Good (cheap) sources of protein

I have managed to get my fat intake under control, but the bulk of my diet is made up of carbs (although they are mainly vegetables and fruit, some wholemeal bread / grains like oatmeal). The break down is usually 17% fat, 16% protein and the rest carbs.

I want to up my protein percentage without adding too much meat, which, as I only like to buy organic, is pricey. I like fresh fish as well, but I can;t really afford to have this more than about once a week.

What nice and reasonably cheap sources of protein do people use? I would be grateful for any advice. Also I am working out a lot these days. Are protein type drinks worthwhile, or should I steer clear?

Thanks in advance

Hi Claire - I have found cottage cheese and farmer's cheese incredibly helpful. Farmer's cheese is a little bit more expensive, but does not have the pearled texture of cottage cheese, and I prefer it just because it is more natural.

Eggs (esp. egg whites) are also a good source of protein: my mother always baked the left-over egg whites after cooking various dishes that only required egg yolks.  You can use them in sandwiches, wraps, etc.

Other options are tofu (if you like it), low-fat yogurt or kefir (a lot less fat and sugar than lf yogurt or soy yogurt), beans, almonds. I usually have a smoothie and some almonds after my workouts...

Hope this helps.

you can't get much cheaper than dried beans!  you should be able to get a pound of dried, store brand beans (kidney, lentils, white, navy, black-eyed, split pea, etc) for less than a dollar.  add a couple of carrots, 1 onion, some celery, and either stock or water and you should have enough to eat for lunch or dinner for at least 4 or 5 days.  with all the veggies and stock it shouldn't run you more than $3 total!

i just discovered that a thomas english multigrain  muffin has 7 grams of protein in it and are 100 calories.  who knew! haven't tried em but they're probably cheap :)

Thanks - I will try some of these ideas. I have always assumed that I would not like cottage cheese, but maybe I will give it a try. And I love beans, but always thought of them as being carbs not proteins. In fact I am making lentil soup tomorrow so I am sure that will up my protein intake

you can buy a big tub protien powder for like 8 bucks, and it will last you a long time. kashi makes some, and though i havent tried it yet, i trust most everything made by kashi.

There is TVP - which I think stands for textured vegetable protein. It's used to substitute ground meat, like hamburger. You can get at any health food store.

I like sardines packed in water - good for omega 3's and like 99 cents a can for some brands. If you don't take the 1 little vertebra out of them (which you can eat) they are also a good source of calcium. I didn't make them sound too appetizing, did I?! 

I like sardines packed in water

ewwww! sorry but you shoulda seen the face i made when you said that. lol.

I found this on a body building site. The info is good, but if you have special dietary needs (high cholesterol, etc) check with your doctor.

1. Canned Tuna. 40g protein/can. Buy tuna in spring water or brine.

2. Whole Eggs. 7g protein/egg. Lower your body fat rather than throwing the yolk away if you have bad cholesterol. Dietary cholesterol isn’t bound to blood cholesterol, and the yolk contains half the protein and vitamins A/D/E.

3. Whey. 1 scoop ON whey is 24g protein/30g serving. But don’t rely on whey only because it’s cheaper. Vary your protein intake.

4. Ground Beef. 25g protein/100g. Buy 80% ground beef and rinse the fat if lean beef is too expensive. You can reduce the fat content by as much as 50%. Read this free pdf on how to rinse ground beef.

5. Milk.

30g protein/liter milk. -Choose non-fat milk.

6. Frozen Chicken Breast. 25g protein/100g. Cook the frozen chicken breast using a George Foreman Grill. Consume the chicken breast within 2 months of freezing for optimal tenderness & taste.

7. Cottage Cheese.

12g protein/100g.

8. Ground Turkey. 25g protein/100g. Expensive cuts are made from turkey breast. Cheaper cuts can contain skin, which increases the fat content. Rinse the fat like for ground beef using this method.

9. Canned Mackerel. 23g protein/100g. Canned mackerel is high in omega-3, contains less mercury than canned tuna, and tastes a lot better too.

10. Calves Liver. 20g protein/100g. Low fat and nutrient dense.

Bonus Tips. Buy generic food. Buy in bulk to get discounts. Freeze everything.

• canned tuna (if you want it even cheaper, try to buy a no-name brand, it's just as good).
• protein powder (like mentioned above, 1 tub will last you a long time).
• whole eggs (the whites are more expensive, and you could always separate the yolks and whites if you wanted).
• chicken breasts (you could buy a family pack and freeze them for later).
• dried beans (you can get them in bulk for cheap).
• nuts (you can also get these in bulk for cheap).

I would try cottage cheese, yogurt, eggs, beans, whey or soy protein powder.

You could also try Quaker Weight Control Oatmeal of you like oatmeal. It only has 1 gram of sugar and 7 grams of protein.

There's nothing cheaper than dried beans and whole grains.  They have all the essential amino acids so that your body can make it's own protein.

I get most of my protein from honey ham slices that are lite and lean, cut at the deli. I love sandwiches, so some small 100% whole grain slices of bread and a few slices of honey ham, yum! The calories and fat are actually really low as well. I find it to be pretty cheap... $4CAD for a good amount of slices.

I don't know how cheap nuts are, but I get a lot of my protein from nuts. They have all the good fats and lots of protein. Cashews, peanuts, almonds.

Cook a pound of dried chickpeas, then make this healthy, low fat, high protein, high fiber snack

Roasted Chickpeas

I did some off-the-cuff calculations based on the cost of different products at the local grocery store.  For each food item, I calculated the number of grams of protein per dollar spent:

1) black beans (assuming $1 per can): 24.5 g protein/dollar

2) sardines (assuming $1.20 per can): 20 g protein/$

3) tuna (assuming $0.90 per can): 14.4 g protein/$

4) Morning Star brand meatless breakfast patties: 14.03 g protein/$

5) egg beaters  (large carton): 12.37 g protein/$

So unfortunately, it looks like the cheapest sources of protein (beans and sardines) are also the smelliest.  :P  Hope your spouse/significant other doesn't mind!

Tofu!!!

Can't beat buying whey protein in bulk

Cheapest I've found is

http://www.buybulkwhey.com/?c=479

nothing artificial which is tough to find

you can also buy bulk at www.trueprotein.com and use discount code SES941

you can find more disount codes at http://www.mybodybuildingcoupons.com

I'd second the tofu as well! In the UK it stacks up well at about 50p per 20g protein, compared with about £1 per 20g protein for 'okay' chicken.

Plus it's more environmentally sound. Also you can get good deals on quorn (mycoprotein) which is a complete protein as well as being high fibre and low fat and cruelty free (they use free range egg in it).

Protein drinks are okay but they are pretty concentrated so you have to be careful with your stomach.

I also like cottage cheese and all beans/lentils are high in protein. You can get these dried and cook up in batches to freeze and then base meals around the, which is really really healthy anyway.

buying protein powder in bulk will always be cheaper than real food. I buy larger quantities (10 lbs) at a time and order less often. The best price I've found on the web is http://www.buybulkwhey.com/?c=479

eggs, beans, (lentil soup, yum!)