It’s one of the first questions you’ll be asked if you’re on a vegan diet: how do you get enough protein?
“If I had a coin for every time people ask me: how do you get your protein? I would be so rich by now,” says plant-based nutrition coach and personal trainer Gigi Grassia.
“There are still a lot of misconceptions about having protein and vegans not being able to get all the nutrients they need from food – which I think the scientific literature is really clear about, there is no question at all. But somehow there are a lot of myths circulating online around that, which if you are not a nutritionist or an expert in nutrition and food is a bit difficult to navigate.”
“It’s one of the three macronutrients we need – we have protein, fats and carbohydrates,” London-based Grassia explains. “It’s really helpful not only to build muscle and repair tissue if we exercise, but protein is present almost everywhere in our body – so we really need enough of it.”
The vegan diet has something of a PR problem, with Grassia adding: “Culturally, we are brought up thinking that the only way to get protein is meat or dairy. But the fact is, building blocks of protein are called amino acids. We have nine amino acids that our body cannot produce by itself and it needs to get through nutrition, and that can be through a meat-based diet, or an omnivore diet, or a plant-based diet. All plants have essential amino acids in different amounts.”
Putting protein-rich ingredients front and centre in your meals will make all the difference – think tofu, tempeh, beans and more.
“The first time I tried tofu, I was like: ‘This tastes like cardboard, why do people like it? I don’t understand’,” Grassia remembers.
“But tofu is like a white canvas, like a sponge – it’s really there to become the enhancer of your favourite flavours. It’s really versatile – a lot of people don’t know that tofu can be eaten ‘raw’, because how you buy it in the supermarket it’s already cooked. Technically, you could slice it and eat it, but it’s not really nice.”
That’s why you can slip tofu into your meals in more innovative ways, Grassia says.
“I do a lot of pasta sauces – take it and blend it with veggies or sundried tomatoes and olives, and you create this really nice pasta sauce – or in stir-fries, or soups as well. Any dish you can name, you can have a use for it.”