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Bone broth on a GLP-1: protein, portions and how to actually eat it
About 4 g of protein per 100 g (3.5 oz), ready made, per 100 ml, for around 15 calories. One mug, about 250 g (8.8 oz), gives roughly 10 g of protein for 38 calories.
To reach 30 g of protein from bone broth alone you would need about 750 g (26.5 oz). On a small appetite that is often more than one sitting allows, which is why we pair it rather than chase the whole target from one food.
How bone broth sits on a GLP-1
Bone broth is stock simmered long enough to pull the gelatin out of the bones, and a mug of it is warm, salty, savoury and sipped, which is why it works on the days when nothing else does. The protein is modest, about 4 g per 100 ml (3.4 fl oz), so a mug is about 10 g, and it is collagen protein, which is low in leucine and does not do much for muscle on its own. Its value on a GLP-1 is as the warm liquid that makes an egg, some shredded chicken or a handful of noodles easy to get in.
When your appetite is small
Drop an egg into it. A mug of hot broth with an egg whisked in as it heats, and a handful of picked rotisserie chicken, is about 30 g of protein in a mug, warm and soft enough for a nausea day. On its own, a mug is a comfort and a start rather than a stop; it needs a real protein added to count.
Three ways to prepare it
Egg drop broth
Bring a mug of broth to a simmer, whisk an egg and pour it in slowly while stirring. Ribbons of egg, about 16 g, and it takes three minutes.
With shredded chicken and noodles
Broth, a handful of picked chicken and a few rice noodles. A small bowl of about 25 g that drinks as much as it eats.
Sipped plain from a mug, then something solid later
On the worst mornings a mug of warm salted broth is the thing that gets the day started. It is a stepping stone, not the protein.
What to eat it with
Eggs, shredded chicken, tofu, prawns, noodles, ginger, spring onion. Broth is the medium; the protein has to be dropped into it.
How it compares
| Food | Protein per 100 g | Energy per 100 g | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bone broth | about 4 g | 15 kcal | this page |
| Collagen | about 90 g | 360 kcal | See the page |
| Miso soup | about 2 g | 25 kcal | See the page |
| Rotisserie chicken | about 27 g | 190 kcal | See the page |
All figures are typical values for the food as eaten, ready made, per 100 ml, not laboratory figures for a particular brand.
Australian, US and UK names
Bone broth in all three countries, sold chilled, frozen, in cartons and as concentrate. Kettle and Fire is the common US brand, Ossa and Freja in the UK, Nutra Organics and Meadow and Marrow in Australia. Ordinary stock and stock cubes carry almost no protein; check the label for grams per serve.
Questions people ask
Is bone broth a good source of protein?
Not really. A mug is about 5 to 10 g depending on the brand, and it is collagen protein, which is low in leucine. Its job on a small appetite is to carry an egg or some chicken in a form you can sip, which turns a 10 g mug into a 30 g one.
Your number comes first
Knowing what is in a food only helps once you know how much you are aiming for. The target is 1.2 to 1.6 g of protein per kg of your goal weight, not your current weight, which for most people is 90 to 140 g a day.
Work out your protein targetMore on eating well when your appetite is small: high protein foods for a small appetite, how much protein on a GLP-1, and every food we have written up. The whole system in five documents is the Keep Muscle Kit, A$47 / US$29 / £23.
EverStrong provides nutrition and strength coaching and education. It is not medical advice and does not replace your prescribing doctor.