Vegetables and everything else
Brussels sprouts on a GLP-1: protein, portions and how to actually eat it
About 3 g of protein per 100 g (3.5 oz), roasted or steamed, for around 40 calories. Eight small sprouts, about 100 g (3.5 oz), give roughly 3 g of protein for 40 calories.
How brussels sprouts sits on a GLP-1
Brussels sprouts are about 3 g of protein per 100 g (3.5 oz), and like broccoli and cabbage they are a dense, fibrous vegetable that produces gas in a gut that the medication has already slowed. Roasting makes them sweet and soft and takes most of the bitterness away; boiling makes them the vegetable most people remember hating. On a GLP-1 a few roasted sprouts beside a real protein is fine, and a big pile of them before it is a reliable way to feel bloated for the evening.
When your appetite is small
Halve eight small sprouts, roast them cut side down with olive oil at 200C, about 390F, for twenty minutes, and eat them after the protein, not before. Crumbled bacon and parmesan over the top turns them into a side people ask for, and the cheese and bacon bring about 8 g the sprouts do not.
Three ways to prepare it
Roasted cut side down with bacon and parmesan
Halved, oiled, cut side down, twenty minutes. Bacon and cheese scattered over at the end. Sweet, salty and soft.
Shredded and wilted with butter
Sliced thin and softened in butter for five minutes with salt and pepper. Shredded sprouts take far less chewing than whole ones.
A few halved sprouts in a chicken tray bake
Sprouts on the same tray as chicken thighs for the last twenty minutes. The chicken is the meal and the sprouts are the side.
What to eat it with
Bacon, parmesan, chicken, butter, chestnuts, balsamic, mustard. Sprouts want fat and salt, and they want to come after the protein on a small appetite.
How it compares
| Food | Protein per 100 g | Energy per 100 g | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brussels sprouts | about 3 g | 40 kcal | this page |
| Broccoli | about 2.8 g | 35 kcal | See the page |
| Cauliflower | about 2 g | 25 kcal | See the page |
| Kale | about 3 g | 35 kcal | See the page |
All figures are typical values for the food as eaten, roasted or steamed, not laboratory figures for a particular brand.
Australian, US and UK names
Brussels sprouts in all three countries, often just sprouts in the UK, where they are a Christmas fixture. Australia and the US sell them loose and in bags through autumn and winter. Shaved or shredded sprouts in a bag are common in the US.
Questions people ask
Are Brussels sprouts high in protein?
For a vegetable, moderately: about 3 g per 100 g (3.5 oz), so eight small sprouts give 3 g. The bigger issue on a slow stomach is the gas and the bulk, so keep the serve small, roast rather than boil, and eat them after the protein.
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.