How to get enough protein on a plant-based diet

"Where do you get your protein?" is the question every plant-based eater hears. The good news is that it is one of the easier nutrients to cover, as long as you know where to look.

How much do you need?

The National Academy of Medicine recommends at least 0.8 g of protein per kilogram of body weight per day for adults. For a 70 kg adult that is about 56 g a day. People who train hard, older adults and people recovering from illness may need more, so ask a professional if that is you.

The best plant sources in Ghana

Figures are approximate and vary with cooking and brand.

• Beans and black-eyed peas: about 13–15 g per cooked cup. Red red, waakye and koose are all bean dishes.
• Lentils and chickpeas: about 15–18 g per cooked cup.
• Tofu: about 8–15 g per 100 g, depending on firmness.
• Groundnuts and groundnut paste: about 7 g per small handful (30 g).
• Soy milk: about 7 g per glass. Choose one fortified with calcium and B12.
• Whole grains: millet, sorghum, brown rice and oats add smaller amounts that add up over a day.
• Seeds: sesame, pumpkin seeds and agushie (melon seeds).

Do you need to "combine" proteins?

Not at every meal. Most individual plant foods are low in one or more essential amino acids, but Harvard's Nutrition Source explains that eating a variety of protein foods through the day covers them. Traditional pairings already do this: beans with rice (waakye), beans with plantain (red red), millet with bean fritters (hausa koko with koose).

A sample day, about 60–70 g

• Breakfast: hausa koko with koose, or oats with soy milk and groundnuts.
• Lunch: waakye or red red with a vegetable side.
• Snack: a handful of roasted groundnuts, or a smoothie with soy milk.
• Dinner: tofu or chickpea stew with brown rice and greens.

Practical tips

• Put a bean, groundnut or soy food on every plate.
• Do not rely on starchy foods alone. Kenkey, gari and white bread fill you up but are low in protein.
• Soaking, sprouting and cooking beans well makes them easier to digest.

Our LunchBox (tofu with rice and greens) and our bean and groundnut dishes are built around this. See the menu.