12 vegan protein sources - absorb proteins via plants

The most important thing to start with: you can change your daily Cover protein needs vegan and quite simply. Meat, fish, eggs and dairy products are superfluous if you eat a balanced and varied vegan diet. You automatically eat enough vegan proteins, especially if you eat the vegan protein sources from today's article.

Many people simply do not know vegan protein sources and also do not know what their daily protein requirement is. How can you meet the protein requirements vegan? Which are protein-rich vegan foods? I would like to answer these questions for you today.

I'll show you everything you need to know about protein in a vegan diet in the following post. In addition, I present you my 12 best vegan protein sources ahead. Let's go!

• Why vegan at all?
• Aminosäuren & Proteine Gerichte
• Protein foods
• Closing words

Why would you want to eat vegan in the first place?

In principle, there are three main reasons for vegan food: the environment, the animals (see also Wildlife Blog Germany) and their own health.

You can reduce your ecological footprint with a vegan diet. For you as an environmentally conscious person, I especially recommend the article Nutrition and the environment, that will show you how your diet affects the environment. Environment definitely starts with the daily meal. By the way, a highly recommended documentary on this topic is Cowspiracy. If you are more interested in animal ethics and the moral question of whether one should eat animals, I also recommend the documentaries Earthlings and Land of Hope and Glory.

The third reason is your own health. With a vegan diet, you consume far less saturated fat, toxins and hormones. You can also reduce your risk of cancer and cardiovascular disease. If you want to learn more about nutrition and Health I recommend you to watch the movie What the Health.

In any case, a great advantage of vegan protein sources is that they provide a variety of other nutrients. These include especially vitamins, trace elements and minerals. Vegan protein sources usually have a relatively high nutrient density, so you get relatively much nutritional value compared to the calories. If you're already craving some tasty meat alternatives, check out the post "13 delicious alternatives to meat" over!

Tip: In the contributions "Vegetarianism Statistics." and "Veganism Statistics" you will find facts and figures about vegan-vegetarian nutrition and its impact.

Cover protein needs vegan

But now back to protein and the question of daily protein requirements!

The German Nutrition Society (DGE) recommends a daily protein intake of 0.8 grams of protein per kilogram of your body weight for adults. So if you weigh 80 kilograms, you should consume 64 grams of protein.

According to studies, if you do a lot of sports or weight training, you should consume 1.4-1.6 grams per kilogram of your body weight. In this case, you should eat between 112 and 144 grams of protein per day for a body weight of 80 kilograms.

Anything beyond 2 grams per kilogram of body weight is unnecessary, in my opinion and according to many studies. Women tend to need a little less protein (about 0.2 grams per kilogram of body weight less).

If you want, you can monitor your protein intake with an app such as. MyFitnessPal track. Personally, this is a bit too much effort for me and I simply try to eat enough and pay attention to a varied and balanced diet.

Cover amino acids and proteins vegan

The topic of proteins naturally also includes amino acids. There are essential amino acids for the body, these must be supplied through the diet, since the body can not form them itself. The remaining amino acids can build the body itself from carbohydrates or other amino acids supplied through the diet.

Many plant foods do not provide all the essential amino acids. This means that you should eat as varied a diet as possible over the course of a week so that you cover all essential amino acids. Alternatively, you can combine foods in one meal so that you get all the essential amino acids.

This is easily done by integrating complementary amino acid profiles into one meal. A good dish to combine all essential amino acids in just one meal is Kitchari. You can find my kitchari recipe in this post.

If all this is too complicated for you, I can warn you. Just try to include foods from my list of the best vegan protein sources in your diet every week and you will get enough amino acids while covering your protein vegan. After all, food shouldn't always be a science, it should be enjoyable. (Note: In the Online course "Become vegan everything is explained to you step by step)

Examples of good combinations of amino acids

Amino acids full! Now I show you my best combinations of dishes whose amino acid content ideally complement each other.

