Courtesy of Netflix
Love Is Blind star Jordan Keltner is getting plenty of attention after whipping up a chicken smoothie that left his fiancé (and viewers) gagging.
In episode nine, Keltner added chicken to a blender, along with water and a packet of Crystal Light. His fiancé, Megan Walerius, had a predictable reaction of dry-heaving after taking a taste. “That is so f—ing gross,” she said. “Oh my God, the texture.” Keltner admitted that it’s “a little gritty sometimes,” before suggesting that he tosses this back every morning.
Keltner also informed his fiancé that the drink has 350 calories and 55 grams of protein, before encouraging her to feel his muscles.
Keltner’s concoction has both riveted and disgusted fans, with many wondering why he decided this was a good thing. “I’m all about the gainz, but this is foul,” one person wrote on Instagram. “But like…what if he just ate some chicken…,” another said. Others in the comments tried to explain Keltner’s unconventional drink. “I use[ed] to be really into fitness, and it’s really hard sometimes to hit your protein goal just by eating it. Especially if you eat plain chicken everyday,” someone wrote.
Keltner has gotten in on the fun, even doing an Instagram ad for Ninja while showing the world exactly how to make his chicken smoothie. “Absolutely nobody asked for this tutorial,” he joked in the caption, before calling the smoothie part of his “breakfast routine.”
For all the recent hype, Keltner didn’t invent the chicken smoothie: People have been talking it up on TikTok for years. The smoothie admittedly sounds disgusting, but with the growing push for people to eat more whole foods, is he on to something? A food scientist and dietitian break it down.
What is the chicken smoothie?
Every person’s chicken smoothie recipe is slightly different, and Keltner has his own unique take. He starts with six to eight ounces of unseasoned baked chicken. “It has to be unseasoned, or it’s going to taste even worse,” he said in a recent Instagram video. Then, fill the blender to the max line.
After that, Keltner added a generous squirt of drink flavoring (he used Mio flavored drink mix in his Instagram tutorial, but used Crystal Light on the show). Finally, he blends the mixture until it’s completely smooth. The last step, per Keltner: “We’re going to chug it as fast as we possibly can.”
This isn’t unhealthy, according to nutrition experts.
While it may set off your gag reflex, nutrition experts say a chicken smoothie isn’t terrible for your health. “A chicken smoothie isn’t inherently a terrible idea,” says Jessica Cording, RD, the author of The Little Book of Game-Changers. She points out that some people with swallowing issues or other trouble eating need to blend their food this way. “This is not something that most people who can eat solid food necessarily would gravitate toward, but, in terms of functionality, it is okay to eat food in puree form,” she says.
There may even be some perks of having a chicken smoothie. Blending the meat may make it easier to digest and increase the absorption of amino acids, which are the building blocks of protein and are important for muscle growth, Nicholas Burd, PhD, nutrition science researcher and a professor of health and kinesiology at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, tells SELF. “This ultimately can improve the amount of dietary amino acids available in circulation to help support whole body and muscle protein synthesis,” he says.
Still, there’s no reason to go this route.
Keltner seems to be grossed out by his go-to smoothie as much as viewers. But Burd says there’s no reason for anyone to have chicken this way. “It’s the same ‘health’ benefit” as eating a piece of chicken, he says. Keltner “simply changed the digestion and absorption,” Burd adds.
“For most of us, there is no real benefit to doing this because chicken is already considered a high quality protein source,” Burd explains. “Changing its digestibility is not a huge concern.”
Burd also says that there’s “no point” in taking in 55 grams of protein or more in a single meal. “It doesn’t hurt anything, as we have metabolic pathways to eliminate the ‘extra’ protein in a meal—it’s just not necessary to help our muscles’ recovery or build them,” he says.
While Keltner seems to gulp down his smoothie to try to get more protein into his day, Cording says there’s a “missed opportunity” by not adding vegetables to the mix. “You could put so much stuff in there that you won’t taste—carrots, spinach, cauliflower, zucchini,” she says.
If you’re looking to get more protein in your life, Cording suggests trying to squeeze in the nutrient in a way that works for your lifestyle. “Don’t forget to make sure that it tastes good,” she says. Ultimately, experts agree with fans: Just eat the chicken instead.
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Originally Appeared on Self
