High Protein Seeds That Have More Protein Than Meat

28 September 2024

Are you vegetarian or vegan searching for plant-based protein sources? There has been a common misconception for a long time that there is a shortage of quality plant-based protein. People think that meat is one of the primarily known highest protein sources. However, wait, let us ask you to think again. High-protein food can come from plant-based sources, and one of the important protein-rich sources is High Protein Seeds. In fact, they are one of the best protein foods.

In the blog post, we will discuss the protein content of seeds, look into various protein-rich seeds, their comparison with meat, and how you can include them in your diet and fulfill your body’s protein requirement.

Understanding Protein Content

Taking high-protein seeds is a great supplement to give your body the much-needed protein boost. Seeds are rich in amino acids, vitamins, minerals, fiber, omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids. The protein content in seeds ranges from 17 to 21 grams per 100 gram of serving. Further, seeds such as flaxseeds or chia seeds have around two to three times more Alpha-lipoic acid or ALA than walnuts. You can include these healthy protein seeds for snacking.

High Protein Seeds

Here are some of the commonly available high-protein seeds that you can add in your diet:

Chia Seeds
Pumpkin Seeds
Flaxseeds
Sunflower Seeds
Sesame Seeds

Chia Seeds

Chia Seeds are high protein low fat seeds. These seeds have gained quite a huge popularity in the last few years. Originally, chia seeds came from the edible seeds of a plant known as Salvia hispanica, which is found in Mexico. 100 grams of chia seeds provides you with around 17 grams of protein. Apart from this, these small black and white oval-shaped seeds are highly nutritious, excellent sources of antioxidants, contain a good amount of fiber that aids weight loss, and have calcium, magnesium, and phosphorous. You are recommended to take around 2 to 3 tablespoons serving of chia seeds daily.

Pumpkin Seeds

Pumpkin seeds are yet another important source of protein, fatty acids, nutrients, and minerals. 100 grams of pumpkin seeds gives you around 19 grams of protein content. They are high in fiber, magnesium, and antioxidants, and help regulate blood sugar levels, improve cardiovascular health, boost concentration, and reduce the risk of breast and prostate cancer. You can make pumpkin seeds protein bars at home, blend them into smoothies, eat them roasted as an evening snack, or take them soaked overnight in the morning.

Flaxseeds

Flaxseeds or linseeds contain high-quality plant-based protein content. 100 grams of flaxseeds provide your body with around 19 grams of protein. They are rich in antioxidants, alpha-linolenic acid or ALA(fatty acid), fiber, potassium(more than bananas), and vitamin B1. The nutritional benefits of flaxseeds came to limelight on social media and since then people have gone crazy about adding this small superfood into their diet. Well, you can eat around 2 tablespoons of flaxseed daily. You can simply sprinkle roasted and then ground flaxseeds on curd, oatmeal, salad, soups, smoothies, etc.

Sunflower Seeds

Sunflower seeds are derived from sunflower and are packed with protein, vitamin E, monosaturated and polyunsaturated fats, magnesium, and antioxidants. These small cylindrical or drop-shaped seeds can even help you gain muscles. 100 grams of sunflower seeds provides you with around 21 grams of protein. You can get shelled sunflower seeds from your local market. You should not eat the shell – for this, you can simply crack the seeds with your teeth and take out the seed from its shell.

Sesame Seeds

Sesame seeds are high-protein seeds. 100 grams serving of sesame seeds provide your body with around 18-19 grams of protein. They protect you against cardiovascular disease(it lowers cholesterol), lowers blood pressure, and boosts immunity, diabetes, and arthritis risk. They are high in fiber, methionine and cysteine(amino acids), vitamin B, iron, and antioxidants lignans. Sesame seeds are quite versatile in nature, you can roast them till they turn light brown in color, and add them to salad, yogurt, soup, smoothies, or bars, or use them to garnish your food.

Seeds Protein Content Comparing to Meat

Lean meat has 20 to 24 percent protein depending on its quality. Seeds, on the other hand, are an excellent source of plant protein and give you around 17 to 28 percent protein. For example, take hemp seeds which give you around 10 grams of protein content in 30 grams of serving. Besides protein content seeds also offer various other nutritional benefits as discussed above.

Incorporating High-Protein Seeds into Your Diet

There are various high-protein low-fat nuts and seeds that you can add to your diet to make up for your body’s protein requirements. You can consume them after soaking overnight, as an evening snack, salad dressing, smoothies, cooked food, etc. However, it is always advisable to eat seeds like chia seeds only when you have soaked them for at least a few hours. Further, there is a certain constraint on the amount of seeds you should eat daily so dont go beyond that limit as it will bring more harm than good.

Conclusion

We have covered the protein content of sees in detail so that next time you wonder how to not compromise on your protein intake as a vegetarian or vegan or have any other query such as Are chia seeds high in protein, you have your answer. From now on, try to add these high-protein seeds to your diet and fulfill your body’s basic building block requirement. In case, you want an all-in-one solution to take care of your nutritious intake, you can try Workday Nutrition, which comes with 70% protein, 24 multivitamins, 11 minerals, omega 3-6, and other health boosters.

Frequently Asked Questions About High Protien Seeds

Q. Which seeds are high in protein?

Some of the seeds that have ax protein are hemp seeds, flaxseeds, chia seeds, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, etc.

Q. What are the top 3 healthiest seeds?

The top 3 healthiest seeds are pumpkin seeds, flaxseeds, and sunflower seeds. These seeds are rich in fiber, healthy fats, protein, omega-3 fats, minerals, vitamins, and other various nutrients.