It’s the number one question that we get asked and we’re here to answer it today. How do vegans get protein and what are the best vegan protein sources?
Tell someone that you are vegan and they will almost immediately start to ask, “but, how do vegans get protein”?
It’s like it’s been engrained in non-vegans to assume that the only way to get protein is through meat. And I’ll be honest, we likely asked a vegan this question before going vegan ourselves.
We get it. No matter what dietary changes we are making, our biggest and utmost important goal is to stay healthy and make sure we are getting proper nutrition.
When you first swap to eating a vegan diet, there are a lot of questions. Our goal here today is to share some of the best vegan protein sources and even share some meal ideas!
Never miss another post! Sign up for our weekly newsletter and get them all delivered easily! Plus, 15 easy recipes delivered immediately!
Sign Up For My Newsletter Today!
First, it’s important to note that vegans and vegetarians can get all the proper nutrition that they need. This includes protein.
In fact, there are vegan sources of protein that are actually higher than meat sources of protein. It’s always fun to share that large animals like elephants and gorillas actually don’t eat meat; so, if they can survive off plant based foods, so can human!
Let’s get into the details!
Disclaimer: We are not medical professionals. This post is not medical advice. This post is for informational and educational resource only. Please consult with a medical professional for medical advice.
How much protein do you need?
We can all agree that humans need protein.
According to Cleveland Clinic, healthy adults needs 0.36 grams of protein per pound of their body weight daily. For a 125-lb person that would come out to 45 grams of protein daily. The Dietary Reference Intake report says that the average man needs around 56 grams, whereas an average woman needs about 46 grams.
That being said, pregnant or breastfeeding people, athletes, and other very active professions may need more. Chrissy Carroll, RD, from Snacking in Sneakers says, “Athletes will need a bit more. Protein is involved in muscle repair and recovery, which is needed after a tough workout. Athletes typically need around 1.2 to 2 grams per kilogram, depending on their goals and training regimen.”
It’s always best to consult a dietician, nutritionist, or your doctor if you are trying to target specific goals to get an accurate number for your body.
For reference, the average 3-4oz of meat has approximately 25 grams of protein in it which is the average size piece of beef or chicken.
Do I need to track my protein intake?
Unless you are monitoring nutrients for a reason, most people don’t do this. There’s no reason a vegan would need to either. The most important thing is that you are eating a well balanced diet that contains a variety of foods and minimally processed.
If you do this, then you are likely just naturally getting enough. Some days will be less whereas some days will be more. Over time it all works to balance out what you need daily.
If you never tracked this prior to going vegan, it’s not necessary to track this now either. The best thing that you can do is make sure you a varying what you eat with the ideas listed below.
Best Vegan Protein Sources : What Vegan Food is High in Protein?
Let’s see the best sources of vegan protein!
- Almonds – Grab and go, because these gives you 7 grams of protein for every ¼ cup of almonds
- Barley – If wanted to use in a recipe, pearled barley is better. 15 grams of protein for just a ¼ cup
- Beans – Most beans (any variety) range from 6-10 grams of protein per half cup. Black beans, kidney beans, pinto beans, are all versatile in using in a variety of dishes from salad to soup to tacos.
- Chickpeas – Adore these little things because of how useful they are in the kitchen. Great in salads or make a vegan chicken salad from them because they are 6 grams of protein for every ½ cup
- Dairy Free Milks – There are many vegan milks on the market that naturally have a lot of protein – soy and pea for example; however, there are now specialized forms of dairy free milk that boost up to 20 grams of protein per serving.
- Edamame – One cup of shelled soybeans contains 18 grams of protein. These make great snacks on their own and many restaurants serve them as an appetizer, but they can also be part of your meal.
- Freekeh – this is an alternative to rice or quinoa, but can get you 7g of protein for every ¼ cup.
- Hemp Seeds – A newer seed available to the masses even though hemp has been around forever, but add these to your need smoothie or salad and you’ll get 10 grams of protein for every 1oz.
- Lentils – you can buy brown, green or red lentils and you’ll get 12-13 grams of protein per half cup of cooked lentils. Red ones get super soft and almost mushy like when cooked so use those in things like purees or sauces. Green and brown can be used interchangeably and are great in things like burgers, tacos and more.
- Meat Substitutes – They all vary but many contain 9 grams or more per serving size.
- Nutritional Yeast – Vegans use nutritional yeast not only because of its cheesy flavor, but also because it contains a lot of B12 which is hard to get as a vegan. That being said, it also has 2 grams of protein for every 1 tablespoon. Great on salads and to make vegan cheese sauce.
- Oats – Make cookies, oatmeal or overnight oats, add into smoothies and more. A ½ cup of oats gives you 5-7 grams of protein.
- Peanuts – Eat by the handful or make something with them, but peanuts yields 9 grams of protein for every ¼ cup serving which is the most out of any nuts (even though it’s really a legume)
- Peas (Green) – One cup cooked has 8 grams of protein. Use in pasta salad, to make a pesto, or in your next bowl of soup.
- Pistachios – A great and delicious snack while you watch TV or add to your next meal, but you’ll get 6 grams of protein for ¼ cup serving.
- Pumpkin Seeds – A delicious snack or a topping for your soup and a crazy 10g of protein for ¼ cup.
- Quinoa – A grain that has a high amount of protein with just a ¼ cup yielding 5 grams of protein.
- Seitan – One of the absolute best sources of protein as a vegan if you aren’t gluten free. Seitan is made from vital wheat gluten (VWG) and contains 56 grams of protein for every 8oz. This lines up with that you are getting from traditional meat substitutes.
- Sunflower Seeds – Love these on salads, but you can also make a vegan taco meat with them as well and you’ll get 8 grams of protein for every ounce!
