How to make high-protein, low-cost meals and snacks
Transform your foods into protein-abundant nourishment with these humble ingredients.
Home-cooked beans
A kilogram of dry black beans can be priced at around $5. The quantity will double or more when cooked. You can soak these legumes overnight and then cook them with a pressure cooker or a stovetop pot. Add beans to your tacos, soups, wraps, and salads. Make bean burgers for an abundant homemade treat. You can even include black beans in a brownie batter.
Boiled lentils
Make home-cooked lentils by boiling and simmering the tiny pieces in a pot on the stove. Lentils generally sell for under $3 per kilogram. After cooking, you will have more than a kilogram of a high-protein ingredient for less than $1.50.
Peanut butter
You can do more with peanut butter than toast and sandwiches. Make your own satay sauce. Drizzle some PB on a smoothie bowl. Bake PB, banana and oat biscuits. Make raw treats. The possibilities are endless. Try to get deals for additive-free PB or make your own.
Black bean brownies! Protein heaven! Image: iStock/Getty
