Whole Food Plant Based Eating: Protein
In just a single day I was asked THE question multiple times, “where do you get your protein?” Instead of teaching a lesson on the structure of protein and the presence of amino acids in all living things, I chose to simply talk about what I eat in a day. When I get asked this question I take it as a chance to educate someone who, like many of us, only knows the very basics of nutrition. I feel confident saying that the average persons knowledge of food, nutrition, and how it functions in the body stops mostly at an elementary level and is highly shaped by clever advertising. Education is key here, my goal is to help people rethink their choices and to walk away having learned something new that can improve their overall health.
To illustrate just how easy it is on a plant based diet to get all the protein one needs I have broken it all down here with a list of foods high in protein and examples of meals. In this article I am not going to address the issue of where protein comes from and the sources, for that you can read my previous article. The intention here is to show just how one gets protein on a WFPB diet.
Using my activity level, calorie intake, and weight I should consume anywhere from 250-875 calories or about 68-97 grams of protein. Let’s first talk about some common and high protein food choices. Having all or most of these plant based food options always stocked in your kitchen makes it easy and gives you a lot of options throughout your day.
11 Strong Sources of Protein WFPB:
Tofu 10g per ½ cup
Lentils 18g per cup
Black Beans 8g per ½ cup
Chickpeas 15g per cup
Peanut Butter 8g per 2 tbsp
Almonds 16g per ½ cup
Quinoa 8g per cup
Chia Seeds 5g per ounce
Potatoes 8g per serve
Broccoli 4g per cup
Mushrooms 4g
Of course there are many many many more good and great sources of WFPB protein but I wanted to highlight some good staples that can be combined in any dish and are high in protein
It is all too easy to Google a list of foods that are high in protein but, and I don’t know about you, I do not typically just eat a spoonful of quinoa. I incorporate it in my meals. What does that look like? How does a typical day of eating a plant based diet get me (or you) to hit those protein goals? I’m going to break down 2-3 breakfast, lunch, snack and dinner options and the protein amount in each of those meals. This snapshot should give you an idea of the many options throughout your day and you’ll see that protein is really a non-issue when eating WFPB.
Breakfast
Smoothies (smoothies can be made so so many ways, that’s why I love them so much, and you can incorporate so many different fruits and other additions)
1 cup soy milk (6g protein)
Burn Boot Camp plant based protein (30g)
Frozen strawberries and banana (1g)
1 cup frozen spinach (1g)
Total = 38g
Overnight Oats
1 cup soy milk (6g)
2 tbsp chia seeds (1g)
½ cup steel cut oats (5g)
Fruit (1g)
Total = 13g
Lunch
Wrap
Spinach tortilla (6g)
1 Avocado (3g)
Red onion
Sweet peppers (1 g)
Tomato
¼ cup Brown Rice (1g)
1 slice veggie “cheese” (3g)
¼ cup black beans (4g)
Total = 18g
Buddha Bowl
1 Avocado (3g)
Red onion
Sweet peppers (1 g)
Tomato
¼ cup Brown Rice (1g)
¼ cup black beans (4g)
1 cup mushrooms (2g)
1 cup broccoli (2g)
Total = 13g
Hummus wrap
Spinach tortilla (6g)
¼ cup Pine nut hummus (4g)
Sweet peppers (1g)
⅓ cup cucumbers
¼ cup chickpeas (10g)
Red onion
Total = 21g
Dinner
Vegetable pasta
1.5 cups Whole grain pasta (11g)
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp Vegan parmesan (1g)
Tomatoes
1 cup Broccoli (2g)
Garlic
Total = 14 g
Stir Fry
Ramen noodles (4g)
1 cup snap peas (2g)
1 cup broccoli (2g)
⅓ cup yellow onion (.5g)
1 cup mushrooms (2g)
Teriyaki sauce (1g)
Green onion
Total = 11.5 g
Vegan Jambalaya
1 cup onion (1g)
1 cup bell pepper (1g)
1 large carrot (1g)
1 cup tomatoes (1g)
1 cup brown rice (3g)
1 cup chickpeas (38g)
1 cup kidney beans (6g)
Spices but those don’t have protein
Total = 50g
Snacks
½ cup Almonds (15 g)
½ cup cashews (10 g)
Fruits (~1g)
⅓ cup hummus with vegetables (5g)
1 bag Edamame (15g)
If you start doing some math and mix-and-match meals you’ll see that in any given day my protein intake is somewhere between 65-95g. I no longer count calories (this will be explored in a future article) and as you see I don’t need to. By eating a well-rounded WFPB diet I am easily hitting my recommended protein range.
Have questions about sources of protein or how to incorporate more of a whole food plant based diet into your life reach out!