- Tempeh – A fermented soy product, tempeh contains a whopping 15-16 grams of protein for every 3 oz. They can be made into bacon which is great on sandwiches or crumbled into a variety of dishes.
- Tofu – one of the best meat substitutes because of its versatility, you’ll get 8-10 grams of protein for every 3.5oz. There are about 12 ounces per package of tofu.
- TVP – TVP stands for textured vegetable protein and you can get up to 12g of protein per ¼ cup dried. TVP is a dehydrated soy protein so to use you want to rehydrated in water or stock (preferred). Then, you can use as a meat substitute.
Additional High Protein Vegan Foods:
- Amaranth – 9g protein for 1 cup
- Bulger – 3g protein per ¼ cup
- Chia Seeds – 6g protein for ¼ cup.
- Farro – 7g of protein for ¼ cup
- Flaxseed – 3g protein for 2 teaspoons
- Grain/Seeded Bread (Ezekiel) – varies, but approximately 8g of protein per 2 slices
- Nut Butters – 10g protein for ¼ cup (varies based on nuts used)
- Rice – 4.5g protein for 1 cup
- Spelt – 10g protein per 1 cup cooked
- Spirulina – 8g protein for 2 tablespoons
- Teff – 10g protein per 1 cup cooked
Vegetables with High Protein:
- Artichokes – 4.2g protein for 1 medium
- Asparagus – 3g protein for 1 cup
- Avocado – 4g per avocado (medium)
- Baked Potato – 4.5g per medium baked potato (with skin)
- Broccoli – 3.7g for 1 cup (cooked)
- Brussels Sprouts – 5.6g per cup (cooked)
- Corn on the Cob – 4g per ear of corn
- Mushroom – 3.9g per cup (cooked)
- Seaweed (wakame) – 5.3g for 1 cup (cooked)
- Spinach – 5.3g for 1 cup (cooked)
As you can see there are so many sources of protein that work for vegans and vegetarians. People who don’t dat meat can still have high protein vegan foods and get all the nutrients in that they need.
How do vegans get enough protein?
Now that you know the sources, you may be wondering what’s a good example of getting in everything that you need in one day.
Example of Daily Protein Requirement for Vegans #1
- Breakfast – 2 slices of Ezekiel bread with 1 avocado, mashed on top – 12g of protein
- Lunch – Salad with 2 cups of spinach, 1 tablespoon hemp seeds, 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast – 13g protein
- Add ½ cup chopped mushrooms, 1 roma tomato diced, and fresh corn sliced off cob for an additional 6g of protein
- Dinner – ¼ block of cooked tofu, ¼ cup dried then cooked quinoa, 2 cups of cooked broccoli – 20g of protein
- Snack – 10 saltine crackers with ¼ cup peanut butter – 12g protein
- Alternative 3oz baby carrots with ¼ cup peanut butter – 11g protein
For breakfast, lunch and dinner, these simple examples that are realistic. It also doesn’t account for extra snacks, salad dressing, or any seasoning/marinade preparation of the tofu or quinoa which could all add more. Still, we got to a whopping 63g of protein which is higher than the daily recommended amount for the average man or woman.
As you can see it’s not as hard as you many think and there’s endless ideas out there for getting in protein!
Example of Daily Protein Requirement for Vegans #2
- Breakfast – Vegan Peanut Butter and Jelly Overnight Oats – 19g of protein
- Lunch – Chickpea and Tahini Stuffed Baked Potatoes – 13g protein
- Add 1 cup cooked broccoli on the side for an additional 3.7g of protein
- Dinner – Crispy Roasted Cauliflower and Garlic Parmesan Vegan Pasta – 15g of protein
- Snack 1– ¼ cup peanuts – 9g protein
- Snack 2 – No Bake Chocolate Energy Bites – 2 bites – 6g protein
- Alternative 3oz baby carrots with ¼ cup peanut butter – 11g protein
With this second daily option, you get 65.7 grams of protein. Again, easy, simple options. Not really much work or energy, using easy to find ingredients.
Our goal in sharing these options is to show you that you can easily get protein without a lot of work even if you are vegan.
What are high protein vegan meals ideas?
We wanted to share with you a few recipes that we have for high protein vegan meals. These combine high protein vegan foods with seasoning and complete ideas so you don’t have to think about it!
- High Protein Vegan Burgers
- Vegan Quinoa and Black Bean Tacos
- Vegan Cajun Sweet Potato and Black Bean Rice Bowls
- Instant Pot Vegan Bean Soup
- Chickpea and Tahini Vegan Stuffed Baked Potatoes
- Chickpea Cashew and Broccoli in Garlic Sauce Skillet
- Vegan Chickpea Burgers
- Lentil Sloppy Joes
- Vegan Lentil Soup
- Vegan TVP Meatballs
- Tofu Taco Crumbles
- Vegan Jerk Tofu Rice Bowls
Breakfast Ideas
Disclaimer: We are not medical professionals. This post is not medical advice. This post is for informational and educational resource only. Please consult with a medical professional for medical advice.
This post was originally written on 6/7/2021 and updated on 1/8/2022.
Rose
Where do vegans get their protein? Bitch, peas 😂😂😂😂 Sorry. Saw this the other day. Laughed so hard that I almost peed. Thank you for sharing such amazing recipies!!!
LarishaBernard
HAHAHAHA love this!
Hosheanah Marshall
Ok thank you so much.
Hosheanah Marshall
Hello to my favorite vegan YouTubers😊
Thank you for sharing all this good info.
Quick question?
What Ezekiel Bread brand do you recommend?
LarishaBernard
Hi! and thank you so much! We like Dave’s a lot