You have to reach your daily protein requirement, but you don’t know which protein foods to prefer over others. You wonder which foods are the richest in protein.
In this article, you will find a whole series of protein foods that you can include in your diet according to your needs.
Top 10 foods (foods) richest in protein ever
The most protein-rich foods of all come from both plant and animal foods. While the former is classified as low-quality protein sources, the latter, on the other hand, are of high quality about their biological value.
A clarification: all the numerical values you will find always refer to 100 g of product.
Dry stockfish
This fish is nothing more than northern cod preserved by drying and is by far the most decadent food in protein: it contains, in fact, 80.1 g of protein. Carbohydrates are absent, and there is only a minimal trace of lipids.
Mullet bottarga
Bottarga is obtained from mullet eggs, salted, and dried: the food contains 43.5g of protein / 100g. Tuna bottarga is more common but has a lower protein content.
This food has a composition similar to other eggs: it consists only of lipids (57%) and proteins (43%).
The recommended portion is 50 g.
Dry soy
In third place, there is a vegetable food: soy, which in dry weight (dehydrated) contains 36.9 g of protein. It is by far the legume with the most proteins and from which many derivatives, typical of vegan nutrition, are obtained.
Caciocavallo
Caciocavallo contains 35.7 g of proteins and a cheese obtained from cow’s milk with the addition of rennet (rich in proteins) and lactic ferments.
It not only contains a good amount of high biological value proteins but also a lot of lipids (31 g / 100g).
Guinea fowl
Meat is generally a good source of protein, the first being guinea fowl with 34.4g. This value refers to a specific part of the animal, i.e., the skinless leg.
Calabrian Soppressata
With a substantially equal quantity of protides (34.2) compared to guinea fowl, there is the soppressata of Calabria, a sausage typical of the region obtained by drying from pork.
Grana Padano
Foods derived from milk usually have a good amount of protein and a different distribution of fats depending on the processing. The grain contains 33.9 g; Parmigiano Reggiano also has a similar content (32.4).
Calabrian sausage
Not far from these cheeses, there is another processed and typical food of Calabria: sausage, with its 33.6 g of protein. In addition to the protein content, there are also many saturated fats, which limit its use.
Bresaola
Bresaola is the richest in protein ( 33 g ) and leanest, but it is also very rich in salt.
Pine nuts
Among the many types of nuts, these seeds are the most protein ( 31.9 g ). Plus, they’re packed with healthy monounsaturated fats and antioxidants.
Top 5 plant-based protein foods richest in protein
Even in the plant kingdom, you will find different foods with a lot of proteins. It is an old myth that you can only take proteins from meat: many of these are part of legumes or dried fruit.
Soy
The main legume is dry soy: it contains 36.9 g of protein and can also be used for soy or flour steaks.
Pine nuts
The first example of protein vegetable food best-electric-pressure-washerand part of dried fruit are pine nuts with 31.9 g of proteins.
Lupins
Next to soy, lupins, another legume, are a plant food containing many proteins (36 g).
Roasted peanuts
Often mistaken for a member of the dried fruit family, peanuts are legumes – they contain protein (29 g).
Wheat germ
Wheat germ is a small component of the kernel of this cereal, which is usually exported together with the outer coatings in refining processes. It can be used for oil production. It contains 26 g of proteins, but to obtain them, you would have to eat a considerable amount (together with the lipid component).
The five long-life protein foods
Long shelf life is substantially guaranteed by the absence of water: the five foods without short-term expiration date are those without water. If there is no water in the food or there is only a trace of it, the microorganisms cannot grow and deteriorate the organoleptic characteristics (and therefore the quality) of the food in which they reside.
- Low-fat soybean meal
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- Dried mushrooms: like other foods in this category, mushrooms have been dehydrated. Therefore, the result is an absence of water and a greater concentration of nutrients than the fresh equivalent and equal in weight.
- Dried fruit
- legumes
- Milk powder
The five sweetest protein foods richest in protein
The idea of dessert is easier to combine with foods that are rich in sugars and fats rather than proteins … In fact, the first three sweet foods with more proteins are not associated with what you imagine as “a dessert.” Usually, sweet foods do not contain many proteins, but carbohydrates and fats predominate.
Milk powder
As already mentioned, all types of powdered milk (whole, semi-skimmed, skimmed) are much richer in protein than their fresh counterparts.
Peanut butter
Peanuts contain many proteins, and so is the cream that comes from grinding them: peanut butter, which contains 22.6 g of protein and many good fats.
Sweet almonds
They are not sweet in the true sense of the word, but they are still among the sweet foods and above all with proteins, as well as the rest of the dried fruit. They have 22 g of proteins, as well as many micronutrients.
Milk biscuits
Cookies are more associated with something lovely (not like the previous almonds!), But the protein intake also drops significantly: 13.8 g.
tiramisu
It should be said: last but not least, tiramisu is among the top 5 sweet protein foods! Which unfortunately has not only proteins (which are still few, 13.2 g), but also carbohydrates and fats.
What protein foods to eat as an alternative to meat?
It is likely that when you think of protein food, the first thing that comes to mind is meat. As you have already seen, however, in reality, meat is only one of many protein foods and not the richest in protein.
