If you are focused on supporting your muscle growth, feeling satisfied after eating a meal, maintaining stronger bones and powering up your immune health, then protein needs to be a part of your plate. In a nutshell, eating adequate amounts of protein is critical when it comes to supporting your overall health and fitness goals. That’s why we created this list of dietitian recommended list of the best high-protein foods.
All sorts of food and beverage manufacturers have taken notice that more people are zeroing in on their protein needs and, in response, are pumping out products that deliver a bigger dose of the muscle-building macro. It’s never been easier to eat gobs of protein. No longer do you need to carve into Flintstone-sized steaks and dry scoop protein powder to get the high amounts of protein you need to support physique gains. Now, you can go big on protein by eating everything from fruity boxed cereal to chocolate chunk ice cream. Who would have thought that a new breed of pasta could help you sprout muscles all over your body, or at least not be such a carb bomb? Yes, we are in the golden era of protein.
But it’s still the Wild West out there when it comes to protein-enhanced foods and drinks. Many products are nutritional duds that just happen to be higher in protein. Hardly a nutritional win.
Here’s what you need to know about the high-protein foods that are upping their protein game before you buy in and a handful that are worth going for.
What Are High Protein Foods?
Just because something is advertised as being a protein heavyweight doesn’t mean it is. I’ve seen so-called ‘protein bars’ that have only 4 grams of protein and crunchy boxed cereals that claim to pack your morning meal with more protein when in reality a serving only has a couple of grams. Don’t believe the front-of-the-package hype until you see for yourself how much protein the product has. There is no set number for what high protein is, but let’s just say the product should give you at least 8 to 10 grams in a serving.
Do you need More High-Protein Foods In Your Diet?
Generally speaking, most guys who are focused on packing on more lean mass should be consuming at least 1.6 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight. For the mathematically challenged, that is roughly 131 grams of protein for a 180-pound dude. So, yes, that is a fair amount of protein you need to eat every day to get your physique where you want it to be. And certainly, using some protein-enhanced and fortified foods can make it easier to reach this intake goal. But if you are already eating plenty of high-protein foods like chicken, fish, tofu, and Greek yogurt you might be surprised to learn that you are already nailing your needs for this macro without needing to turn to these products, which you may have noticed are typically more expensive. The upshot is that you should try to calculate your protein intake as accurately as possible and then use this information to better understand your need, or not, for foods that are jacked with a bit of extra protein than what is normal.
Know Your Protein Source
These days, products can elevate their protein numbers in several methods. A common way is to inject a product like a pancake mix with a protein isolate such as whey, pea or soy. This is an efficient way to ramp up the grams of protein per serving. Another method to going bigger on protein is to simply add in higher protein ingredients like Greek yogurt, hemp seeds or beans. This way can lead to a product with a greater nutritional profile overall. Increasingly, food manufacturers are upping their protein game by using unique production methods such as making spaghetti out of chickpeas, crispy chips from pork, and veggie burgers from wheat gluten.
In the end, which of these types of high-protein products is best to eat is a personal choice.
Look at the Whole Nutritional Picture
Just because something has lofty amounts of protein does not make it a nutrition virtuoso. Remember, protein is just one aspect of a food. If a protein-enhanced product is also laced with added sugars, refined grains, abundant fat calories, and an assortment of tongue-twisting additives then you have to question whether that extra protein is worth the overall nutrition cost. For instance, some protein cereals will have more grams of added sugars than grams of protein which is hardly a win. Do your due diligence and read package labels carefully to make sure the nutritional value isn’t near zero, save for the protein.
Don’t Fear Soy Protein
Old thinking: products with added soy protein are lower tier and can tank your testosterone levels. New thinking: products beefed up with soy protein can help make you more beefy and just as manly. A thorough 2023 research review published in Sports Medicine found that soy protein can provide the same muscle-building benefits as whey as well as help lower the oxidative stress that occurs in response to working out. The plant protein can also have beneficial effects on performance metrics including muscle strength and muscular endurance. So there is no reason to think less of foods that boost their protein numbers using soy protein.
Per serving: 190 calories, 2g fat, 20g carbs, 3g fiber, 22g protein
A tag team of whey protein isolate and milk protein gives this pancake mix nearly record-breaking amounts of the muscle-sculpting macro. And since it’s made with oat flour, your morning stack can be considered a source of whole-grain. Bonus points for no added sugar so you can be a little more generous with the maple syrup.
Per serving: 190 calories, 4g fat, 32g carbs, 5g fiber, 9g protein
You would think that with a label like that the oats would be coated in protein powder. But no, all you get here is good-old flakey oats. So how can the brand offer up organically grown oats with about 50% more protein than normal? By using a newly cultivated type of oat that is richer in protein. Yet, the end product tastes just like traditional oatmeal. The oats do take a bit longer to cook, but that is a small price to pay for bringing more muscle-making protein to your breakfast. This oatmeal lover is hoping that these become available in a steel-cut variety.