Rice and legumes

A classic combination is rice with legumes, such as beans, chickpeas or peas. The two amino acid profiles complement each other perfectly. While legumes contain a lot of lysine, rice contains ehr little lysine. Conversely, pulses contain rather little tryptophan, cystine and methionine, which are, however, present in sufficient quantities in rice. Both foods also contain relatively high amounts of vegan proteins.

Whole grains and legumes

The little methionine contained in legumes is sufficiently present in whole grains. This completes the amino acid profiles. For example, you can eat whole grain pasta with a lentil bolognese. Here you get all the necessary Amino acids and sufficient vegan proteins.

My top 12 vegan protein sources

But now to the list of my best 12 vegan protein sources. The list is of course not exhaustive and reflects to some extent my personal opinion and eating habits. I'm sure you can easily cover your protein vegan with the following foods.

Oatmeal

Oatmeal is one of my absolute basics and a very good vegan protein source. I eat them in muesli (see also Make granola bar yourself), in Smoothies oder als Post-Workout Mahlzeit und manchmal auch einfach abends mit Sojajoghurt. Bei einem proteinreichen Müsli mit Haferflocken kannst du bereits morgens einen großen Teil von deinem Proteinbedarf vegan abdecken.

Depending on the manufacturer, oatmeal has a protein content of 10-14 %. In addition, oatmeal contains many trace elements such as iron, zinc and manganese.

You can actually get cheap oatmeal at any supermarket. If you are looking for gluten-free oatmeal you will find it here*.

Buckwheat

Just like oatmeal, buckwheat is one of my basics and is also eaten by me in mueslis, smoothies, after a workout or as a filling snack in the evening.

Instead of cooking the buckwheat, I sprout it. I do this with the sprouting jars from Eschenfelder, which are completely plastic-free. You can get these germination jars conveniently here*.

Sprouting makes buckwheat more available to the body and therefore easier to digest. In addition, the nutritional values still improve somewhat.

Buckwheat contains about 10 % protein and also a lot of vitamin B6, magnesium, iron, zinc, copper and manganese. Thus, buckwheat is an excellent supplier of trace elements and helps you absorb proteins vegan.

Although the name buckwheat makes it seem as if it were a cereal, it is actually a knotweed and not a cereal. Thus, buckwheat is also suitable for a gluten-free diet.

Buckwheat in organic quality and plastic free packaging you get here*. Also feel free to read my article on the vegan buckwheat muesli through. Or try my Recipe for breakfast porridge with buckwheat.

Quinoa

Quinoa is often described as the superfood of the Aztecs. I eat quinoa, for example, as a side dish in a salad or in a vegan chili as a "meat substitute". In cereal, you can also eat quinoa in its puffed form. Or you can cook quinoa sweet instead of savory and eat it as a breakfast porridge.

Quinoa contains about 13 % protein, as well as a lot of vitamin B1, magnesium, phosphorus, iron and zinc. In addition, quinoa is gluten-free. Because you can prepare quinoa very varied, you can cover your protein vegan throughout the day.

It is important that you rinse the quinoa properly with warm water before cooking so that the saponins are rinsed out. Otherwise, the quinoa may taste a bit bitter.

Quinoa in organic quality and plastic-free packaging you get here*.

Lentils - red lentils, sprouted beluga or mountain lentils.

Lentils are an absolute protein bomb, with which you can cover your protein needs vegan excellent. There are many different types of lentils. You can cook them or sprout them. However, red and yellow lentils are only suitable for cooking, as they no longer have a shell. For this, red lentils are cooked all the faster. Cooking red and yellow lentils takes only 10 to 15 minutes.

Beluga, mountain, and other shelled lentil varieties can be sprouted as well as cooked. I recommend trying sprouting every now and then, because the food is so raw and easily digestible and you do not lose nutrients by cooking. Vitamins that are particularly sensitive to heat include vitamins B1 and B5, as well as vitamin C.

Depending on the variety, lentils contain around 25 % protein and quite a bit of micronutrients. With all the different types of lentils you can cover your proteins vegan and varied.

• Organic and bulk red lentils you get here*.
• Organic quality beluga lentils is available here*.
• Organic yellow lentils you get here*.

