Vegan protein? No problem

by Martha Edwards (Subscribe to Martha Edwards's posts)
Apr 17th 2008 3:58PM

Categories: Vegetarian, Alternative & Green Health, Nutrition & Supplements

I recently wrote about how much protein we need to get each day to eat a nutritious diet. And while getting our protein fix isn't difficult for those of us who eat some sort of meat with most of our meals, it's a bit harder for someone who doesn't eat meat -- or dairy either. Vegan protein sounds like an oxymoron to some people, but it's really not. Fitsugar recently compiled a list of the top 5 vegan proteins:

Tempeh: (like tofu but different -- read more here). There's 22 g of protein in 4 oz of tempeh.
Tofu: It has 19.9 g of protein per 1/2 cup.
Seitan: (a form of wheat gluten.) There's 19.9 g of protein for each 3oz.
Soy Milk: (the plain variety). It has 11 g of protein for each cup.
Edamame: Eat half a cup and you'll get 10 g of protein.

Any vegans out there want to share their main sources of protein?

Source

Comments (6)

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

gracerx 4-17-2008 @ 5:44PM

Don't forget about Hemp Protein. I'm not vegan but a friend of mine gave me some Hemp milk recently. I didn't like the plain flavor the but the Vanilla and Chocolate rock! Plus it's a complete protein, lots of omega 3's and 6's. The brand I like is Living Harvest.
http://www.worldpantry.com/cgi-bin/ncommerce/ExecMacro/livingharvest/home.d2w/report?hbtype=ppc&hbv1=google&hbv2=lhhempmilk

marcie0305 4-17-2008 @ 9:43PM

I'm not a vegan, (mostly vegetarian) but I get most of my protein from a "bigass salad" I eat every day at lunch. It's mostly mediterranean style - romaine, tomatoes, cucumber, edmame, green peppers, kidney beans, peas, carrots, olives, parmesan, feta, mixed nuts, olive oil, caesar dressing & red wine vinegar - and I do add a little egg and tuna.

It comes out to about 30g of protein - if I left out the tuna & egg I could add more edmame & nuts to make up for it. The cheeses are a big source of protein as well - I have made a vegan substitute before with some firm tofu & extra salt to replace the cheese. Please use sea salt to get the good minerals not found in regular table salt :)

~Marcie
http://feedingblackmail.blogspot.com

Lane 4-18-2008 @ 9:28AM

I get my protein from all of the sources that you mentioned in your post, plus nuts and legumes.

I wrote a post on my blog, VeganBits.com on the topic of vegan nutritionvegan nutrition.

Dr. Andrew Weil says: "...More and more enlightened dietitians recommend that people move toward “plant-based” diets to reduce disease risks and improve well-being. That does not mean forgoing all animal foods and sticking to salad bars when you eat out. It does mean unlearning the habit of organizing meals around centerpieces of meat and poultry and becoming acquainted with the great variety of satisfying protein-rich dishes that can be made from vegetarian ingredients. Populations that eat plant-based diets live longer and enjoy better health than populations whose protein sources match those on the list above..."

Judy 4-18-2008 @ 9:54AM

I'm not vegan or vegetarian, but do eat very little meat, normally. (I do eat too much dairy, and that's probably where I get most of my protein.)

I recently tried seitan, and LOVE the stuff. I always hated tofu, but seitan can be used in many of the same ways, and the taste and texture are much better. My husband will even eat it.

I also bought some tempeh to try, but I'm not really sure what to do with it.

Jaslene 4-18-2008 @ 11:34AM

Quinoa. There are white and red varieties of this super food that contains complete protein. I love it.

Kyle 4-18-2008 @ 11:28PM

I'm a vegan, and I get protein easily by just eating enough veggies! Eat 1/4 cup of amaranth and you've got 7 grams, some broccoli with it and you've got 3 more. There are great vegan protein powders, too. Like a Rice Protein by Nutribiotic, as well as the aforementioned Hemp proteins by Living Harvest and Ruth's.