Legumes
The soybean is an excellent food to make proteins for those who follow a vegan diet, but of course, also for those who want to limit the consumption of meat a week and fall back on food that still has a good protein intake. Even its derivatives, such as soy steak and flour, have a high content of vegetable proteins.
In addition to soy also lupins, lentils, broad beans, peanuts (they are part of the legume family, not dried fruit) are plant foods that, combined with a good carbohydrate source, provide a complete amino acid spectrum.
Dried fruit
Protein in nuts is not the most present nutrient and is also not of high quality. Also, remember that by taking dried fruit, in addition to this type of protein, the lipid (and caloric!) A portion will be very high.
Lean cheeses
Low-fat cheeses have a lipid content how to take screenshots that must be less than 20%, a percentage that is still relatively high but which differs from the high percentage of fat cheeses. With the same quantity and protein intake, lean cheeses are better than fat ones.
Low-carb protein foods (sugar-free)
Foods that contain only proteins (listed in a later paragraph) or proteins and lipids are foods that you can include in a low-carb diet, where you essentially get energy from lipids and proteins.
Fatty meats
These are generally red meats (bovine, beef), which in addition to the protein intake, also have a percentage of saturated fats: for this reason, to limit the saturated fat content, it is good to consume red meats only occasionally.
Fatty fish
In fatty fish, unlike fatty meats, the lipid content is an added value because it is a source of monounsaturated and polyunsaturated lipids, which are not harmful to health.
Examples are herring, mackerel, salmon (the lowest cholesterol of the three).
Cheeses
The fatty cheeses are mascarpone, fontina, taleggio, gorgonzola, buffalo mozzarella, crescenza: all of these in common have a high percentage of lipids and proteins compared to the negligible presence of carbohydrates.
Whole eggs
The eggs are completely devoid of carbohydrates and food not very caloric, with high-quality protein Nell album and with a good lipid composition in the yolk.
Dried fruit
There is a large variety of nuts, the richest best electric pressure washer in protein being peanuts (26g), followed by pistachios (18g), hazelnuts (15g), and cashews (15g). in these foods, the polyunsaturated lipid content prevails. They are highly caloric foods.
Which protein foods contain low fat
If you follow a low-fat diet but somehow have to reach the daily protein requirement, the foods you can count on are still many.
Food of animal origin
In this category, you can freely consume lean meats, lean fish, lean cold cuts (turkey breast, bresaola), egg whites, low-fat dairy products (Greek yogurt).
Foods of plant origin
In this case, the choice is a little more limited, as it is only the legumes that essentially contain no fat. Absolutely to avoid dried fruit as it is very rich in polyunsaturated lipids.
Low-calorie protein foods that make you lose weight
In nature, it is difficult to find a food that has only proteins, only carbohydrates, or only fats: almost always, every food has, in different proportions, two or all three macronutrients.
For this reason, foods that have both proteins and low calories, for the same quantity, are those that have a reduced fat and carbohydrate content: in these foods, most of the calories will be given by the proteins present – especially if there are proteins and carbohydrates in the food rather than proteins and fats (more caloric than carbohydrates).
The intake of these foods makes you lose weight as long as your diet is low-calorie.
Foods with only proteins
- Egg white
- Bresaola
- Turkey breast
- Protein powder
- Lean meats (chicken breast, turkey breast)
- Cod
Foods with proteins and carbohydrates
- legumes
- Lean cheeses
- Greek yogurt
Gluten-free protein foods
Gluten is found substantially in foods with wheat, rye, barley, spelled: none of these are in the list of foods with a high protein content; therefore, all the foods already listed are valid.
- Soy and derivatives
- Meat and fish
- Dried fruit
- legumes
- Milk and derivatives
Lactose-free protein foods
Fortunately, not being able to ingest foods with lactose does not limit the list of protein foods that you can take too much: except milk and derivatives (cheeses and yogurt of all kinds), there are many other foods available.
Food of animal origin
Cod, chicken breast and turkey, bresaola, egg white, turkey breast are among the protein foods that do not contain lactose. Even if among the ingredients, there will be the warning of possible traces as it is considered an allergen. It is good that the consumer is informed.
Avoid milk, powdered milk, and derivatives (low-fat and low-fat cheeses, yogurt).
Foods of plant origin
The whole category of vegetable protein foods (legumes, nuts) is lactose-free.
Soy-free protein foods
It is easy to exclude soy and choose protein foods: among all the foods already listed, it is sufficient to eliminate soy and its derivatives directly.
- legumes
- Dried fruit
- Meat and fish
- Milk and derivatives
Cheap protein foods
The foods that cost less are those of plant origin. All foods of animal source and with a complete amino acid spectrum in the same quantity cost more: lean meat and fish, dairy products such as cheeses.
Legumes: lupins, soy, lentils
In conclusion, legumes turn out to be the wealthiest category of foods and also the cheapest. The only flaw is that being a vegetable. They do not have high-quality proteins. Still, you can remedy them by combining them with a cereal (e.g., the classic pasta and beans): in this way, you will have all the amino acids you need and at a lower price than foods of animal origin.
Conclusions on protein foods
There are many foods rich in protein, how to save money both from animal and plant sources. In the first category, however, you will find protein foods rich in fats, in the second in carbohydrates.
Therefore, when you are about to choose protein foods. You can try to select the food that is right for you, with only.