24 High-Protein Vegan Recipes

"Where do you get your protein?" It's a question vegans hear frequently, and now you have 24 delicious answers to that question!

Getting protein from plants isn't necessarily difficult, but if you're new to a vegan lifestyle, there may be a bit of a learning curve. These vegan recipes are perfect for beginners and veterans alike, whether you're trying to bulk up or just aiming for a balanced diet.

What Are the Best Sources of Vegan Protein?

In the recipes below, you'll find many protein-packed plant based ingredients. But this quick guide will tell you the best sources of vegan protein, so you can add protein to nearly any recipe by adding one of these ingredients.

With each source, I've listed how much protein you'll get per 100 calories. Personally, I find that more useful than knowing how much protein is in 100 grams, because 100 grams could be 50 calories (think nut milk) or 600 calories (hello, peanut butter). I gathered the nutrition information from data reported to or by the USDA on their website.

I've split the ingredients into a few categories below, and it's important to get your protein from a variety of at least the first three categories. If you only get your protein from a single category, you may find yourself missing a critical amino acid. If you want to know more about why that's important, check out my article, "All Vegan Protein Is NOT the Same!"

Legumes

tofu, edamame, tempeh, and soy milk: Although these protein sources seem quite different, they're all derived from soybeans. Tofu, tempeh, and soy milk are typically made with white soybeans (but can also be made with black soybeans), while edamame is its own type of soybean. For each 100 calories you consume, tofu has about 12.0 grams of protein, tempeh has 10.2 grams, soy milk has 9.3 grams, and edamame has 8.2 grams.

lentils: Lentils have a meaty texture that works great in place of ground beef for recipes like lasagna and baked ziti or in soups and stews. Lentils have about 6.7 grams of protein per 100 calories.

beans: Insert joke here about vegans eating a lot of beans. But seriously, there's plenty of variety when it comes to beans, and you can add them to all kinds of meals. Per 100 calories, kidney beans have about 6.3 grams of protein, black beans have 6.0 grams, and chickpeas (garbanzo beans) have around 5.73 grams.

peas: Though not the most protein-rich legume out there, peas are one of my favorites because they're so delicious and easy to add to almost anything. For every 100 calories of peas you eat, you'll get about 6.1 grams of protein.

peanuts: Snack on them out of the bag, roast them and add them to a stir-fry, or eat peanut butter from the jar (I won't judge). Peanuts have about 4.2 grams of protein per 100 calories, while peanut butter delivers about 4.1 grams of protein with the same amount of calories.

Grains

seitan: Although you might not think of seitan as a grain, it's typically made from wheat gluten. Since it only uses the protein-rich part of the wheat, seitan is one of the most protein-dense vegan foods you can eat, with about 16.7 grams of protein for every 100 calories.

breads: Breads are going to vary widely in their protein content, but you might be surprised just how much protein your favorite breads have. A typical bagel has about 3.6 grams of protein per 100 calories, while Dave's Killer PowerSeed bread has around 4.6 grams of protein in 100 calories.

oats: Oats aren't just for oatmeal; you can add them to smoothies, cookies, and of course, apple crisp. Rolled oats have about 3.6 grams of protein per 100 calories.

rice: While white rice is stripped of much of its nutritional value, it still contains about 2.0 grams of protein for every 100 calories you consume. Choose a healthier rice like wild rice for 3.5 grams of protein or black rice (forbidden rice) for 3.1 grams of protein per 100 calories.

quinoa: Perfect for grain bowls, wraps, and as a side dish, 100 calories of quinoa has about 3.2 grams of protein.

Nuts and Seeds

hemp hearts: Sprinkle them on salads or add them to just about any meal to bump up your protein consumption. For every 100 calories of hemp hearts you eat, you'll get about 5.7 grams of protein.

almonds: A vegan staple in almond milk, smoothies, plant yogurt, and almond butter, a 100-calorie portion of almonds comes with 3.7 grams of protein. The amount you'll get in packaged products like almond milk will vary depending on the ratio of almonds to water that the manufacturer uses.

chia seeds: Make a chia seed pudding, add them to oatmeal, or blend them up in a smoothie, and you'll add about 3.5 grams of protein for each 100 calories.

cashews: Cashews are a must-have in a vegan kitchen for blending up creamy sauces, but they're also great in smoothies, in stir-fries, and for snacking. Cashews have about 3.3 grams of protein in a 100-calorie portion.

sunflower seeds: Sunflower seeds and sunflower butter are often used as a substitute for nuts and nut butter for people with allergies. Sunflower seeds contain around 3.3 grams of protein for each 100 calories.

Other Vegan Protein Sources

nutritional yeast: This cheesy, savory vegan yeast doesn't fit into any of the other categories, but it does have a lot of protein. While 100 calories' worth of nooch is quite a lot (about 25 grams or 5 tablespoons), you'll get 12.5 grams of protein out of it. Use it to make vegan cheeses or add it to any dish to give it a cheesy flavor.

protein powder: Vegan protein powders are typically made by taking a plant source rich in protein and stripping it down to its protein. So although they're a processed food, they will deliver more protein per 100 calories than most whole food sources. Each type will have some variation, but soy protein powders may contain around 22 to 23 grams of protein per 100 calories, while pea protein powder has around 19 to 20 grams and hemp protein powder has around 10 to 13 grams.

vegan substitutes: Also typically processed foods, vegan substitutes include foods like vegan ground beef and vegan egg substitutes. When I checked the nutrition data for some popular vegan "beef" substitutes, I found that Impossible has around 8.2 grams of protein per 100 calories, Beyond Meat has about 8.7 grams of protein, and Gardein has about 15.0 grams of protein. Just Egg contains about 7.2 grams of protein per 100 calories.