This is what the Queen eats every day

In 2022, Queen Elizabeth celebrated her 96th birthday and Platinum Jubilee, an anniversary that marked her 70-year service as a monarch. Despite a few minor health issues in recent months, Her Majesty is still able to maintain surprisingly stable health conditions at the amazing age of 96. She still keeps up with her pastime pleasure of riding horses and spending time outdoors with her dogs. The secret to her long life is attributed to a routine and balanced eating habit. Here’s a closer look at how the Queen eats on a daily basis.

Breakfast

Queen Elizabeth is a creature of habit when it comes to breakfast, even when she has a team of famous chefs at Buckingham Palace catering for her personal meals and banquets. According to Hello!, former royal chef McGrady wrote in his biography that the Queen usually starts her day with a hot cup of Earl Gray tea and a few biscuits.

Afterward, she’ll eat her official breakfast, which often consists of a bowl of cereal and some fresh fruits. Whole-grain cereal is claimed to promote the balanced function of the brain and maintain a high level of energy to keep her in good condition throughout the morning. Eggs and smoked salmon are rarely seen on Her Majesty’s breakfast menu. On some occasions, she allegedly treats herself to some kippers, her favorite savory dish.

Lunch

Given her healthy eating habit focused on moderation, the Queen avoids eating starchy food such as pasta and potatoes and always prefers a low-carb option as her go-to meal. Avoiding carbs is alleged to maintain the Queen’s mental health during royal commitments and minimize the risk of an afternoon crash. British Heritage writes that the Queen would typically have grilled fish or chicken along with a side of veggies. Her favorite menu, as McGrady told The Telegraph, is grilled Dover Sole or Scottish salmon served with spinach and zucchini. McGrady said:

‘When she dines on her own, she's very disciplined. No starch is the rule.’​​

Afternoon Tea

Afternoon tea is a ‘must’ in Her Majesty’s daily diet, and it’s also a long-established staple of life in the British aristocracy. According to Eat This, Not That, the Queen’s favorite afternoon tea menu consists of sandwiches filled with cucumber, eggs, and smoked salmon, served with a cup of Assam tea. She’s also a big fan of ‘Jam Pennies’, which are little sandwiches filled with jams made from fresh Scottish raspberries and cut into penny-size shapes. This is the snack that the Queen would enjoy as a child in the royal palace.

Dinner

Just like lunch, the Queen conforms to a highly disciplined diet low in carbs, and high in protein for her dinner. However, dishes at dinner are cooked much more meticulously to satisfy the Queen’s tastes. For the first course, she would love Gleneagles pâté, which is smoked salmon, trout, and mackerel. The main course is typically filet steak with a mushroom whisky sauce or halibut with Mornay sauce. According to McGrady, the Queen enjoys being served food whose ingredients were off the estate. He noted:

'We used a repertoire of dishes, mainly British and French food. We cooked a lot of traditional French food like halibut on a bed of spinach with a Mornay sauce.'

Desserts

The Independent revealed that the Queen is a chocoholic—she would indulge in anything with chocolate on the menu. Two of her favorite desserts are chocolate perfection pie and chocolate biscuit cake. Explaining her craving for chocolate, royal nutritionist Jennifer Hanway says that the Queen’s high intake of chocolate is the secret behind Her Majesty’s stable health, thanks to its high portion of antioxidants. Various studies have shown that research suggests antioxidants in chocolate may help lower the risk of heart disease, reduce inflammation and insulin resistance, and improve brain function, which all serve to explain the Queen’s healthy condition.