Powered collagens are the hydrolyzed form of gelatin, meaning that the proteins are broken down into individual peptide (amino acid) chains and the powdered collagen doesn't gel like gelatin. You can easily stir powdered collagen into hot liquids or other foods.
"Throughout history we've eaten collagen because we've made efficient use of the animal," Asprey told Mic in an email, explaining that when we chow down on hamburgers and steaks, we miss out on the beneficial animal connective tissue in its raw state. Asprey began eating powdered collagen when he found bone broth was "incredibly inconvenient" to make.
Dumping a tablespoon or two of collagen into your morning brew is way faster than waiting eight to 10 hours for a slow cooker to make broth. But would the powdery white stuff sully the taste of coffee? I decided to try it for myself.
Powdered collagen: Tasteless, invisible, snot-like?
I dumped a heaping spoonful — roughly 10 grams — of Bulletproof Upgraded Collagen Protein into a cup of cold brew. The powder immediately sunk into the brew and started dissolving. I stirred vigorously, noticing as the powder began forming gelatinous clumps not unlike, well ... boogers.
Some of the booger-like clumps sunk to the bottom of my drink. Try as I might, more stirring did not break them up. I took a sip and hoped for the best.
Shockingly, the collagen-rich cold brew didn't offend my taste buds. In fact, I hardly noticed that my caffeine was laced with a protein-rich powder. The coffee had a smooth and bitter taste, just like any other cold brew with a splash of milk.
Here's where it got bad: Unbeknownst to me, one of the gelatinous clumps lodged itself into my straw and I ate it. The clump had the slimy texture of the chewy tapioca pearls in a bubble tea, yet it tasted slightly yeasty. Luckily, a few more sips of the cold brew cleansed the taste from my palate.
