1 small handful mixed greens or thinly sliced cucumber and tomato, for the side salad
1 teaspoon rice vinegar
1/2 teaspoon neutral oil
Sliced fresh chili or chili oil, to serve (optional)

Instructions

Season the steak. Pat the steak dry with paper towels. Season both sides with salt and black pepper. Drizzle fish sauce and soy sauce over both sides and let sit for 5 minutes while the pan heats.
Sear the steak. Heat a cast-iron or heavy skillet over medium-high heat until very hot. Add 1 tablespoon of butter. When it foams and subsides, lay the steak in the pan. Sear without moving for 2 to 3 minutes per side for medium, depending on thickness. Transfer to a plate and let rest.
Fry the eggs. Reduce heat to medium-low. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of butter to the same pan. Crack in the eggs and fry sunny-side up until the whites are just set but the yolks are still runny, about 2 to 3 minutes. Season lightly with salt and pepper.
Toast the baguette. While the eggs cook, toast the split baguette in a toaster oven or under the broiler for 1 to 2 minutes until the cut sides are lightly golden. Spread generously with pâté.
Dress the salad. In a small bowl, toss the greens or sliced cucumber and tomato with rice vinegar, neutral oil, and a pinch of salt.
Plate and serve. Arrange the steak, fried eggs, pâté baguette, and side salad on one plate. Add sliced chili or a drizzle of chili oil if desired. Serve immediately, ideally alongside Vietnamese iced coffee or hot café sua da.

Nutrition (per serving)

High Protein Breakfast Ideas — The Plate That Carries the Weight of Fifty