Cheap protein: eggs and pork top the forum's favorites

Eggs, pork, and textured soy: cheap protein candidates

Can you eat cheap protein without breaking the bank? Several participants say yes, but not in the dry legumes aisle. One egg provides 15 grams of protein and zero carbs, according to users who base their diet on it, while matching that figure requires 100g of chickpeas, which contain over 60g of carbs. The protein listed on dry legume packaging isn't what reaches your plate.

Which food has the most protein per 100 grams?

[Pork rinds, with 70 grams of protein per 100[/B]]. This figure tops the list of affordable candidates, competing with white-label cured ham strips, 55 grams, and fried pork belly, 50 grams, where the rest is pork fat and salt. These are label figures, unverified independently in the thread.

Eggs hold their own through another route. Not just by quantity: nutritional info in the comparison lists phosphorus, calcium, potassium, copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, selenium, and zinc, with 142 mg of sodium per 100 grams and the yolk as the main iron source. From there, each person chooses between rinds, eggs, or a can of sardines.

Why egg protein is better than chickpea protein

Here's the crux. Eggs contain all essential amino acids and higher bioavailability than legumes, which are absorbed less efficiently. This is the dominant thesis: maximum biological quality protein in eggs, then meat and dairy, then fish, and finally plant-based options.

On the other hand, another segment argues that legumes lack all essential amino acids and must be combined with cereals, and that comparing dry legume tables is a mistake. Once hydrated, the protein percentage by volume drops sharply. This detail, more than intrinsic quality, breaks the packaging arithmetic.

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Low glycemic index carbs aren't sugar

Consensus truly breaks down regarding carbohydrates. Some dismiss legumes as animal feed, full of antinutrients, sugars, and carbs causing bloating because the human digestive tract doesn't process them well. The counterargument is that nutritional info distinguishes between carbohydrates and sugars, that legumes provide micronutrients, and that their glycemic index has nothing to do with refined products.

The most cited detail concerns the mechanical effect: gas. There's no cultural battle here, only digestion.

Is it worth making homemade seitan with wheat flour?

This question opens the comparison and remains without a numerical answer. Starting with 500 grams of wheat flour to wash out starch and retain gluten requires a raw material quantity no one quantifies in terms of final protein. Pre-isolated gluten exists in stores but costs much more, so the DIY route remains uncertain.

The alternative that does appear is textured soy. Defatted peanut powder also appears, with the caveat that its protein is incomplete, like collagen. And whey protein, which one participant places at the top for protein content.

How much protein is actually needed

The routines discussed mention 2.2 grams per kilogram of lean mass, rising to 3 grams during cutting phases, translating to a minimum of 50 grams daily via shakes in some cases. The crucial nuance: it's calculated on lean mass, not total body weight. An 80kg person might have 50 or 60kg of lean mass, completely changing the number. Confusing these denominators inflates the bill and spikes costs.

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Protein as a class marker

Beneath nutritional tables lies a more uncomfortable issue: cheap food makes you fat, and useful food is expensive, according to the debate peine. Ultra-processed food is accessible, while quality protein has a price, compounded by the fact that the average workday no longer burns consumed carbs. Some highlight industry's role in creating sugar, fat, and salt addiction, while others recall that food education is inherited from home.

With pork rinds at 70g protein per 100g and eggs as the majority bet, the shopping basket has a solution. It remains to convince those still looking at dry lentil labels, believing that's the bargain.