List of foods by protein content

Below is a list organised by food group and given in measurements of grams of protein per 100 grams of food portion. The reduction of water content has the greatest effect of increasing protein as a proportion of the overall mass of the food in question. Not all protein is equally digestible. Protein Digestibility Corrected Amino Acid Score (PDCAAS) is a method of evaluating the protein quality based on the amino acid requirements of humans. [1]

Meat and mock meat

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(grams per 100 grams)

Common red meats

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  • Beef, cooked - 16.9 to 40.6
    • high scores: braised eye-of-round steak 40.62; broiled t-bone steak (porterhouse) 32.11; grilled lean steak 31.0
    • average score: baked lean (ground beef) 24.47
    • low score: corned beef: 16.91
  • Lamb, cooked - 20.91 to 50.9
    • average score: grilled lean lamb chop 29.2

Less-common meat

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White meat

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  • Chicken: 27 to 32
    • high score: grilled breast without skin 32
  • Pork: 26 to 31
    • high score: grilled lean chop 31.6
  • Fish 20.3 to 24.9
    • high score: grilled salmon 24.2 to 24.6; tuna canned in brine 23.5 to 24.9
    • medium score: baked cod 23.9
    • low score: farmed Atlantic salmon 20.4 (USDA); grilled mackerel 20.3 to 20.8; grilled cod 20.8
  • Mock meat (cooked vegetarian preparations): 18.53 to 28.9[2]
  • Seafood 10.0 to 22.6

Dairy

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(grams per 100 grams)

Cheese

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Protein (grams per 100g)
Cheese type min. max.
Gamalost 54 54
Parmesan 35 41.6
Cheddar (half-fat) 32.7 32.7
Gruyère 30 30
Edam 25 25
Cheddar (traditional) 24.9 27.2
Camembert 20 20
Cheddar (processed) 16.42 27.9
Feta 14.7 14.7
Ricotta 11.26 11.39
Cottage cheese 9.4 12.6

Milk and Yogurt

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  • Goat milk: 4.9 to 9.9
  • Yogurt: 4.8 to 5.7
    • Whole milk yogurt 5.7
    • Plain Greek-style yogurt 5.7
    • Low-fat plain yogurt 4.8
  • Cow milk (fluid, raw, pasteurized, whole, semi-skimmed, skimmed): 3.2 to 3.5

Eggs

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  • Cooked chicken eggs: 10.62 to 14.1

Vegetables, Legumes, Grains and Nuts

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(grams per 100 grams)

Vegetables

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Legumes

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Grains

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  • Wheat flour (brown): 12.2 to 12.6
  • Oatmeal: 11.2
  • Crackers: 7.43
  • Bread: 6.7 to 11.4
    • Brown bread 7.9
    • White bread 7.9
  • Pasta: 4.8 to 6.6
    • Fresh cooked pasta 6.6
    • Dried cooked pasta 4.8
  • Rice: 2.6 to 10.9
    • Easy cook boiled rice 2.6 to 10.9
  • Porridge oats: 3.0

Nuts

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Other food elements

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Natural protein concentrates (often used in bodybuilding or as sports dietary supplements):

Bibliography

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  • "Canadian Nutrient File". Health Canada. Archived from the original on 2008-12-26. Retrieved 2009-01-16. - data computed from their database.
  • "Protein content of some common foods found in the diet". British Nutrition Foundation. Archived from the original on 24 March 2021. Retrieved 25 July 2018.
  • "Protein In The Diet" (PDF). British Nutrition Foundation. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2025-07-13. Retrieved 2025-07-13. - data transferred from this resource document.

See also

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References

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