Chickpeas

Chickpeas are one of my absolute favorites when it comes to vegan protein sources. You can eat chickpeas in the pan, in the oven, cooked over a salad, and even sprouted. My favorite way to eat chickpeas, though, is in the form of hummus. If you're looking for good hummus recipes, I recommend you check out my post Make hummus yourself.

Chickpeas contain about 19 % of protein, as well as lots of fiber, vitamin K, magnesium, iron and copper. If you want to learn more about chickpeas (nutritional values, preparation, recipe ideas), I recommend you read my Chickpea contribution.

• Precooked Kichererbsen aus dem Glas erhältst du hier*.
• Alternatively, you can use chickpeas as (gluten-free) chickpea flour. You get that here*.

Beans

Beans come in all kinds of forms and all have a high protein and fiber content in common. This makes beans particularly filling. In normal supermarkets you can find green beans, white beans, mung beans, quail beans and kidney beans. Often you can also get products like tofu, which is made from soybeans, or soybean sprouts themselves.

A delicious and protein-rich side dish from Cuba is bean puree. Simply use cooked black beans, onion, garlic and some salt and pepper and mash the beans with a fork.

If you like it a bit heartier, you can try a bean pot with green beans, vegetables of your choice, rice and smoked tofu. The combination of rice, beans and tofu has a very good amino acid ratio and also particularly high protein, so you can cover your proteins vegan.

Sunflower seeds

I eat sunflower seeds exclusively sprouted, as the sprouting process significantly improves the ratio of omega 3/omega 6 fatty acids. Sunflower seeds are suitable for muesli, in smoothies or as a topping for salad. By the way, hulled sunflower seeds are better suited for sprouting.

With a protein content of about 28 %, sunflower seeds are particularly rich in protein. Furthermore, they contain a lot of vitamin B, E, as well as magnesium, iron, zinc, copper, phosphorus and manganese. They also contain many unsaturated fatty acids. Due to the high protein content, you can easily cover your proteins vegan with sunflower seeds.

Organic sunflower seeds in the plastic freeen bulk pack you get here*.

Nuts

There are countless types of nuts. Nuts are almost considered the gold of vegetarians and vegans, because they are very rich in protein, contain many unsaturated fatty acids and also contain high amounts of micronutrients.

I like to eat cashews, macadamia nuts, almonds, Brazil nuts or pecans. I usually use the nuts as an additive in cereal or to make smoothies creamier. You can also sprinkle them chopped small over a salad or pasta with a tomato sauce. Or you can just eat them plain as a snack between meals.

Of course, you can also make your own milk with nuts - feel free to read my article about it Make macadamia milk yourself through. Nuts can also be used as a substitute for cream in cooking, if they are pureed with a little water. For this you can read the article Make cashew cream yourself indulge. For example, cashew cream is perfect as part of a creamy tomato sauce. Through the many uses of nuts, you can also easily cover your proteins vegan.

Amaranth

Amaranth is quite similar to quinoa, but the grains are slightly smaller. You can cook amaranth, sprout it or eat it in its puffed form. So it can be enjoyed sweet as a porridge or savory as a porridge-like side dish. Sprouted amaranth is particularly good in salads - puffed amaranth is more suitable for muesli.

Amaranth contains about 14 % protein, as well as a lot of fiber, vitamin B3, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, iron, zinc, copper and manganese. Thus, amaranth is an excellent source of trace elements and protein. With amaranth in muesli, you can already cover a large part of your protein vegan in the morning.

If you want to sprout the amaranth, make sure you use a particularly thin sieve because the seeds are so small. By the way, amaranth is also ideal for a gluten-free diet.

You can order amaranth in organic quality and plastic-free bulk packaging here*.

Chia seeds

Chia seeds, often referred to as a superfood, are also a good vegan source of protein. They contain about 21 % protein, many omega 3 fatty acids and calcium. With them you can very well cover part of your protein vegan.

