Proteins are essential elements for the functioning of the organism . Their properties are multiple and in particular they play an important role in tissue development and in the maintenance and improvement of muscle mass .
For this they should be an integral part of the diet . However, sometimes due to the limited time available or lack of familiarity in the kitchen, it is not possible to include enough of it in one’s meals. Here are some ideas for doing it.
How to add protein to your meals
- Eat more beans or chickpeas
- Enrich the dishes with some seeds
- Drink high protein milk
- Have a rich breakfast
- Eat roasted chicken often
- Choose legume -based pasta
- Prepare cottage cheese dishes
- Replace the classic yogurt with the Greek one
Eat more beans or chickpeas
Legumes , and in particular beans and chickpeas , are a valuable source of vegetable protein and eating them is a great way to add these elements to your diet without having to spend a lot of time in the kitchen . In fact, frozen or canned ones can be easily integrated into a balanced meal. Just add them to a salad or use them as ingredients in stews , soups or first courses based on pasta or rice .
Here are the foods with the most plant-based protein and how to increase your intake.
Enrich the dishes with some seeds
Using seeds is a quick and easy way to give a different taste to dishes and increase the presence of proteins, in this case vegetable, in meals without having to cook. The seeds can be added to oatmeal , yogurt or smoothies for breakfast or sprinkled on top of salad or toast during a lunch.
Among the most suitable are hemp seeds which guarantee 10 grams of protein in 3 tablespoons.
However, they are not alone. Also excellent are chia seeds , sunflower seeds and many others.
That’s how much protein it takes to build muscle.
Drink high protein milk
If you usually drink milk for breakfast in the morning , switching from cow’s milk to high protein milk helps greatly to increase your daily protein intake.
In addition to milk, there are also other foods ideal for breakfast and with added protein, available in supermarkets.
Have a rich breakfast
All times of the day are suitable for protein intake but according to Harvard Health Publishing, abundant breakfast is particularly suitable because it also improves blood sugar levels and regulates appetite throughout the day .
Also, breakfast is the easiest meal to add protein to because there are so many options for doing so.
Eat roasted chicken often
Chicken is one of the animal protein sources par excellence , used by most people who want to increase the presence of this element in their diet.
To make it particularly loved is also its versatility, since it can be prepared in different ways and added to numerous dishes.
It is often eaten in the form of steaks but for those who don’t like or don’t have time to cook, there is an extremely quick alternative: opt for ready-to-eat roast chicken.
This food is available in all supermarkets and once purchased it is sufficient to heat it slightly and enjoy it.
It can be eaten as is but also added to salads , rice or cold pasta or an omelette .
Choose legume-based pasta
We are traditionally used to thinking of pasta made from wheat but nowadays, given that the importance of proteins for maintaining general well-being is increasingly recognized, there are also variations on the market based on legume or seed flour which allow to increase their intake. The most used are chickpeas, lentils or quinoa .
Prepare cottage cheese dishes
Thanks to the 12 grams of protein per 1/2 cup serving, ricotta is recognized as an excellent source of protein , ideal to add to your meals also because it is tasty and incredibly versatile.
In fact, it can be used to enrich smoothies, omelettes or protein batters to prepare a healthy and ad hoc breakfast, but also eaten alone as a snack or combined with other foods during a lunch or dinner, such as scrambled eggs or a salad.
Replace the classic yogurt with the Greek one
Greek yogurt is higher in protein than other yogurts and also offers more gut health benefits , thanks to the presence of probiotic bacteria . An excellent idea is therefore to integrate it into your diet.
In addition to being eaten for breakfast , alone or with the addition of fresh fruit, dried fruit , chocolate flakes or cereals , it is also excellent to accompany savory dishes . For example, it can be a valid substitute for sour cream because it tastes very similar but, unlike the latter, has a high protein content and a low percentage of fat.
In this capacity it can be used to thicken soups, add an extra calorie- free creamy element to baked potatoes , or as a dip.
Finally, if added to mayonnaise , it makes the taste much more delicate.
A meal that is too heavy, on the other hand, could lead to excessive belching .
