Very few nutrients are as essential as protein. As a reminder, 10 to 20% of your calories must come from protein. Your muscle composition and your overall health will suffer if you don’t eat get enough protein through your diet.
As a reminder, the Dietary Reference Intake is 0.8g of protein per Kg of body weight. This respectively translates to roughly 56g and 46 for an average sedentary man and woman.
If those numbers don’t look unattainable, we need need to remember that these numbers are minimum to avoid protein deficiency. The amount of protein each person needs depends on many factors, including their physical activity. If your train several times a week to grow lean muscle, exert your body through many high-intensity classes, your protein needs will double.
Your dietary choices will direct the amount of whole food you’ll have to ingest in order to get your daily recommended amount of protein. Meat, poultry, seafood, eggs - animal food source in general - are by far the richest in protein.
On the opposite, vegan sources of food, while they virtually all contain some, are not equally rich in protein. If you can provide your body adequate amounts of essentials amino acids with a plant-based diet (lysine and methionine are the toughest to get), depending on the culinary choices you make and your personal food preferences, the amount of food you have to eat will vary a lot, and sometimes it can make it hard to reach your recommended or target daily protein intake.
Let's have a look at different type of foods that fit a vegan diet and highlight the better options available when it comes to getting your daily dose of protein. The following tables present the amount of protein from common vegan food*, as well as the quantity you should eat of them to get as much protein as from a scoop of Go Good pea protein.
Fruits
Food |
% of protein |
Grams of protein per 30g |
Amount needed to get as much protein as from 30g of Pea Protein |
| Go Good Plant Protein Powder | 80% | 24g | – |
| Apple | 2% | 0.7g | 1.680Kg or 6-7 apples |
| Banana | 5% | 1.7g | 1.410Kg or 5-6 bananas |
| Grapefruit | 8% | 2.7g | 890g or 3-4 grapefruits |
| Grapes | 4% | 1.3g | 1.850Kg or 200-250 grape berries |
| Rockmelon | 6% | 2.0g | 1.200Kg or 1 whole rockmelon |
| Orange | 8% | 2.7g | 890g or 5-6 oranges |
| Peach | 9% | 3.0g | 800g or 4-5 peaches |
| Pear | 3% | 1.0g | 2.400Kg or 10-12 pears |
| Pineapple | 4% | 1.3g | 1.850Kg or 2 pineapples |
| Strawberry | 8% | 2.7g | 890g or 30-35 strawberries |
Beans
Food |
% of protein |
Grams of protein per 30g |
Amount needed to get as much protein as from 30g of Pea Protein |
|
Go Good Plant Protein Powder
|
80% | 24g | – |
| Chickpea | 21% |
7.0g
|
340g |
| Kidney Beans | 58% | 19.3g | 125g |
| Lentils | 34% | 11.3g | 210g |
| Lima Beans | 24% | 8.0g | 300g |
| White Beans | 37% | 12.3g | 195g |
| Soy Beans | 35% | 11.7g | 205g |
| Split Peas | 29% | 9.7g | 250g |
Vegetables
Food |
% of protein |
Grams of protein per 30g |
Amount needed to get as much protein as from 30g of Pea Protein |
|
Go Good Plant Protein Powder
|
80% | 24g | – |
| Artichoke | 28% |
9.3g
|
260g or 1 Artichoke
|
| Beetroot | 15% |
5.0g
|
480g or 4 whole beetroots |
| Broccoli | 13% | 11.0g |
220g or 1 head Broccoli
|
| Brussels Sprouts | 31% | 10.3g |
230g or 2-3 Cups (roughly 20 sprouts)
|
| Cabbage | 24% | 8.0g |
300g or ¼ of a whole Cabbage
|
| Cauliflower | 32% | 10.7g |
225g or ⅓ of a whole Cauliflower
|
| Cucumber | 17% | 5.7g | 425g or 2 whole medium Cucumbers |
| Eggplant | 15% | 5.7g | 425g or 2 whole Eggplants |
| Green Peas | 27% | 9.0g | 270g or 2 Cups |
| Capsicum | 17% | 5.7g | 425g or 4-5 whole Capsicums |
| Kale | 26% | 8.7g | 275g or 4 Cups |
| Kumara | 5% | 1.7g | 1.450Kg or 6 whole large Kumaras |
| Lettuce | 36% | 12.0g | 200g or 3 Cups |
| Mushrooms | 56% | 18.7g | 130g or 10 Mushrooms |
| Mustard Greens | 41% | 13.7g | 175g or 3-4 Cups |
| Onions | 9% | 3.0g | 800g or 6 Onions |
| Potatoes | 18% | 6.0g | 400g or 4 medium Potatoes |
| Spinach | 50% | 16.7g | 150g or 5 Cups |
| Tomatoes | 19% | 6.3g | 380g or 4 medium tomatoes |
| Zucchini | 30% | 10.0g | 240g or 2 medium Zucchinis |
Grains
Food |
% of protein |
Grams of protein per 30g |
Amount needed to get as much protein as from 30g of Pea Protein |
|
Go Good Plant Protein Powder
|
80% | 24g | – |
| Barley | 14% |
4.6g
|
520g
|
| Brown Rice | 8% |
2.7g
|
890g |
| Buckwheat | 15% | 5.0g |
480g
|
| Oatmeal | 17% | 5.7g |
420g
|
| Rye | 18% | 6.0g |
400g
|
| Wheat Germs | 26% | 8.7g |
280g
|
| Wheat | 15% | 5.0g | 480g |
| Wild Rice | 16% | 5.3g | 450g |
Nuts & Seeds
Food |
% of protein |
Grams of protein per 30g |
Amount needed to get as much protein as from 30g of Pea Protein |
|
Go Good Plant Protein Powder
|
80% | 24g | – |
|
Almonds
|
15%
|
5.0g | 480g or 5 Cups |
|
Cashews
|
13%
|
4.3g |
560g or 4 Cups
|
|
Hazelnuts
|
9%
|
3.0g
|
800g or 5 Cups |
|
Peanuts
|
18%
|
6.0g
|
400g or 3 Cups |
|
Pumpkin Seeds
|
18%
|
6.0g
|
400g or 3-4 Cups |
|
Sesame Seeds
|
12%
|
4.0g
|
600g or 4 Cups |
|
Sunflower Seeds
|
16%
|
5.3g
|
450g or 3-4 Cups
|
| Walnuts |
15% |
5.0g |
480g or 4 Cups |
*Percentage of Calories From Protein according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference.