You can sprout chia seeds and eat them as sprouts or sprinkle them on cereals and salads. You can also easily make a chia pudding by soaking them overnight in water or vegan milk.

You can order organic chia seeds in plastic-free packaging here*.

Tempeh

Do you already know tempeh? It's an excellent vegan protein source and is made from fermented soybeans and is particularly easy to absorb due to the fermentation process. You can find tempeh in well-stocked supermarkets in the refrigerated section (usually near tofu and other vegan products).

The protein content of tempeh is about 20 %. It also contains a lot of vitamin B2 and B3, vitamin K, magnesium, iron, zinc and copper.

Since tempeh is relatively tasteless, it should be marinated for about two hours or even better overnight. After that, you can simply boil or sauté the tempeh. A great vegan protein source.

Broccoli

In the list for the best vegan protein sources is also broccoli. Actually, you don't really expect broccoli here and it also has only 2.8% protein. However, in relation to its calories, broccoli has a whole 33% of protein.

Broccoli is particularly healthy due to its high number of vitamins such as vitamins A, B, C and K. With broccoli you can certainly not cover your complete protein needs vegan, but still a part with comparatively few calories.

Bonus tip: Protein firecracker sweet lupine

Sweet lupins contain up to 40 % of protein, making them arguably one of the best vegan protein sources around. Furthermore, they contain all essential amino acids, vitamin A, potassium, calcium, magnesium and iron. Covering your proteins vegan becomes a breeze with the sweet lupine.

The lupine is also particularly sustainable to grow, as it can also be grown on poor soils in Germany, making it an inexpensive and regional product.

I eat sweet lupins mostly in sprouted form in salads or as an additive in smoothies. If you like the taste, you can also eat them plain or as a side dish, for example, with rice dishes.

• Sweet lupine seeds in organic quality for sprouting in and plastic-free packaging you can simply order here*.
• You can get lupine yogurt in well-stocked supermarkets. From time to time you can also find ice cream made from lupins.
• You can get lupine flour here*.

Bonus tip for those with a sweet tooth: Cocoa nibs

Cocoa nibs contain about 13 % protein and are especially suitable for muesli, smoothies or baking. The cacao nibs taste like cocoa and chocolate, but are a bit more tart and not quite as sweet as cocoa powder or chocolate. Pure cocoa nibs are a bit too tart for me, but in the smoothie or muesli I find them super.

Besides the high protein content, cocoa nibs also contain more calcium than milk and many antioxidants.

You can get cocoa nibs in organic quality and plastic-free packaging conveniently here*.

Vegan Supplements - Hemp Protein Powder

If you want to give your body a little extra protein after a strenuous workout, I recommend hemp protein powder. With hemp protein powder you can easily cover an extra part of your protein vegan. You can drink hemp protein powder as a shake or mix it into mueslis and smoothies.

The hemp protein powder from Sevenhills Wholefoods contains all essential amino acids in organic quality, is vegan, plastic-free and contains no artificial sugars, such as sucralose, etc.. You can order the hemp protein powder here*.

Vegan protein sources? There are plenty!

Even if you don't want to eat soy products like tofu, soy yogurt, or tempeh, there are plenty of plant-based foods that can meet your daily protein needs vegan. All you need to do is eat a balanced and varied diet and include foods from my list of the best vegan protein sources in your diet.

By eating a varied diet, you also automatically ensure that you get enough of all amino acids. You can combine the amino acids directly in one meal or eat them throughout the day.

In terms of protein intake, the vegan diet is therefore in no way inferior to a diet with animal products. Especially with particularly protein-rich foods such as sunflower seeds, chia seeds, etc. you can easily cover your protein needs vegan.

Maybe you are in the process of changing your diet, then this article is just right for you. You can simply try to incorporate more vegan protein sources. When you cover a larger portion of your protein vegan, you usually get far more additional nutrients and boost your health (and workout results) even more. Do you have any questions, tips, or suggestions? Feel free to leave me a comment below!

All the best,

P.S.: Be sure to also read my article on the intermittent fasting through. The results are just incredibly exciting!