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12 Complete Proteins Vegetarians Need to Know About

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12 Complete Proteins Vegetarians Need to Know About

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Nick English

12 Complete Vegetarian Proteins

Are meat-free protein sources complete?

The term “complete protein” refers to amino acids, the building blocks of protein. There are 20 different amino acids that can form a protein, and nine that the body can’t produce on its own. These are called essential amino acids—we need to eat them because we can’t make them ourselves. In order to be considered “complete,” a protein must contain all nine of these essential amino acids.

Yes, meat and eggs are complete proteins, and beans and nuts aren’t. But humans don’t need every essential amino acid in every bite of food in every meal they eat; we only need a sufficient amount of each amino acid every day.

Still, we do want complete proteins in all of our meals. No problem—meat’s not the only contender. Eggs and dairy also fit the bill. Here are some of the easiest:

Photo: Tattooed Martha
1. Quinoa

Protein: 8 grams per 1 cup serving, cooked. Quinoa looks a lot like couscous, but it’s way more nutritious. Full of fiber, iron, magnesium, and manganese, quinoa is a terrific substitute for rice and it’s versatile enough to make muffins, fritters, cookies, and breakfast casseroles.

2. Buckwheat  –  kuttu, eaten during fasting.

Protein: 6 grams per 1 cup serving, cooked

Buckwheat is, in fact, not a type of wheat at all, but a relative of rhubarb. While the Japanese have turned the plant into funky noodles called soba, most cultures eat the seeds by either grinding them into flour (making a great base for gluten-free pancakes!) or cooking the hulled kernels, or “groats,” similarly to oatmeal. Buckwheat is crazy healthy: Some studies have shown that it may improve circulation, lower blood cholesterol and control blood glucose levels.

Go-to recipes:
Roasted Spiced Pumpkin with Toasted Buckwheat
Soba Noodles with Peanut Dressing

3. Hempseed  – bhang!

Protein: 10 grams per 2 tablespoon serving

Chillax, bro, this hemp won’t get anyone stoned. This relative of the popular narcotic contains significant amounts of all nine essential amino acids, as well as plenty of magnesium, zinc, iron, and calcium. They’re also a rare vegan source of essential fatty acids, like omega-3s, which can help fight depression without the need to get high!

Go-to recipes:
Raw Pumpkin Hemp Seed Protein Bars
Lemon Hemp Seed Cookies
Gluten-Free Pizza with Hemp Seed Pesto
Strawberry Blueberry Smoothie with Hemp Seeds

Photo: Carrie Vitt
4. Chia – related to sabja seeds used in falooda

Protein: 4 grams per 2 tablespoon serving

Chia seeds are the highest plant source of omega-3 fatty acids, and they contain more fiber than flax seeds or nuts. Chia is also a powerhouse of iron, calcium, zinc, and antioxidants, but the best thing about these little seeds is that they form a goopy gel when combined with milk or water. This makes them fantastic for making healthy puddings, thickening smoothies, or replacing eggs in vegan baking.

Go-to recipes:
Coconut Chia Pudding
Pear and Chia Whole Wheat Pancakes
Chia Vegan Protein Muffins
Spicy Roasted Cauliflower with Chia Seeds

5. Soy

Protein: 10 grams per ½ cup serving (firm tofu)
15 grams per ½ cup serving (tempeh)
15 grams per ½ cup serving (natto)

While beans are normally low in the amino acid methionine, soy is a complete protein and thoroughly deserves its status as the go-to substitute for the meat-free (but go easy on the processed varieties).Tempeh and natto are made by fermenting the beans, but tofu is probably the best known soy product. If protein’s a concern, it’s important to choose the firmest tofu available—the harder the tofu, the higher the protein content.

6. Mycoprotein (Quorn)

Protein: 13 grams per ½ cup serving

Originally developed to combat global food shortages, mycoprotein is sold under the name “Quorn” and is made by growing a certain kind of fungus in vats and turning it into meat substitutes that are packed with complete protein. Admittedly, it’s a little weird-sounding, but mycoprotein is sometimes considered part of the mushroom family, and while there are some allergen concerns, only one in 146,000 people experience adverse reactions. To the rest, it’s pretty darn tasty. Since it’s usually bound together with free range egg whites, Quorn is not technically vegan-friendly, but the company does have some vegan products.

Go-to recipes:
Quorn-Stuffed Roasted Peppers
Quorn Samosas
Quorn Lasagna

Photo: Holly Warah
7. Rice and Beans

Protein: 7 grams per 1 cup serving

One of the simplest, cheapest, and vegan-est meals in existence is also one of the best sources of protein around. Most beans are low in methionine and high in lysine, while rice is low in lysine and high in methionine. Put ‘em together, and whaddaya got? Protein content on par with that of meat. Subbing lentils or chickpeas for beans produces the same effect. These meals are a great way to load up on protein and carbohydrates after an intense workout.

