High Protein, Low Calorie Foods... Suggestions?

chelagetsfitIG
chelagetsfitIG Posts: 23 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Hi all,

I feel pretty good about my food choices right now, but I want to up my protein intake a little more. What are some foods you enjoy that are high protein, but not too high in calories. I'm not currently interested in using protein shakes or supplements. I am still training my mind to see food as fuel and not as reward/punishment so I want to stick to just healthy, plain ol' food and not supplements just yet.

Thank you for your help!

Replies

  • lemurcat2
    lemurcat2 Posts: 7,881 Member
    Some quick answers: low fat/skim cottage cheese and plain greek yogurt, fish (esp. white fish, but even fattier fish are low cal and the fat is really healthy), shellfish (shrimp is a protein per cal powerhouse), chicken breast or turkey breast (esp skinless), any other lean meat (you might be surprised at how low cal some cuts of beef and pork are).
  • NannMC
    NannMC Posts: 19 Member
    I just made a push to increase protein and avoid exceeding daily calories. Switched from eggs to just egg whites, chicken breasts, canned chicken, chicken patties, chicken chicken chicken! Krusteaz makes a wonderful protein pancake mix that packs a 20g protein punch. Smoked turkey sausages (similar to bratwurst but only 100 calories each) have 10g protein and are tasty in an omelet. Even with all that I came up a little short, so I ended up adding the 30g Premier protein shake. I buy the premade vanilla milkshake, and they are dessert to me. :)
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    You've got some good animal based suggestions above, from the plant part of the world I would recommend tofu. I'll often have baked tofu for breakfast or a higher protein snack -- it's really easy to prep and keep in the fridge.
  • penguinmama87
    penguinmama87 Posts: 1,158 Member
    janejellyroll wrote: »
    You've got some good animal based suggestions above, from the plant part of the world I would recommend tofu. I'll often have baked tofu for breakfast or a higher protein snack -- it's really easy to prep and keep in the fridge.

    I also like lentils and chickpeas. I frequently use them for meals as the major protein without using any meat, but they also work well alongside meat.
  • wilson10102018
    wilson10102018 Posts: 1,306 Member
    Shrimp. Frozen tail on raw, deveined, $11 per pound. Consider it 2 servings. 50g protein.
  • riffraff2112
    riffraff2112 Posts: 1,757 Member
    edited March 2021
    something not so obvious is imitation crab. Not fishy tasting and quite low in calories. Its a great snack or as an additive to salads, pastas. AS far as how healthy all the additives are...hmmm
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,154 Member
    edited March 2021
    lemurcat2 wrote: »
    Some quick answers: low fat/skim cottage cheese and plain greek yogurt, fish (esp. white fish, but even fattier fish are low cal and the fat is really healthy), shellfish (shrimp is a protein per cal powerhouse), chicken breast or turkey breast (esp skinless), any other lean meat (you might be surprised at how low cal some cuts of beef and pork are).

    Great list - everything I would have said.

    Yes, pork tenderloin has almost identical macros to chicken thighs. Which is why it is my least favorite cut, lol. I prefer super fatty pork. But now that I am working to reduce saturated fat, I am looking at pork tenderloin again.
  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 8,405 Member
    I cooked a big pot of a stew with leftover veggies and meat, loosely based on a cassoulet. There's a big pile of brown beans in it, a fatty cuts of pork meat, a raw cured sausage, potatoes, onions, garlic, herbs, stock cubes, and whatever veggies I still had. Comes in at 418kcal per portion and 37g of protein. Which is bad for me as I do best on a high carb diet. Poor planning. But something like this might be exactly what you're looking for. I'll probably eat it with a big chunk of baguette or Turkish bread to up the carbs.
  • lx1x
    lx1x Posts: 38,274 Member
    My go to.. baked salmon and shrimp.. 😋
  • janeypoosandbob
    janeypoosandbob Posts: 85 Member
    yirara wrote: »
    I'll probably eat it with a big chunk of baguette or Turkish bread to up the carbs.
    Are you in Turkey? I live in Muğla 😃

  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 8,405 Member
    janeypoosandbob wrote: »
    yirara wrote: »
    I'll probably eat it with a big chunk of baguette or Turkish bread to up the carbs.
    Are you in Turkey? I live in Muğla 😃

    No, sorry. It's one of those things that are easy to get here due to a large number of Turkish immigrants <3
  • chelagetsfitIG
    chelagetsfitIG Posts: 23 Member
    Thank you everyone so so much for all the recommendations. I will definitely start adding some of these to my meal planning. I did not realize shrimp had so much protein. Personally, I love it, but I do my best to keep it out of the house because my husband has very high cholesterol and I know shrimp is not good for that. But I will see how I can incorporate it to my meals without having the temptation around for my husband. Maybe add it to my lunch salads since we dont usually have lunch together. I do love fish (salmon is my fave), chicken, and turkey so I'm thinking of oven roasting a turkey breast and having it available in the fridge sliced up like lunch meat to snack on. Thanks again for the suggestions. I appreciate the help!!!
  • age_is_just_a_number
    age_is_just_a_number Posts: 618 Member
    Another vegetarian high protein item is hemp. I put it in my breakfast and sprinkle it on salad.
    I love Greek yogurt.
  • Mujer47
    Mujer47 Posts: 5 Member
    Hi everyone, just join and am doing a Low Calorie for now, and loving it, I use to do Weight Watchers, but want something new,
  • speyerj
    speyerj Posts: 1,369 Member
    @chelagetsfitIG - there's a common misconception that foods that are high in cholesterol raise blood cholesterol. As it turns out, the process isn't quite so linear. Diets high in sugar and saturated fats contribute more to elevated "bad" cholesterol levels than consuming dietary cholesterol.
    https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/is-shrimp-healthy#TOC_TITLE_HDR_6
    https://health.clevelandclinic.org/sweet-tooth-spells-trouble-heart/#:~:text=Diets high in sugar make,a type of blood fat).
  • chelagetsfitIG
    chelagetsfitIG Posts: 23 Member
    speyerj wrote: »
    @chelagetsfitIG - there's a common misconception that foods that are high in cholesterol raise blood cholesterol. As it turns out, the process isn't quite so linear. Diets high in sugar and saturated fats contribute more to elevated "bad" cholesterol levels than consuming dietary cholesterol.
    https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/is-shrimp-healthy#TOC_TITLE_HDR_6
    https://health.clevelandclinic.org/sweet-tooth-spells-trouble-heart/#:~:text=Diets high in sugar make,a type of blood fat).

    Yes, thank you for sharing this. I do know this to some degree, but when I start doing research for my husband to help for his high cholesterol I get a little overwhelmed thinking I have to balance his dietary needs with mine and never get too deep into learning this info. I will be checking out these links. Thank you again for this.

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