A protein diet means weight loss due to a large intake of protein foods and a minimal intake of carbohydrates. There is a misconception that if you completely ditch carbohydrates and eat only protein foods, weight loss will occur faster and more efficiently, but this is a misconception. The complete exclusion of carbohydrates from the menu is dangerous for health.
These days, the protein diet is especially popular and many were inspired by the example of movie stars and politicians who shed extra pounds thanks to this diet. Therefore, most of the people are interested and looking for new recipes for protein dishes that can diversify the protein diet menu. So that your diet does not consist of an omelette, you can prepare the following recipes for the first and second courses, as well as a variety of salads and desserts.
The essence of the diet
During the diet, it is necessary to eat more protein foods, but it is not recommended to completely exclude carbohydrates, this can damage the whole body or exacerbate any chronic diseases. During the course of the protein diet, it is necessary to calculate the number of calories, you should not eat more than you spend. Calorie consumption can be increased due to physical activity, and calorie consumption can be reduced by replacing high-calorie foods with low-calorie ones, that is, reducing the energy value of foods. If you keep track of your calorie intake and adhere to basic dietary principles, your weight loss will be unusually fast and effective.
Diet principles
- You need to eat six times a day every day. Try to eat the main carbohydrates in the morning, save the low-calorie ones for dinner, and the last meal should be at least three hours before bedtime.
- Try to create a menu for the day in such a way that slow carbohydrates are consumed only for breakfast, and in the afternoon choose from a large number of dishes those that contain more protein foods.
- When cooking, try to choose low-fat recipes and use vegetable oil to dress salads, forget about mayonnaise.
- When cooking, try to choose recipes that use steaming or grilling; avoid fried foods.
- Refuse to use sugary drinks, they are harmful to the figure, remember this!
High protein foods
While sticking to a protein diet, you need to know which foods are high in protein. With this list, you can easily create a menu for the day, preparing a wide variety of dishes from these products.
- Low-fat cottage cheese: You can eat it for breakfast or make several dishes with it. From him, for example, you get a very tasty dessert - a casserole. You can eat it in a day no more than 250 grams.
- Skimmed milk: it is very healthy, in addition, it contains a large amount of protein. It is allowed to drink a maximum of one glass per day.
- Egg whites, during the day they can be cooked with an omelette or they can serve as an additional ingredient in the preparation of the dish. In one day, you cannot eat more than 6 of them.
- Various seafood, contain a large mass of protein and practically no fat, you can eat them during the day no more than 300 grams.
- Following a protein diet, the main product on the menu should be lean meat, this is considered: chicken fillet, lean meat.
- Fish of low-fat varieties, it is allowed to eat it per day no more than 200 grams. It is recommended to use it boiled or grilled.
- Nuts like peanuts or almonds are a storehouse of protein, but you cannot eat more than 100 grams per day.
First course recipes
Many people think that following a protein diet should exclude soups from their menu, since most soups contain a large amount of vegetables, but this is not the case. You can diversify your menu, prepare a soup from a protein base (poultry or fish broth), with a carbohydrate dressing. A protein diet does not mean that you only need to eat an omelette every day, liquid food is also necessary, it contributes to weight loss. You can use the recipes below to make the soup.
Spinach soup - puree
For the soup, you will need the following products:
- 200 grams of turkey fillet;
- spinach packaging;
- a couple of garlic cloves;
- any vegetable of your choice;
- a third of a glass of milk (skimmed);
- Salt;
- a mixture of peppers.
Take a saucepan, pour water into it and bring the turkey fillet to a boil, you will get a rich broth. Remove the fillet from the broth, cool and then chop. Then add the chopped spinach to the broth and boil for 5 minutes, and then add the chopped steak to the broth and boil for another 5 minutes. It should have a soft dough, which should be pureed with a blender, while gradually adding the milk. At the end of cooking, season with salt, pepper and add the chopped herbs. It is recommended to serve the soup immediately after cooking, as it can change its consistency when reheating. You can, at your discretion, modify the recipe by replacing the milk with skim cream or turkey fillet for chicken.
Fish soup "Salmon with milk"
Will need:
- 1 liter of water;
- 400 grams of salmon fillet;
- 4 medium tomatoes;
- 1 medium onion;
- 500 milliliters of milk (skimmed);
- various greens;
- Salt;
- Pepper.
