Nuts, seeds and grains
Peanuts on a GLP-1: protein, portions and how to actually eat it
About 25 g of protein per 100 g (3.5 oz), roasted, for around 570 calories. A small handful, about 30 g (1.1 oz), gives roughly 8 g of protein for 171 calories.
To reach 30 g of protein from peanuts alone you would need about 120 g (4.2 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 peanuts sits on a GLP-1
Peanuts are a legume that behaves like a nut, and they carry more protein than any true nut at about 25 g per 100 g (3.5 oz), for around 570 calories in the same weight. A small handful, 30 g (1 oz), is 8 g of protein, which is the most you will get from a handful of anything in the nut aisle. On a GLP-1 they are salty and dry, they need water, and they are easy to keep eating past the point where the fat starts to sit. Portion them before you start.
When your appetite is small
Buy roasted salted peanuts and decant them into small containers of about 30 g (1 oz). One container is 8 g of protein and about 170 calories, it lives in a bag or a desk for weeks, and it is the snack for the afternoon gap when a meal is not going to happen. Eat it with a glass of milk and the stop is 17 g.
Three ways to prepare it
Salted, in a 30 g container, with milk
Portioned so the bag cannot decide the serve for you. The milk adds 9 g and deals with the dryness.
Crushed over a noodle bowl or stir fry
A tablespoon of crushed peanuts on a bowl that already has chicken or tofu in it. Crunch, salt and 3 g without changing the size of the bowl.
Boiled, the Southern way
Boiled peanuts are soft, salty and easy to eat, and they solve the dry chewing problem entirely. Common in the US South, easy to make anywhere from raw peanuts.
What to eat it with
Milk, a banana, dark chocolate, or a chicken and noodle bowl. Peanuts and satay sauce belong with chicken or tofu, which brings the protein the sauce only hints at.
How it compares
| Food | Protein per 100 g | Energy per 100 g | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Peanuts | about 25 g | 570 kcal | this page |
| Almonds | about 21 g | 580 kcal | See the page |
| Peanut butter | about 24 g | 590 kcal | See the page |
| Pistachios | about 20 g | 560 kcal | See the page |
All figures are typical values for the food as eaten, roasted, not laboratory figures for a particular brand.
Australian, US and UK names
Peanuts in all three countries, groundnuts in older British usage and monkey nuts in the UK when sold in the shell. Dry roasted, honey roasted and salted versions vary in sugar and salt but not much in protein.
Questions people ask
Are peanuts a good source of protein?
Per 100 g (3.5 oz), yes, at about 25 g, the highest of anything in the nut aisle. Per handful, it is 8 g for about 170 calories, so they are an add-on to a protein stop rather than one on their own.
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.