11 Foods With More Protein Than Chicken

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Protein is more than just a buzzword; it’s an important macronutrient, essential for our optimum health and wellbeing. Without it, we can begin losing muscle mass, experiencing poor metabolism and weakened immunity. It’s a core part of healthy nutrition. Chicken has long been a popular protein source, thanks to how versatile and accessible it is. It’s also lean, meaning it contains very little fat, appealing to those who need to moderate their fat intake. As great as it is, though, chicken does have one flaw — it gets boring. No matter how many different ways you prep it, at the end of the day it’s still just chicken.

To bring some variety to your protein choices, here’s a list of 11 foods that actually have more protein than chicken. You’ll find that certain types of fish or cheese are fantastic alternatives with a strong protein content. For the purposes of this article, we used nutritional information from the USDA Food Data Central website and looked at how much protein does a certain food item have per 100 grams. Since a skinless chicken breast comes with 22.5 grams of protein per 100 grams, let’s see which foods can beat that.

Birds of a feather flock together, and so the first protein-rich alternative to chicken is another type of lean poultry. Turkey breast comes with 30.1 grams of protein and only 2.08 grams of fat per 100 grams of meat. Prep-wise, it’s compatible with the same cooking techniques as chicken, except it’s slightly on the drier side. On the upside, you’ll find turkey has a bit more flavor on its own.

Don’t listen to people who turn up their noses at anything that comes from a can — there are many ways to transform canned tuna into a gourmet meal. Plus, you can always keep it stocked in the pantry because of the long shelf-life. With every 100 grams of canned tuna, you’ll be getting 29.1 grams of protein.

Also known as ahi tuna, yellowfin is one of the most popular tuna species. People know it for the quality, so it’s often the go-to for raw dishes like sushi and sashimi. When eaten raw, yellowfin tuna comes with 24.4 grams of protein per 100 grams of fish. When cooked, the protein content jumps to 29.9 grams. If you’re new to working with yellowfin, start with our nine tasty tuna steak recipes.

Shrimp hits pretty close to chicken when it comes to protein, but at 24 grams of protein per 100 grams of shrimp, it still ranks a bit higher. This seafood is one of the best ways to diversify your meals while keeping them nutritionally rich. If you’re tired of the chicken Caesar salad, a grilled summer shrimp salad would be the perfect swap.

At 25.55 grams of protein per 100 grams of meat, ground beef certainly comes ahead of chicken. It also has a significantly higher fat content — 16.82 grams to chicken’s 1.93 grams. Because it has more fat, beef is a lot juicier, more flavorful, and more satiating than chicken. That’s why ground beef is a staple in many classic recipes, such as spaghetti bolognese, lasagna, and special Italian meatballs.

Adding more protein to your diet can also come through snacks. Beef jerky is a super flavorful, meaty snack that packs 33.2 grams of protein per 100 grams of jerky. Now, you’re unlikely to ever eat that amount of jerky at once, so many brands include the protein-per-serving info right on the package. Country Archer Grass Fed Beef Jerky, for example, comes with 12 grams of protein per serving on top of being ranked as No. 1 in our ranking of beef jerky brands.

If you’re vegetarian (or simply a dairy enthusiast), you’ll be happy to learn that Swiss cheese, despite its big holes, carries 27 grams of protein per 100 grams of cheese. The number might vary between the different types, though. Gruyère, for example, could have as much as 29.8 grams of protein. It’s delicious in its solid form, of course, but we especially love it in homemade Swiss cheese fondue.

In case you needed another reason to sprinkle parmesan cheese on absolutely everything, this classic Italian cheese comes with 29.6 grams of protein per 100 grams. Much like with beef jerky, you’re more likely to eat this cheese in smaller amounts, but it helps to know that putting it all over your pasta brings some extra protein to your nutrition.

Dried fish is another protein-rich snack — and one that comes with other nutritional benefits, too. It’s high in vitamin B12, which is important for the functioning of the central nervous system. B12 deficiencies are very common, especially in the elderly population. There are different types of dried fish you can choose from, depending on your preference. Dried cod contains 62.8 grams of protein per 100 grams, which is nearly three times as much as chicken.

By now you’re surely catching onto the fact that, when we compare chicken to fish, the latter often comes ahead in terms of protein content. Tilapia is another high-protein fish, boasting 26.2 grams of protein per 100 grams. With only 2.65 grams of fat, it’s a great lean meat option. Plus, if you make our parmesan crusted tilapia recipe, you’re joining two high-protein ingredients in one dish.

There aren’t too many vegan protein sources that could directly rival chicken’s content, but textured soy protein (or soy meat, as it’s often called) is a formidable opponent with 28.6 grams of protein per 100 grams. Soy meat is commonly used to create vegan meat substitutes, such as meatless ground beef or plant-based fried chicken.