Peel the tomatoes by pouring boiling water over them, and then remove the skin from them, chop them finely. Peel the onion and chop it finely. In addition, we peel the carrots and grate them. Then take a non-stick pan and fry the onions and carrots without adding oil, then add chopped tomatoes to the vegetables. After that, take a saucepan, put the contents of the pan in it and fill it with water, cook for 5 minutes, and then add the chopped salmon fillet. After 2 minutes, add the milk and boil for another 5 minutes, and at the end add salt, pepper, chopped herbs. Turn off the heat and let the soup steep for another 20 minutes. The recipe can be modified by substituting the salmon for another type of fish.
Chicken meatball soup
Will need:
- 1 liter of chicken broth;
- 400 grams of chicken fillet
- onion Head,
- Salt,
- Pepper,
- vegetables,
- Bell pepper
- 200 grams of green beans.
Take the chicken fillet and turn it in a meat grinder, add the chopped onion and mix. Form meatballs with the minced meat. After that, take a saucepan with chicken broth, put on fire and bring to a boil. As soon as the broth boils, add the chicken meatballs to the boiling water, along with the green beans and chopped bell peppers. Salt the broth a little, add the herbs and cook until tender.
Egg noodle soup
For the soup, you will need the following products:
- 3 eggs;
- 1 liter of broth (chicken);
- a variety of vegetables of your choice;
- a mixture of peppers.
Beat 3 eggs with a mixer and cook a thin omelette from them in a pan, fry on both sides in the form of a pancake. Take a saucepan, put the broth on the fire to bring to a boil. While the broth is boiling, take an omelette and cut it into thin noodles. Then add the noodles, chopped herbs, salt, pepper mixture to the boiling broth and simmer for two minutes, after which the soup is ready.
Second course recipes
Many people mistakenly think that by following a diet, you need to make a menu for the day only with protein products, but it is a mistake to think that you can cook dishes with the addition of vegetables. For example, tomatoes contain lycopene, which enhances the effects of a protein diet. Nutritionists recommend making a menu for the day, where the recipe includes tomatoes. For example, an omelette with tomatoes is perfect for breakfast. You can also choose any of the protein recipes below to diversify your menu.
Omelette with tomatoes and herbs
Ingredients:
- 2 medium tomatoes;
- 5 eggs;
- Salt;
- pepper and herbs.
Take 2 medium-sized ripe tomatoes, cut into thin slices and place in a hot non-stick pan. Cook over low heat for two minutes, during which time the eggs are taken and the whites are separated from the yolks. Then it is poured over the tomatoes with the proteins, the salt and sprinkled with the chopped herbs on the tortilla. Cover the pan with a lid and cook the omelette for 7 minutes. You can make a delicious omelette for breakfast every day without much effort.
Fish meatballs with sauce
Ingredients needed for the fish balls:
- 1 onion head;
- 400 grams of fish fillet;
- 2 eggs;
- 180 grams of skimmed yogurt;
- vegetables: parsley, dill, basil;
- Salt;
- Pepper.
The fish fillet should be chopped, mixed with eggs, salt, pepper, chopped onion should be added. From these ingredients, it is necessary to knead the minced meat and form small balls, which then need to be fried in a hot pan with the addition of olive oil. After frying, put the meatballs in a saucepan and simmer for 5 minutes, adding a little water. While the meatballs are cooking, take a cup, grind all the vegetables, add the yogurt, the pepper and beat with a mixer until they form a homogeneous dough. Prepared meatballs should be served with yogurt sauce.
Squid omelette
Ingredients needed for cooking:
- 200 grams of squid;
- 3 eggs;
- Vegetables;
- Salt;
- Bell pepper
Dip the squid in boiling water for two minutes, then easily peel them from the film. We cut the squid into halves and place them in a hot frying pan, after adding a little olive oil there. Put the chopped bell pepper on top of the squid and pour the beaten eggs into the next layer. Salt the entire tortilla, sprinkle with herbs, cover and fry for 7 minutes. You can also make an omelette with other seafood such as shrimp or mussels, creating your own recipes for new dishes.
Protein Blast Salad
For the salad, you will need the following products:
- 2 eggs;
- 100 grams of chicken fillet;
- 100 grams of squid;
- low-fat yogurt.
Boil hard-boiled eggs, peel them, dice them. Boil the chicken fillet until tender and then chop it. Boil the squid in boiling water until tender, then remove and cool, cut into halves. Combine all the ingredients in a cup with low-fat yogurt. Optionally, you can add a variety of chopped greens to the salad.