Meat and poultry
Chicken breast on a GLP-1: protein, portions and how to actually eat it
About 31 g of protein per 100 g (3.5 oz), cooked, skinless, for around 165 calories. A palm-sized fillet, about 120 g (4.2 oz), gives roughly 37 g of protein for 198 calories.
To reach 30 g of protein from chicken breast alone you would need about 97 g (3.4 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 chicken breast sits on a GLP-1
Chicken breast is the highest protein per gram of any everyday meat, and it is also the driest, which is the problem on a GLP-1. Grilled and left to sit, it turns into something you chew for a long time and abandon halfway. Poached, slow cooked or shredded through a sauce, it goes down fine. The medication has not changed what your body does with the protein, only what your throat is prepared to accept.
When your appetite is small
Shred it and wet it. A hundred grams of shredded poached chicken stirred into mayonnaise, yoghurt or a warm broth carries 31 g and takes about eight mouthfuls. Cold shredded chicken is easier than hot sliced chicken for most people we coach, because there is no smell and no resistance.
Three ways to prepare it
Poach it, do not grill it
Simmer a breast in stock for twelve minutes, take it off the heat and let it sit in the liquid. It stays wet, it shreds with two forks, and it keeps three days in the fridge.
Shred it into something creamy
Chicken with yoghurt, lemon and a little mayonnaise is soft, cold and about 30 g in a small bowl. It is the single most reliable protein stop on a bad week.
Slice it thin across the grain
If you do grill it, rest it and slice across the grain at about 5 mm, a quarter of an inch. The same meat becomes half the chewing.
What to eat it with
Pair it with something moist rather than something dry: avocado, a yoghurt dressing, a soft grain like couscous, or a broth. Chicken with plain rice and no sauce is the combination that most often gets left on the plate.
How it compares
| Food | Protein per 100 g | Energy per 100 g | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken breast | about 31 g | 165 kcal | this page |
| Chicken thigh | about 26 g | 209 kcal | See the page |
| Turkey breast | about 29 g | 135 kcal | See the page |
| Pork loin | about 27 g | 180 kcal | See the page |
All figures are typical values for the food as eaten, cooked, skinless, not laboratory figures for a particular brand.
Australian, US and UK names
Chicken breast is chicken breast in all three countries. In the US it is often sold as a boneless skinless breast or as tenderloins; in Australia and the UK, tenderloins are usually called chicken tenders or breast fillets.
Questions people ask
How much chicken do I need for 30 g of protein?
About 100 g cooked, which is roughly 3.5 oz, or a piece the size of a deck of cards. That is a little less than most restaurant serves and about half a large supermarket breast.
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.