Rajma chawal anyone?  :)

8. Ezekiel Bread

Protein: 8 grams per 2 slice serving

“Take wheat, barley, beans, lentils, millet, and spelt, put them in one vessel and make them into bread for yourself.” This fragment of Ezekiel 4:9, while initially intended to help a besieged Jerusalem make bread when supplies were low, turned out to be a recipe for an extraordinarily nutritious loaf that contains all of the essential amino acids. It’s also usually made from sprouted grains, a process which significantly increases the bread’s fiber and vitamin content, as well as its digestibility.

Go-to recipes:
Ezekiel Bread from Scratch (Note: Requires a flour grinder)
Ezekiel Bread Pizzas

9. Seitan

Protein: 21 grams per 1/3 cup serving

Wheat gluten gets demonized by a lot of people these days, but with the obvious exceptions of celiac-sufferers and the gluten intolerant, it’s nothing to be afraid of. First created more than a thousand years ago as a meat substitute for Chinese Buddhist monks, seitan is made by mixing gluten (the protein in wheat) with herbs and spices, hydrating it with water or stock, and simmering it in broth. But this one’s not complete on it’s own—it needs to be cooked in a soy sauce-rich broth to add gluten’s missing amino acid (lysine) to the chewy, very meat-like final product.

Photo: Dori Grasska
10. Hummus and Pita

Protein: 7 grams per 1 whole-wheat pita and 2 tablespoons of hummus

The protein in wheat is pretty similar to that of rice, in that it’s only deficient in lysine. But chickpeas have plenty of lysine, giving us all the more reason to tuck into that Middle Eastern staple: hummus and pita. Chickpeas have a pretty similar amino acid profile to most legumes, so don’t’ be afraid to experiment with hummus made from cannellini, edamame, or other kinds of beans.

Go-to Recipes:
Roasted Red Pepper Hummus with Garlicky Pita Chips
Greek Vegetables, Hummus, and Pita Pizza
Avocado and White Bean Hummus and Pita Chips
Sun-Dried Tomato Hummus and Pita

11. Spirulina with Grains or Nuts

Protein: 4 grams per 1 tablespoon

Contrary to popular belief, this member of the algae family is not a complete protein, since it’s lacking in methionine and cysteine. All that’s needed to remedy this is to add something with plenty of these amino acids, such as grains, oats, nuts, or seeds.

Go-to recipes:
Raw Spirulina Energy Crunch Bars
Mixed Nutty Spirulina Smoothie
Spirulina Popcorn
Spirulina and Hemp Truffles

12. Peanut Butter Sandwich

Protein: 15 grams per 2-slice sandwich with 2 tablespoons of peanut butter

See how easy this is? Every time legumes like beans, lentils, and peanuts are combined with grains like wheat, rice, and corn, a complete protein is born. Peanut butter on whole wheat is an easy snack that, while pretty high in calories, provides a heaping dose of all the essential amino acids and plenty of healthy fats to boot. Home made, without sugar, that is.

Go-to recipes:
Grilled Pumpkin, Peanut Butter, and Apple Sandwich
Roasted Tofu Sandwich with Peanut Sauce
Peanut Butter, Green Tomato and Jalapeño Jam Sandwich
Whole Wheat Peanut Butter Banana Bread

Cheat Sheet: 12 Complete Proteins for Vegetarians

How much protein do we need? Should we supplement?

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Protein is such a crucial nutrient. And yet, most of us are severely lacking in it. Vegetarians and vegans due to the nature of the diet, and many disadvantaged people due to limited resources.

For a typical meat eating person, 15 percent of the total calories consumed each day (roughly 113 grams for an active male eating 3,000 calories, or 83 grams for an active female consuming 2,200 calories) may come from protein.

However, there are certain situations where it may be advantageous to increase protein intake to 20 to 30 percent of calories, or even as high as 35 percent of total calories—at least temporarily.

“Wait a second,” you might say. “Don’t high-protein diets cause kidney disease and cancer?” This is yet another myth. Studies have shown that protein intakes up to 35 percent of calories (or even higher) are safe for people without pre-existing kidney problems. And there’s no evidence that high protein diets increase the risk of cancer, as long as you’re eating a balanced, nutrient-dense diet.

Now let’s take a closer look at five groups of people that often benefit from a higher protein intake.

