Vegetables That Are Higher In Protein Than Meat

You know it's vital to get enough protein in your diet. It's all over the internet, TV, and dietitian pamphlets. It's an essential nutrient for every function in your body, especially your muscles and bones. Just look at how bodybuilders promote those protein shakes to get those defined muscles. 

However, adding more protein to your diet doesn't mean you need to pack more beef, chicken, eggs, and fish into it. Vegetables are also a good source of protein for those looking to cut out meat. While many vegetables don't sport the highest protein levels, a few leafy greens, legumes, and tubers stand out among the crowd. In fact, some of them could give you more protein than meat if you were to eat the same amount of calories. There are even some protein-powerhouse legumes that can compete with your favorite red meat or poultry by just adding a cup to your plate.

Prepare to add vegetables with more protein than meat to your plate and your diet. Here are some of the multiple health benefits of packing these protein-rich veggies into your lunchbox.

Packing protein into your diet isn't as complicated as you think when you remove meat. Several legumes are protein-loaded and easy to add to a meal. Another legume to top the charts of protein-powered veggies is edamame, which is a kind of soybean. According to the USDA, every cup of edamame increases your daily protein consumption by 13.2 grams. 

While you may not recall hearing about edamame, you've probably consumed it in a Japanese or Chinese restaurant. These green beans have been included in Asian diets for thousands of years, per Food Print. And you'll certainly want to add them to your diet, too, because edamame is considered a complete protein. Emma Newell, RD, LDN, told Real Simple, "This means that it contains all nine essential amino acids, which is great for vegetarians and vegans, as it can be difficult to find plant-based options that are complete protein sources." In addition to that protein punch, edamame is rich in fiber and omega-3s to benefit your heart.

Try adding edamame into your diet by pairing them with an excellent pasta. They can also give your salad an extra kick of flavor. 

Black beans are high in fiber and have a good amount of protein at seven grams per half cup, stated Prevention. As registered dietitian Tessa Nguyen explains, black beans are "an inexpensive, accessible, and culturally diverse food that serves up long-lasting carbohydrates, fiber, protein, and healthy fats."

Fiber is an excellent thing to add to any diet because it can make you feel full. Clean Eating notes that black beans can help control your weight. This also means your guts will be healthier as the fiber bulks up your waste. Additionally, black beans contain flavonoids. A 2019 study in Antioxidants showed that flavonoids can be helpful in the treatment of chronic inflammation.

Black beans can work as the perfect meat substitute to bring the calories of your dish down. They can also be added to everything from salads to soups for a bit more flavor. You might even want to try this heart-healthy black bean soup recipe.

The word protein doesn't usually make you think of leafy greens like spinach. But this green bit of roughage has a nice helping of protein at 5.35 in a cup of cooked spinach, according to the University of Rochester Medical Center. Now, that might not seem like too much, but a slice of bacon only has about four grams of protein, and it's much less filling. 

In addition to nourishing your cells with some much-needed muscle builder, Medical News Today notes that spinach is high in several different vitamins like calcium, magnesium, and iron, which promote nerve function, bone health, and oxygen-rich blood. Additionally, spinach is one of the foods you'll want to turn if you need to add more fiber to your diet to help relieve constipation and promote a healthy gut. It also offers a healthy dose of vitamins A and C to keep your immune system running at its best.

With that said, just because spinach is nutritious doesn't mean it's delicious for everyone. Thankfully, you can find creative ways to sneak it into your next snack by trying it in a smoothie, adding it to soup, or stuffing it in your enchiladas. Consider adding a little spinach to your lasagna by trying butternut squash and spinach lasagna.

Lovers of all things guacamole might find it shocking that this lovely green veggie made into their favorite dip also has a nice amount of protein. While it's not coming in as high as legumes, at four grams for a seven-ounce avocado, it will give you a nice protein bump (via Healthline). But avocados aren't just protein-rich vegetables; they're also rich in good fats and help you digest and absorb beta-carotene. That's why pairing avocado and carrots is a good idea.

Fats can get a bad rap, even the so-called "healthy" ones. With that said, avocados can benefit your heart because beta-sitosterol is known to help keep you at healthy cholesterol levels, states Medical News Today. A 2017 study in Nutrients showed that consuming avocados was good for increasing the lutein in your body and helping with cognition. Researchers also say avocado consumption helps with depression and supports healthy body weight. 

Add avocado to your toast or salad to get a healthy dose of fiber and a bit of protein. You might even use it as a whip for creating a more nutritious tuna or chicken salad sandwich.

You might not think of crunching on kale as a good time, but adding more of it to your diet is beneficial, and not just in terms of your protein requirements. Kale is a super green that pairs with salads or blends into juices perfectly. You might also want to add kale to your dips rather than spinach (or go wild and use both). Plus,  they make great chips when you bake and season them.

The University of Rochester Medical Center lists one cup of cooked kale as having 3.62 grams of protein. That might not seem like a lot, but given how you can add it to your food, it will pile up fast. In addition to having a low caloric density, kale is loaded with antioxidants (via Healthline). Filling up on antioxidant-rich food is good because they keep free radicals in the body at bay, protecting the cells from stress, according to a 2020 publication in the Journal of Food Biochemistry.

Grabbing a plate of steak and potatoes isn't just going to give you protein from the meat. Surprisingly, the potatoes have protein in them — at three grams in a medium potato, according to Washington Potatoes. Like red meat, potatoes have gotten a bad reputation over the years due to the amount of starch they contain, but they are nutritious and healthy when eaten in moderation.

Potatoes come in all different types, including red, russet, sweet, and purple potatoes. Depending on the type of potato you try, they can have different health benefits, like being rich in vitamins A and C. While potatoes have more starch and less fiber than your friendly kale, they are still rich in minerals and antioxidants, per the University of California – Davis.

Now, you might think French fries aren't healthy, but that doesn't make all potatoes bad for you. Typically, it comes down to how you cook your potatoes; boiled and baked potatoes can be filling and tasty to treat. You can even try air-frying your own potato chips to get that satisfying crunch.