I just can't eat enough protein!

DebiS1972

The best protein comes from animal products. The best is meats, like chicken breast, fish, and lean red meats. Then is animal products, like eggs, cottage cheese, and yogurt. Finally, there are plant-based products, like beans, some grains, and soy.

As far as meats go, what I've already listed are the best options. Just make sure you check fat content.
-My favorite of these are chicken breasts because of all the ways you can "dress them up" with seasonings and veggies.
-I also really like lean ground beef (if you can find it, go for 95% lean), but because there often isn't enough fat to bind it into patties, I usually brown it in a pan with seasonings or diced tomatoes with a little bit of basil and oragano.
-Venison, if you can handle the game-yness works similar to really lean ground beef.
-I don't particularly like fish, but tuna is pretty versatile.
-I don't eat much pork, but as long as you get lean cuts, you can treat them like any of the other meats, really.
Almost any of these go well with rice, quinoa, or on a sandwich.

Next, by-products:
-Eggs are really good, and you don't HAVE to skip the yolk if you really like the flavor (or you can use one yolk to for every three whites for a little less fat).
-Greek yogurt is my favorite of the yogurts. I don't know precisely how you discriminate when it comes to "low fat/fat-free" foods, but here's I'd recommend fat free. One small (single-serving) container of 0% PLAIN fat greek yogurt is usually 80-90 calories and has roughly 14-16 g of protein. I stress plain, because it has no sugar added. WARNING: it's like really thick sour cream plain, so I recommend adding fruit/honey. My favorite thing is a packet of low-cal carnation breakfast powder (Contains splenda, though) because it leaves the final calorie count at around 140 calories with around 20 g of protein, and tastes like frozen yogurt. With a side of fruit, it makes a great breakfast!
-Cottage cheese is another thing I'd recommend you purchase fat free, as it has around the same amount of protien for around 20 cals more than the greek yogurt. The plus side? It's MUCH more palatable plain than the yogurt. If you want, you can add fruit/honey to it to sweeten it, or veggies, pepper and a little olive oil to make it savory. One of my favorite things to do with this is to add about 1/4 tsp. of pumpkin pie spice to it. It REALLY tastes like pumpkin pie!
-With the exception of low-fat mozz, other cheeses fall pretty "meh" for me on the protein/fat ratio department.

Finally, plant-based protein sources. These are a little different than animal products. A lot of people say that the protein is absorbed poorly from these sources, but I think the issue lies more in the carb/protein ratio of the foods. I'm listing some of my favorites:
-Quinoa is really a wonder food. It has a better protein/carb ratio than many other grains, with the added ability to be treated as several kinds of food. I've seen it work well in place of rice, pasta, and even white potatoes in some dishes! It's really versatile and really healthy!
- I don't personally like beans/lentils as a protein source because a lot of them have many more carbs than expected. If you look around, though, you'll likely find a few types with decent ratios. I strongly recommend buying them raw and seasoning them yourself rather than canned unless they're caned in only water.
-Soy products can also be deceiving, but if you shop around, you'll find what you're looking for, just as with beans.
-EDAMAME! This is one of my favorites. They're raw soy beans, and easy to find in the health food section of your local grocery store. A 3/4 c serving is around 100 calories, with around 10 g of protein, and 2g of fat. They're great fr an afternoon snack. You can add a little salt or other seasoning for flavor, but I like the taste of them plain!

I know I didn't cover everything, especially since I've never used protein powder/shakes/bars, but these were a few of the protein sources that I particularly like!
Good Luck!

Thank you - you have all been really helpful.

Kelly_Runs_NC

Greek yogurt
cottage cheese
protein powder
eggs
chicken
tofu
cheese

I have absolutely no issue hitting 160 grams so you can do it for sure!

qaw00r

Here are a few more vegetarian options to try:

Spinach
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Chia seeds