‘Are
you getting enough protein?’ is a question I’ve been asked by everyone
(including my concerned mother), and I’m going to give you the simple answer of
yes. I know I mentioned earlier that I was concerned with whether or not I
would be able to find a variety of protein sources. Turns out that most of the
foods I have been eating are high in protein and I didn’t even realize it. I
know that I’m getting protein from the dark leafy greens I’ve been consuming
(spinach and broccoli being my favorite), but I had forgotten that while I am
chugging my espresso shots, I am also chugging soy milk, which has a decent
amount of protein in it (about 7 grams per cup) (Mangels). While I would be
satisfied with only munching on spinach and broccoli with a soy caramel macchiato
in hand, I know that there are more options out there for me. Here’s what I
gathered from scrounging my resources.
Soy.
Most people know that soy is a great alternative form of protein for all kinds
of vegetarians (lacto-ovo and vegans included), and another plus is that it
comes in many different forms; soy milk, tofu, soy ‘meats’, soy yogurt, and soy
beans (also called edamame) just to name a few off the top of my head. Edamame
is a weakness of mine. Last year, back home in Seattle, my friends and I went a
little crazy with our love of edamame, to the point where I only eat them on
occasion now. If you’ve never had soy beans before, I recommend steaming them
in their shells and then sprinkling a little sea salt on top (scrape your teeth
over the shell to just eat the bean). They’re addicting, and you can’t say I
didn’t warn you. Plus at 29 grams per cup, you can basically get away with
indulging yourself. As I said above, I have at least some soy milk every day in
my coffee. It’s a great milk substitute for lactose-intolerant people, vegetarians,
lacto-ovo vegetarians and vegans. [Side note, technically I am a lacto-ovo
vegetarian, this basically means I don’t eat animal flesh of any kind but I
will eat dairy and eggs. Apparently vegetarians eat fish too, and since I
haven’t been eating fish, this makes me a lactose-intolerant lacto-ovo
vegetarian (I’m a special breed)]. Pour soy milk over your Honey Nut Cheerios,
splash a little in your morning cup of joe, or if it suits your fancy, drink
the stuff straight. After my failed attempt of enjoying soy ‘meat’ I haven’t
tried it again, but they make the stuff, so people must eat it and like it.
Tofu is something I struggle with. I love it in miso soup, but when I eat it in
main dishes, the chunks are too big for me to handle and I get turned off when
I have to slice it and it jiggles. Have you tried any of these or other forms
of soy? What did you think of them?
Quinoa
(“KEEN-wah”) is a seed that is becoming increasingly popular. Up until the last
year I had never heard of the stuff and up until I was politely corrected, I
pronounced it “KIN-oh-ah”. Lately I’ve been sprinkling it on top of my salads,
mixing some in stir fries at our sauté station, and occasionally eating the
stuff plain. It doesn’t taste like much, and at a whopping 11 grams of protein
in every cooked cup, it is my new favorite source of protein. For any of you
that are gluten-intolerant, quinoa is gluten free and makes a great substitute
for the starchy foods you’re probably missing.
Seitan
(“SAY-tan”) is made mostly from wheat. It has earned the nickname of
“wheat-meat” for its texture similar to meat. It is also the most
densely-packed vegetarian protein source at between 20-30 grams of protein for
a four-ounce portion. I had never heard of seitan, but I’m interested to try
it. Wheat and veggies are my best friends, and if I can eat wheat that’s
meat-like then count me in. I have no idea what it tastes like, but I’m sure it
has qualities similar to tofu in that it absorbs the flavor of whatever it is
cooked in/with. If any of you have tried it, I’m dying to know what it tastes
like because right now, it’s sounding too good to be true.
Beans,
beans the magical fruit…I’ll stop the rhyme there, but you get the picture. Popular
sources of protein, almost all cooked beans have about 12 to 15 grams of
protein per cup. Chickpeas (also referred to as garbanzo beans) are my favorite
type of bean. I am always saddened when the salad bar is out of chickpeas because
they’re my favorite topping. Black beans are another bean I enjoy, and my
school offers them as a substitute for pinto beans at our Mexican station in
Benson (I know some places cook their pinto beans with bacon, which is
definitely not vegetarian friendly).
Dairy
is an option for vegetarians and lacto-ovo vegetarians, and is how most
vegetarians get their protein. Sadly, I cannot rely on dairy to be my only
protein source because as you all know by now I am lactose intolerant (even
though I eat the occasional cheese slice). I won’t talk about dairy protein in
detail, but I figured I should mention it for those of you lucky people who can
eat dairy.
There
are many more options than the ones I listed, and I recommend you do your own
research as well to find options that fit your lifestyle. These are the sources
of protein that I eat, with the exception of seitan (I included this out of
curiosity), and in my opinion, it is easy to add any of these to your diet as a
substitute for something else, or an addition. If you are having serious
concerns about your protein levels, please go see a doctor or nutritionist. I
hope that this information will help you stay happy, healthy and packed full of
protein!
Works Cited
Frazier,
Matt. “Four High-Protein Vegetarian Alternatives to Soy.” Nomeatathlete.com. N.p., 8 Jul. 2010. Web. 21 May 2013.
Mangels,
Reed. “Protein in the Vegan Diet.” Vrg.org.
The Vegetarian Resource Group, n.d. Web. 21 May 2013.
No comments:
Post a Comment