People trying to lose weight

A large body of evidence suggests that high protein diets are effective for fat loss.  Protein is more satiating than fat and carbohydrate, which means we feel more satisfied when we eat it. When we feel more satisfied, we naturally eat less—and lose weight without trying.

In fact, some recent research suggests that the reason low-carb diets are effective for weight loss is not because they are low in carbohydrate, but because they are high in protein.

People with blood sugar and metabolic problems

High-protein diets have also been shown to have a stabilizing effect on blood sugar, and lead to beneficial changes in a wide range of metabolic, cardiovascular and inflammatory markers, from insulin sensitivity to cholesterol and triglycerides to C-reactive protein.

Athletes and people who train hard

Protein is the nutrient required to build and rebuild muscle. If you want to add or maintain muscle mass (i.e. if you’re an endurance athlete, weightlifter, or you train hard in other activities or sports), you should consume more protein.

The elderly and the chronically ill

Both the elderly and the chronically ill frequently suffer from muscle wasting. A higher protein diet can help to prevent further tissue breakdown and reduce the adverse effects of both aging and chronic illness.

People who are under a lot of stress

As mentioned above, protein has a stabilizing effect on blood sugar. High stress levels can lead to hypoglycemia or other blood sugar imbalances. Increasing protein intake—especially in the morning—can boost energy levels, reduce jitteriness, agitation and mood swings, improve sleep, and sharpen brain function.

How much protein do you need?

If you’re in one of the groups above, I recommend consuming between 20 and 35 percent of calories from protein each day. The higher end of that scale (30–35 percent) would be for aggressive weight loss, metabolic problems, and people doing extreme training; the middle end (25–30 percent) for athletes and people training at moderate to vigorous intensity, and the lower end (20–25 percent) for the elderly, chronically ill, and people under a lot of stress. That said, these are just general guidelines and I suggest you experiment through the entire range to see what works best for you.

This is quite possibly much more protein than you’re eating now. Let’s look at some examples using the ranges below:

% of calories as protein      2,200 calorie diet (g)      3,000 calorie diet (g)
35% 193 263
30% 165 225
25% 138 188
20% 110 150

 

Now, let’s look at a typical day’s worth of protein on a healthy eating plan.

  • Breakfast: two eggs, sauerkraut, vegetables. Approximately 15 grams.
  • Lunch: salad with 100-200g of sliced chicken breast. Approximately 30–60 grams.
  • Snack: one ounce of almonds (about 23 almonds). Approximately 6 grams.
  • Dinner: 100-200g of beef sirloin, sweet potato, steamed broccoli. Approximately 35–70 grams.

This adds up to between 86 and 151 grams of protein, or 16–27 percent of calories on a 2,200 calorie diet and 11–20 percent of calories on a 3,000 calorie diet.

As you can see, this falls short of the protein targets for most categories in the table above, especially if you’re eating closer to 3,000 calories and/or trying to get more than 25 percent of calories from protein.

And for vegetarians, its really quite challenging getting in the required numbers,

When protein powder makes sense

Obviously one option is to simply increase your intake of whole-food proteins, such as meat, fish, eggs, and nuts. For example, you could start your day with 1/2 filet of salmon (about 40 grams of protein) instead of two eggs, and/or you could eat closer to a pound of protein for lunch and dinner. If you feel good eating this much animal protein, this is what I’d recommend; it’s always best to meet nutrient needs from whole food.

But let’s face it: not everyone wants to eat over a kilo of fish, meat and poultry each day. I am almost vegetarian, and I cannot eat so much of it so frequently. I have patients that feel the same way.

These are the situations where protein powder can be a useful addition. You can add protein in your meals to boost your overall protein intake. It can either be a source of additional calories if you’re trying to put on weight or aid recovery, or a means of boosting protein without adding calories if you’re trying to maximize weight loss or metabolic function.

How to choose a protein powder

There are three important factors in choosing a protein powder: tolerability, quality, and bioavailability.

Tolerability refers to how likely the protein is to cause an adverse reaction. The best is when you don’t know its there. So I recommend the powder be added to items of food, without changing the taste, color or texture. For example, partly replacing flour in chappatis.

Quality refers to the quality of the protein source, how it is processed, and how it is manufactured. There’s obviously a ton of junk out there, especially in the bodybuilding community. If you’re going to use a protein powder, you should choose the highest quality product you can get.

Bioavailability refers to how completely absorbed the protein is. In general, plant proteins like pea and rice are much less bioavailable than animal proteins like whey, egg and beef.

So choose wisely, maintain optimum protein intake and Stay Healthy!

 

Should we eat Low Fat?

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We want to be healthy. And to be healthy, we need to cut down on fat, so we should go for the low fat options when we choose food, right?

