Fish and seafood
Salmon on a GLP-1: protein, portions and how to actually eat it
About 25 g of protein per 100 g (3.5 oz), cooked, farmed fillet, for around 208 calories. One fillet, about 120 g (4.2 oz), gives roughly 30 g of protein for 250 calories.
To reach 30 g of protein from salmon 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 salmon sits on a GLP-1
Salmon is the most forgiving fish on a GLP-1 because the fat keeps it moist, so it does not turn dry and difficult the way white fish can. That same fat slows the stomach further, so a large piece late in the evening can sit badly. A 100 g serve with something sharp alongside is usually easy where 200 g is not.
When your appetite is small
Cook it once and eat it cold. Cold salmon flaked through yoghurt, lemon and dill is soft, needs no chewing, and carries about 25 g in a small bowl. It also avoids the cooking smell, which is what stops people making fish at all.
Three ways to prepare it
Bake it low and slow
Fifteen minutes at 150C, about 300F, gives a softer texture than a hot oven and it is almost impossible to dry out.
Poach it in stock or milk
Poached salmon flakes apart with a fork and comes out wetter than any other method. Cold the next day it is even easier.
Flake it through a yoghurt dressing
Salmon, Greek yoghurt, lemon and cucumber is a 30 g cold bowl with no cooking at all if you use a pre-cooked fillet.
What to eat it with
Lemon, dill, cucumber, yoghurt, capers. The acid cuts the oiliness, which is the reason a big serve becomes hard work halfway through.
How it compares
| Food | Protein per 100 g | Energy per 100 g | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Salmon | about 25 g | 208 kcal | this page |
| Tinned salmon | about 22 g | 150 kcal | See the page |
| Cod and white fish | about 23 g | 105 kcal | See the page |
| Tuna steak | about 29 g | 130 kcal | See the page |
All figures are typical values for the food as eaten, cooked, farmed fillet, not laboratory figures for a particular brand.
Australian, US and UK names
Atlantic salmon is standard in Australia and the UK; in the US you will also see sockeye, coho and king, which are leaner and higher in protein per gram. Tasmanian salmon in Australia and Scottish salmon in the UK are the usual farmed products.
Questions people ask
How much salmon do I need for 30 g of protein?
About 120 g cooked, which is roughly 4 oz, or one supermarket fillet. That also brings around 250 calories, so it is a substantial stop rather than a snack.
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.