What are some good protein substitutions?!


Question: What are some good protein substitutions?
hey guys, im just wondering because i don't eat meat anymore. i haven't been eating meat for about a year now and im just struggling to find some good sources of protein. could you guys give me some healthy suggestions? i just need like a substitute for meat, but will also give me the equivalent of eating meat because im not getting very much iron at the moment. and also something that would be good for like dieting. thanks! btw; im not vegan..im just vegetarian.

Answers:

Best Answer - Chosen by Voters

High-protein foods

Lentils: High in iron and dietary fiber too, lentils are easy to prepare. They're great for curries, soup (obviously), or braised with wine. And, a cup of cooked lentils will give you 35% of your daily protein.

Chick Peas: Chickpeas, or garbanzo beans, are delicious—mash 'em up and fry them for falafel, throw them into a salad, or eat them straight out of the tin. Eating a cup of chickpeas gets you 30% of your daily protein needs.

Tofu: I never could get used to tofu; it was one of my great failures as a vegan. But 4 ounces of tofu nabs you around 20% of your protein intake—and there are a slew of potentially delicious dishes you can make with tofu. Seitan and tempeh are high protein foods worth keeping around, too.

Nuts: Eat plenty of nuts. Just about any kind will do—avoid salted nuts, at least at first, because you might find yourself eating more than you did in your non-vegan days. Walnuts, almonds, and cashews are some personal favorites.

Peanut Butter: Logic may dictate that this should be included in the 'Nuts' category, but I say there's a difference. Peanut butter comes in handy in completely different ways—on toast in the morning, in a sandwich for lunch, even as part of a chunky topping to a dessert. Now, peanut butter is the least purely healthy food on the list, so use it sparingly, and buy organic to avoid the processed stuff.



Protein is made up of amino acids. While meat/eggs/dairy products contain all the amino acids necessary for the complete protein your body can use, most veggies don't. They either only contain some of them or weak versions. So you need to eat a wide variety of veggies to be sure you get all the amino acids every day and your body will combine them for complete protein. Lysine is an important amino acid that is only found in legumes (beans). If you're not eating those, you're probably not getting complete protein.

The heme iron in meat is much better used by your body than the non-heme iron in most veggies. You need to eat a lot of iron-rich veggies.

Don't make soy the center of your diet. There's a lot of research indicating eating soy in large amounts can be harmful in several ways.

Look, you can eat what you want. But if you're not getting iron and protein, are you at least getting enough calcium? You may not realize you're shorting your body on calcium until you start breaking bones in your old age. You've got one body to last you for a very long time. If you don't take care of it now, it won't take care of you in your old age. And, chances are very good, you will get old some day.



Mycoprotein, known commonly as Quorn, is a meat-free protein substitute, which contains as much protein as most meats and is very low in fat, it also has a similar texture to meat, apparently, but I can't remember the texture of meat, so... you know. A good source of Iron and vitamins is watercress. The same quantity of watercress contains [i think it was 10 times] more Iron than the same amount of red meat, which makes it a great source of Iron.



Here are some great guides that will help you substitute your meat, dessert and vitamins for their vegan counterparts :). Hope these help!

http://www.onegreenplanet.org/lifestyle/sweet-creamy-and-cruelty-free-vegan-substitutes-for-desserts/
http://www.onegreenplanet.org/lifestyle/miss-meat-not-a-problem-a-quick-guide-to-vegan-meat-substitutes/
http://www.onegreenplanet.org/lifestyle/the-essential-vegan-supplement-guide/

http://www.onegreenplanet.org/



Spinach and beans are relatively high in iron as is grape nuts and probably oatmeal. Beans also have a high protein count. Eat more vegetables and fresh fruits and less processed/prepared food if you want to lose weight.



LOL you are all nuts. Roast beef, sirloin steak, etc. gives you protein. Why are there vegetarians? Never understood this, but my older son's fiance is one. I never know what to cook when they come over for a grill out. Don,t mean to bud in, however I'm curious.



If you live near a whole foods market go there. They have so many options as what the people have said below. You can also get this yummy tofu chicken (similar to general tsos)



Beans. That seems the most obvious. Go eat a bean burrito.



Maybe some stuff like protein shakes??




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