Where can I find vegetable proteins?

Vegetable proteins are an excellent alternative to meat in everyday life, but also in the diet of athletes. To help you make the right choice and integrate these proteins into your routine, here is some very practical information.

What is a vegetable protein?

A plant protein is a macronutrient from plants unlike so-called “animal” proteins from animals. Like all proteins, vegetable proteins are composed of chains of amino acids and are essential to life like carbohydrates or lipids.

Where can I find vegetable proteins?

You can find vegetable proteins in any vegetable, but there are some with a very high protein content, and therefore very interesting as an alternative to animal proteins . These include legumes, some grains, nuts, seeds and oilseeds. You can also find vegetable protein in powder form.

Legumes

Legumes include all pulses such as red or white beans, lentils, soybeans, chickpeas, split peas, beans or beans. These pulses have the advantage, in addition to being rich in vegetable proteins, of containing low GI carbohydrates , but also a whole host of trace elements.

Vegetable protein content of the main legumes (cooked, per 100 g):

• soy: 16 g
• white beans: 7.07 g
• kidney beans: 9.63 g
• lenses:
• chickpeas: 8.6 g
• split peas: 8.5 g
• beans: 8.06g

The cereals

Cereals are also excellent sources of protein . Be careful, we are talking here about rice, buckwheat, quinoa, oats, wheat, etc., not ultra-sweet and processed breakfast cereals. For rich in carbohydrates, we advise you, to get the most benefit, to choose cereals with a low glycemic index (GI), that is to say < 35.

Vegetable protein content of the main cereals (cooked, per 100 g):

• spelled: 15g
• oats: 12 g
• basmati rice: 7.4g
• buckwheat: 13.25 g
• quinoa: 12g
• bulgur: 12 g
• barley: 12g
• millet: 11g

Nuts, seeds and oilseeds

Oilseeds, which include all plants from which oil is extracted, are also a good source of protein . In this family, you will find fruits (almonds, walnuts, hazelnuts, pistachios, pine nuts, etc.) and seeds (sunflower, squash, sesame, flax, etc.). Along with being high in plant protein, oilseeds are also loaded with good fats that are essential for testosterone production among other things. This high fat content is also the reason why it should not be abused.

Vegetable protein content of the main oilseeds (per 100 g):

• almond: 22.6 g
• pistachio: 21.7g
• walnuts: 15g
• hazelnut: 14g
• sunflower seed: 21g
• pumpkin seed: 19 g

Vegetable protein powder

Finally, as for animal proteins, you can find powdered vegetable proteins obtained with rice, peas, hemp, pumpkin seeds, potatoes, soybeans, etc.

Protein content of the main vegetable protein powders (per 100 g):

• soy: 90 g
• peas: 80 g
• brown rice: 78g
• pumpkin seed: 64 g
• hemp: 50g
• sunflower seed: 46g

Top 10 foods richest in vegetable protein

If we want to summarize and make a top 10 of the foods richest in vegetable proteins among those we have mentioned, we have:

1. almond: 22.6 g
2. pistachio: 21.7g
3. sunflower seed: 21g
4. pumpkin seed: 19 g
5. soy: 16 g
6. walnuts: 15g
7. spelled: 15g
8. hazelnut: 14g
9. buckwheat: 13.25 g
10. oats: 12 g

As you can see, meat is not the only source of protein, but if you don’t want to completely give up animal products, you can make a mix and alternate with foods rich in vegetable proteins .