The 411 On Bulletproof Coffee: What You Need To Know – Pros AND Cons

Bulletproof coffee, also known as bullet coffee, MCT coffee and grassfed coffee, was conceived of by Silicon Valley veteran Dave Asprey, who was inspired to create the recipe after discovering tea blended with yak butter whilst traveling in Tibet. The exact bulletproof coffee formula consists of blending organic filtered coffee, Brain Octane or XCT oil and unsalted grassfed butter (some people substitute coconut oil). Today, this breakfast replacement drink has inspired a movement, led by Asprey’s Bulletproof Exec website who names it “the best cup of coffee on earth, ” with everyone from tech CEOs to yoga-mat-toting healthy hipsters proclaiming it life-changing. Bulletproof coffee, with its high fat, low-carb nutritional profile and traditional Tibetan roots, has especially resonated with the paleo crowd, a dietary and lifestyle philosophy that has been heavily embraced globally over the past year.

Bulletproof Coffee Pros

It’s Great For Energy: Devotees cannot speak enough of how energized bulletproof coffee makes them feel! For some people, the effects last until dinner, which means they eat much less overall and are able to manage their weight more successfully.

It’s A Brainpower Boost: Thanks to the high levels of medium-chain-fatty-acids in XCT oil/brain octane oil and the massive amounts of omega-3 in grass-fed butter, your mind will be refreshed and your thoughts as clear as water, which explains why so many high-achievers can’t live without it.

It’s A Meal Replacement: Bulletproof coffee is a meal in a cup- no faffing about with granola and milk or toast and bacon. Simplification during bleary-eyed mornings is always a boon! That being said- see below for the con about it being a complicated recipe.

It’s Delicious: Frothy, creamy and smooth, bulletproof coffee is just so yummy. We can speak to that, we truly love the taste and texture and it has become a mainstay in our lives.

Bulletproof Coffee Cons

It Has A High Calorie Content: Yes, good quality fat is important as part of a balanced diet. In moderation. No matter how healthy your grass-fed butter full of ALA is, it is still a calorific food, which means you have to practice portion control. If you like to eat, it may be difficult to limit your chewed food intake later on in the day when breakfast is basically just a cup of coffee.

It Requires Specific Coffee Beans: Asprey is pretty insistent on the type of coffee you need to be using for your morning cup to proffer its full effects. He recommends low-toxin coffee beans- which are expensive and difficult to source- because Asprey claims that the majority of the world’s coffee beans contain mycotoxins, compounds that have been linked to health issues like heart disease and kidney problems. Bulletproof coffee requires organic beans that were grown completely pesticide-free and are produced in a way that does not allow mould to develop, a common issue when producing coffee.

It’s A Complicated Recipe: Making the perfect cup of bulletproof coffee feels like a science experiment, here’s Asprey full how-to guide, with steps like pouring boiling water into your blender to pre-heat it and using a metal filter. Not everyone’s going to be able to fully commit every manana- which means most of us will be patting ourselves on the back for grabbing a crappy cup of black coffee with a spoonful of processed butter.

Looking for a cup of bulletproof coffee in Hong Kong? Try Little Cove Espresso, Spicebox Organics‘s cafe at their Caine Road location and Elephant Grounds. If you want to learn more about the Paleo lifestyle, check our complete Hong Kong Paleo Primer.

Photo credits: floating espresso via photopin (license),  OKIMG_5963 via photopin (license) and morning coffee via photopin (license).