Per serving: 160 calories, 3g fat, 29g carbs, 12g fiber, 14g protein
These noodles are a game-changer in the world of pasta. They are made with a combo of lupini flour and chickpea flour which is why the protein and fiber numbers are so staggering for a pasta. Wondering what the heck are lupini beans? Well, they are a legume in the same family as peanuts with higher amounts of protein and fiber than most common types of beans. So go ahead and dump your meat (or plant-based) sauce on these noodles and just watch your guns grow. Just imagine if Hulk Hogan had pasta like this back in his heyday.
Per serving: 160 calories, 6g fat, 24g carbs, 8g fiber, 10g protein
Is ice cream healthy for you? Well, it’s good for your soul. That counts for something, right? This ice cream–frozen yogurt hybrid uses creamy Greek yogurt to significantly bump up the protein count so you can feel a little less guilty about getting closer to the bottom of the pint in a single go. There is also less sugar and more fiber than most of the traditional ice cream options out there. Besides, chocolate plus peanut butter is just awesome.
Per serving: 260 calories, 16g fat, 18g carbs, 6g fiber, 16g protein
If you are going to satisfy a cookie craving why not do so in a way that gives you a healthy dose of protein? The first ingredient in these chewy cookies is a milk-based protein blend instead of flour which is why each one has such a lofty amount of the macro. The muscle-friendly cookie is also made with real peanut butter and some prebiotic fiber which may help with gut health. It’s sweetened with allulose, an FDA-approved sugar substitute that is not absorbed by the body and hence isn’t considered an added sugar with calories.
Per serving: 140 calories, 4.5g fat, 4g carbs, 1g fiber, 20g protein
Most snack foods are protein lightweights. These tasty chips are an exception. Ringing in at 20 grams of high-quality protein from whey protein isolate, a bag of these make it easier to crunch your way to any macro goals. With more than 70,000 Amazon ratings, the chips have certainly found an audience. Not surprising considering that Americans love to snack and more than ever love to eat a lot of protein. Great for plunking into dips or for a platter of game-day cheesy nachos.
Per serving: 200 calories, 7g fat, 3g carbs, 3g fiber, 32g protein
Most bottled protein drinks are sugar bombs in disguise. Not this one, which packs in heaps of plant-based protein (from peas and pumpkin seeds) without any added sugar. And each bottle is free of common irritants like dairy, nuts, and gluten. After all, Owyn stands for “Only What You Need.” The shake is sweetened with monk fruit extract, which so far appears to be rather benign when it comes to our health. Plus, the brand does a great job at disguising the omega-3 rich flax oil and the broccoli, kale, and spinach blend for even more of a nutritional power boost. But, no, you can’t give up eating actual green veggies even if you pounding these shakes back.
Per serving: 170 calories, 6g fat, 7g carbs, 2g fiber, 21g protein
Trying to trim some meat for your diet or are simply just plant curious? This no-beef steak product is a great place to start. The addition of wheat gluten and faba bean protein gives these meaty chunks impressive amounts of protein on par with animal-based steak. The texture and flavor don’t leave you wanting and the ingredient list is much more humble than many plant-based meat alternatives on the market. From my experience, these nuggets of protein are a great way to beef up, so to speak, a pot of chili.
Per serving: 140 calories, 3g fat, 9g carbs, 0g fiber, 20g protein
Coffee, but better. This pick-me-up contains a powerful mix of premium Colombian ground coffee and 20g of grass-fed whey – to clear that up, whey doesn’t feed on grass (duh!) it is the cows that provide the whey that are munching on pasture. The coffee is just lightly sweetened with coconut sugar and comes in vanilla or mocha flavors. A good option to help you muscle through an early morning workout. Whisk into hot milk for a latte-style drink that helps you pack on muscle like a pro. Or blend up a coffee protein shake.
Per serving: 150 calories, 8g fat, 15g carbs, 1g fiber, 13g protein
This grain-free, keto-friendly cereal isn’t your standard Fruit Loops. It has more than double the amount of protein as most options in the cereal aisle and contains real blueberries – go figure. Suddenly spooning up a bowl of cereal when you’ve got the late-night munchies isn’t such a bad thing. Or for a protein-packed morning meal, scoop a bunch of Greek yogurt into a bowl and top with a few fistfuls of this crunch cereal, some chopped nuts and berries. Dig in!
Per serving: 250 calories, 19g fat, 6g carbs, 2g fiber, 14g protein
Here’s a peanut butter that should muscle out the Skippy from your pantry. Creamed dry roasted peanuts are paired with whey protein isolate for a nutty spread that is ready to show your muscles some love. Could it be true that a PB&J sandwich is now muscle fuel? Sometimes the world is perfect.
