Vegetarians Protein Suggestions

Beans, beans and more beans! Kidney, pinto and soybeans have loads of protein, and chickpeas and lentils are packed with it. Tofu has lots, and my american friends tell me seitan is pretty good too ... sadly none of that in the UK

I get seitan from Holland and Barrett in the UK. It's the same thing we call 'mock duck' over here and comes in tins by the brand Granovita. It's used by some Thai restaurants so I love making green curry with it.

THATS what that mock stuff is?! Woah. Never bought that because, well, fake meat sucks. You learn something new every day!

I haven't read the other responses but you are welcomed to look at my diary, its open, I am vegetarian and get about 100 grams of protein a day!! I do add protein powder on a regular basis!

I eat lots of beans, cheese, eggs and nuts!

I do not eat a lot of meat so I tend to get it from Protein shakes and bars.

Beans, beans, the musical fruit...the more you eat, the more you...are feeding your body good proteins.

I also agree with the recommendations for Greek yogurt...don't make that face...if I can choke it down, you can too...cottage cheese, and eggs. Nuts and tofu are also pretty good sources of protein.

If you like fish better than red meat or chicken, since you're not a vegetarian, there are some fish, especially salmon, that are great protein sources.

How much protein are you getting?

Beans and lentils are a big protein source for myself. I also eat tempeh and some tofu. Quinoa is also a good source.

And really, unprocessed food will have some protein in it so eating a variety of foods helps.

About 50-60 g on average. Tonight I had quinoa mac n cheese for dinner that was 15g of protein. I have been trying to drink a protein shake every day but they are kind of sweet. If I remember to do that I get into the 70-80 range.

Also! I was getting 50 - 60g daily because that was the MFP goal but working out and keeping healthy I've been told I should be AT LEAST 100 if not more. So FYI I do think these goals are pretty low

A lot of people, especially on here, overestimate protein needs by quite a large margin. I'm 5'7, pretty active, including a lot of strength building exercises (e.g. lifting weights, pole dancing), and based on the formulas in Vegan For Life (which was written by a vegan registered dietician), my protein requirement is about 80-90 grams. The World Health Organization puts protein needs (assuming you're not restricting calories) at about 10% of calories, and recommends something like 15% of calories to be safe.

A lot of veggies (e.g. kale, broccoli) meet the 15% margin easily. If you get a variety of whole foods, protein should not be a problem if you're not restricting calories. It can be a little trickier for those of us restricting calories, but it should still not be as much of a challenge as many people present it to be, especially since you can always resort to things like protein bars (I make my own, using pea, rice, and hemp protein so I know what is in them and don't spend as much money).

bump for later

Okay, first, we don't need as much protein as the skewed govt guidelines suggest. They're highly influenced by special interest groups like cattle ranchers, etc. second, you can get plenty of protein, in fact all the protein you need, from ALL plants, especially seeds, nuts and beans. There are some extremely muscular and powerful extreme athletes out there that are total vegans. I recommend the following books: Engine 2Diet, Forks Over Knives (there's a documentary too), The China Study, and both of the Happy Herbivores cookbooks for more information.

Very nice thread!!! Awesome posts and I'm totally taking notes on this one. Here's my contribution:

Vegetarian High Protein Foods:
Snow Pea Shoots/Sprouts
Cottage Cheese!!
Any type of cheese
Whey Powder/Liquid
Quinoa
Tofu
Eggs
Seitan
Tempeh
Beans
Lentils
Hummus
Whole Wheat Bread or Pasta
Oatmeal
Nuts


Might I add that it's not so much protein itself that is essential, but amino-acids. We need those amino-acids to build proteins for our muscles, to keep our organs regenerating, have good skin, hair and nails etc. Why we are told to eat "protein" is because it ensures that you get all of those amino-acids at once, but otherwise these amino-acids are scattered a little everywhere in all your food and have to be assembled into proteins by your RNA in your cells. Not all foods that have proteins have "complete" proteins either, meaning they don't have all the essential amino-acids your body needs.

Examples of foods that do have complete proteins are: Quinoa, Eggs, and mixing Lentils and Rice

Also note: If you eat too much animal protein you tax your kidneys because they are responsible for getting rid of the phosphoric acid it produces, you also tax your digestion because it takes longer to disassemble protein molecules because they are the biggest. You also tax your immune system (50% of it is in your gut) which has to work harder to inspect all that heavy protein. You also make your pH levels go acidic - so you need to balance out with lots of vegetables and water to compensate.