Turns out its not so!

Because manufacturers very cleverly disguise the awful taste of low fat foods by adding sugar instead.

And so the consumption of the baked potato chips, fat-free ice cream, low-fat candies, cookies, and cakes has paradoxically caused obesity rates to skyrocket!

low 1

Because the low-fat diet is also a high-carb diet, this diet can lead to an increase in blood triglycerides, increasing the risk of cardiovascular disease.

The best way to lower triglycerides is to eat in the exact opposite way, a low-carb, high-fat diet. Such a diet leads to reduction in blood triglycerides.

Despite what we have been told, fat isn’t always the bad guy in the waistline wars. Its the bad fats, such as trans fats, which are the guilty ones – for weight gain and clogged arteries. But good fats such as the monounsaturated fats, omega-3s and even saturated fats!!!! have the opposite effect. In fact, healthy fats play a huge role in helping us manage  moods, stay on top of our mental game, fight fatigue, and even control weight.

Remember – Sugar makes you fat. Fat makes you thin.

Images Courtesy Google

Bet on butter!

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For many years, studies have shown an association between eating dairy products and lower diabetes risk. But how dairy protects against diabetes remained a mystery. The answer may lie in dairy’s fat.

Researchers at the Harvard School of Public Health have identified a naturally occurring trans fat in dairy that may substantially reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes. Trans-palmitoleic acid is a fatty acid found in milk, cheese, yogurt, and butter. It’s not produced by the body. It only comes from your diet.

In a study published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition Harvard researchers analyzed data from 6,814 adults. They measured circulating blood levels of trans-palmitoleate. At the end of 5 years participants with the highest levels of this fat had higher levels of good cholesterol, and had lower fasting insulin levels  and systolic blood pressure . Compared to those with the lowest level of the fat, those with the highest levels had half the risk of developing diabetes. The results confirmed an earlier Harvard study reported in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

When the researchers combined the data from the two studies they found that each .05% increase in trans-palmitoleate in the blood levels was associated with a 34% lower risk of diabetes. They noted that this trans fat seems to have an extremely strong protective effect, stronger than other things known to be beneficial against diabetes.

In the meantime, enjoy full-fat milk, cheese, and yogurt, preferably from grassfed animals. And you can add reducing diabetes risk to the other healthy reasons to eat real butter.

But continue to avoid artificial trans fats from hydrogenated and partially hydrogenated oils.

Inflammation and Illness

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Inflammation is the ‘bad boy’ of lifestyle illnesses. Even though it is useful in acute conditions, it can damage the body if inflammation becomes chronic.

There are a number of risk factors for chronic inflammation. These include: long-term infection, poor diet, toxins, heavy metals, smoking, stress, exhaustion and obesity. These factors put the body on high alert, even when an alert is unnecessary. Consequently, these inflammatory cell signals significantly damage health over time. For example, it can scramble DNA, interfere with cellular communications, impair immunity and create an environment that allows tumors to grow.

To eliminate chronic inflammation, we must reduce these underlying factors and support the body’s natural anti-inflammatory mechanisms. We need to tell the body to calm down.

Excess weight, especially in the abdomen, known as visceral fat, can itself produce inflammatory chemicals known as cytokines.

However, being thin is not necessarily any better. Eating pro-inflammatory foods can also throw your system off balance even if you are physically fit. That’s why we should all stay away from processed foods and control our intake of sugar and trans fats. In particular, processed, fried and grilled foods are high in advanced glycation end products, appropriately called AGEs, which promote oxidation and inflammation.

One study, conducted by researchers at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine, outlined how dietary changes can have a profound impact on inflammation and health. Two groups were assigned separate diets. One ate a normal Western diet, high in AGEs. The other was asked to poach, stew or steam their meals, processes that produce fewer AGEs. After four months, the latter group showed dramatic reductions in inflammatory markers and had other indications of improved cardiovascular and metabolic health. In addition, a protein that helps clear these toxic compounds increased, restoring the body’s normal protective mechanisms.

Eat more phytonutrients, which tend to be high in antioxidants and include other health-promoting compounds. Richly colored fruits, like tomatoes, blueberries and strawberries, are excellent sources.

Also, probiotic / fermented foods, such as yogurt, pickles, sauerkraut, miso and kimchi, help maintain the balance of friendly flora in our digestive tract and are shown to help reduce inflammation.

Another cause of chronic inflammation is stress and lack of sleep. This can be reduced with practice of meditation, yoga, tai chi, etc.

Anti-oxidants are an effective way to counteract chronic inflammation, especially if obtained from dietary and natural sources,

What a simple way to keep ourselves healthy!