How to Add High Protein Foods to Your Diet

Increasing your protein intake has many benefits. Learn more about adding protein to your diet and see a list of high protein foods.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Meat Products
• Dairy Products
• Legumes
• Tree Nuts

1. For starters, foods high in protein tend to originate from a couple of sources. One source of high protein foods is from animals. These foods include meat and dairy products. Another group of high protein foods is legumes. This group includes beans, peas, and peanuts. Tree nuts are also high in protein, and constitute a third source. Choosing foods from these groups helps to ensure that you are getting enough protein in your diet. Let's explore these food groups in more detail and see a specific list of high protein foods for each food group.

2. Meat, Poultry, and Fish:
   
   Meat is an excellent source of protein to include in your daily meal planning. Lean meats, such as chicken, turkey, and ham are important additions to a high protein diet. For example, one ounce of lean chicken breast may give you up to 12 grams of protein. Fish is another high protein food. Certain cuts of beef, specifically lean steak, are also a valuable addition. It's important to remember that some meats have high amounts of fat that is detrimental to your overall health and should be avoided.

3. Dairy:
   
   Milk, yogurt, cottage cheese, and cheese are also valuable additions to a high protein diet. A single serving of yogurt, about one cup, can add up to 8 grams of protein to your diet. Milk also offers 8 grams of protein per cup. It's easy to include dairy products in your diet and they also serve as an excellent source of calcium.

4. Legumes:
   
   This group includes beans, some peas and peanuts. These are all excellent sources of protein and offer the additional benefit of being high in fiber. One cup of cooked kidney beans provides 15 grams of protein. Two tablespoons of peanut butter provides about 8 grams of protein.

5. Tree Nuts:
   
   A unique source of protein is found in tree nuts, such as almonds, cashews, and Brazil nuts. One ounce of almonds gives you about 6 grams of protein. They are also a good source of healthy unsaturated fats.

6. List of High Protein Foods:
   
   Meat (Beef, Pork, Lamb, Goat, Venison)
   Poultry (Chicken, Turkey, Duck, Guinea, Game Birds)
   Fish (Freshwater and Saltwater Varieties)
   Beans (Pinto, Kidney, Navy, Lima, Lentils)
   Nuts (Almonds, Cashews, Brazil Nuts)
   Eggs
   Milk
   Yogurt
   Hard Cheeses
   Cottage Cheese
   Ice Cream