Fish and seafood
Cod and white fish on a GLP-1: protein, portions and how to actually eat it
About 23 g of protein per 100 g (3.5 oz), cooked, skinless fillet, for around 105 calories. One fillet, about 150 g (5.3 oz), gives roughly 34 g of protein for 158 calories.
To reach 30 g of protein from cod and white fish alone you would need about 130 g (4.6 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 cod and white fish sits on a GLP-1
White fish is very lean, which makes it light on a slow stomach and one of the few proteins people keep eating through a nausea week. The risk is the opposite of red meat: cooked three minutes too long it goes rubbery and dry, and a dry fillet is a fillet you leave.
When your appetite is small
Poach it. A 150 g fillet simmered in milk or stock for eight minutes carries about 34 g of protein and flakes apart with a spoon, which is about as easy as protein gets.
Three ways to prepare it
Poached in milk or stock
Gentle heat, eight minutes, and it stays soft. Keep the liquid and pour a little over the top.
Steamed with lemon and butter
A steamer or a covered pan with a splash of water. Nothing dries out and there is very little smell.
Baked in a foil parcel
Fish, a slice of lemon, a knob of butter, sealed in foil at 180C, about 355F, for twelve minutes. No smell in the kitchen and nothing to wash.
What to eat it with
Butter, lemon, parsley, potato. White fish with no fat and no sauce is the meal most often described to us as tasting of nothing.
How it compares
| Food | Protein per 100 g | Energy per 100 g | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cod and white fish | about 23 g | 105 kcal | this page |
| Barramundi | about 24 g | 110 kcal | See the page |
| Tilapia | about 26 g | 128 kcal | See the page |
| Prawns | about 24 g | 99 kcal | See the page |
All figures are typical values for the food as eaten, cooked, skinless fillet, not laboratory figures for a particular brand.
Australian, US and UK names
Cod, haddock and pollock in the UK; barramundi, ling and flathead in Australia; cod, haddock and tilapia in the US. Basa and hoki are cheap imports sold in all three and carry slightly less protein, around 17 to 20 g per 100 g.
Questions people ask
Which white fish has the most protein?
Cod, haddock, snapper and barramundi all sit around 22 to 24 g per 100 g cooked. Basa is noticeably lower at about 17 g, which is worth knowing if you buy the cheap frozen fillets.
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.