This Week on Better Plates: 6 High-Protein Meals
Four of the six clear 29 grams a serving, and one of them is a bag of chips made from ground chicken.
We’ve got six high-protein meals this week, and four of them clear 29 grams a serving. Alexa Nallen opened Monday at 45 grams, the high mark. Joy Wilson’s morning glory oats followed on Tuesday, steel-cut oats simmered with grated carrot and currants and no baking involved. Then turmeric chicken Wednesday, rice paper bagels Thursday, chicken chips Friday, and a chocolate smoothie Saturday that hides half a cup of cauliflower.
Salmon Taco Bowls with Homemade Spanish Rice — Monday
Forty-five grams of protein, and Alexa Nallen says the homemade Spanish rice “is reason enough to make it.” Taco-seasoned salmon goes over that rice with steamed broccolini, avocado, and a scoop of Greek yogurt. “All the comforting, flavorful goodness of a loaded rice bowl,” in her words, on a weeknight.
Cook time: 20 minutes | Serves: 3 | Protein: 45g
Morning Glory Oats — Tuesday
“One pot, and steel-cut oats turn into morning glory muffins you eat with a spoon,” Joy Wilson writes. Grated carrots, currants, cinnamon, ginger, and toasted coconut simmer right in, no baking required. Her one instruction is orange zest at the end: “don’t skip it.” She is blunt about the point of the whole thing, calling it “a real, sit-down breakfast, not a sad granola bar,” and a batch reheats for four mornings.
Cook time: 35 minutes | Serves: 4 | Protein: 8g
Creamy Turmeric Chicken — Wednesday
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Chicken breast with bell peppers, garlic, paprika, and turmeric in a single pan, finished with cream, parsley, and lemon. Aysel Jafarova holds the cream to 150 milliliters, which she says “keeps the sauce rich and silky without making it overly heavy.” Serve it over rice or another grain.
Cook time: 20 minutes | Serves: 4 | Protein: 31g
Spinach & Mozzarella Rice Paper Bagels — Thursday
“A no-flour snack made with rice paper instead of regular bread,” Shreyat writes. He fills them with scrambled eggs, spinach, and mozzarella, then bakes them until the outside crisps. His pitch: gluten-free, filling, and “a much lighter option for snacking when you don’t want regular bread.”
Cook time: 15 minutes | Serves: 2 | Protein: 33g
Avocado Egg Salad with Crispy Chicken Chips — Friday
“I wanted to create a daily snack that makes getting enough protein feel less boring,” Yunon writes. Ground chicken gets spread thin and baked until crisp, then topped with an avocado egg salad. Instead of the same protein snacks on repeat, she says, these “give you that crispy, savory texture you actually want from a snack.”
Cook time: 40 minutes | Serves: 2 | Protein: 29g
Chocolate Shake Smoothie — Saturday
“Cauliflower rice in a smoothie? You read that right.” Jenifer Pantano uses half a cup of it for body and fiber in a shake built on oat milk, almond butter, hemp seeds, cacao, a frozen banana, and a Medjool date. The texture comes out “creamy, super thick,” and the cauliflower, she promises, is “totally tasteless.”
Cook time: none | Serves: 2 | Protein: 14g