As someone who regularly lifts weights, eating plenty of protein every day is essential. Maintaining a high daily protein intake while being in a calorie deficit can both aid in fat loss and muscle growth if paired with weightlifting, according to the Livestrong article “High protein, low calorie diet for building muscle” by Bethany Kochan. However, eating the same meals while drinking protein shakes every day can get boring fast. Even for those who don’t lift weights, the following recipes can help to maintain a healthy weight or even promote weight loss
Honey buffalo chicken nuggets :
Roughly 543 calories and 47 grams of protein
Ingredients:
Half a chicken breast
¼ cup of flour
Garlic salt or powder
Smoked paprika
Onion powder
1 egg
1.5 tablespoons of buffalo sauce
½ tablespoon of honey
½ tablespoon of hot sauce
Cornflakes
Cooking oil
1. Slice chicken breast into cubes.
2. Add flour to a big plate.
3. Add plenty of garlic salt, smoked paprika, and onion powder to the flour and mix.
4. Put chicken cubes into the flour.
5. Beat one egg.
6. Put beaten egg and hot sauce on another big plate.
7. Dip chicken cubes in the mixture and coat evenly.
8. Crush cornflakes and put them on a plate.
9. Dip your chicken in the cornflakes evenly.
10. Spray the chicken with cooking oil and air fry at 350°F for 10-15 minutes.
11. Put buffalo sauce and honey in a hot pan and reduce until thickened.
12. Add the chicken to the pan and mix.
13. Add the chicken to your choice of grains food, whether it be rice or pasta.
Nikita Fair on TikTok created this recipe, which I slightly tweaked. It can be altered to fit your desired quantity of chicken, and can be even meal-prepped for an entire week if made in large quantities.
Avocado toast (vegetarian)
Roughly 635 calories and 30 grams of protein
Ingredients:
1 avocado
2 eggs
½ tablespoon of chili oil
1 tablespoon of chia seeds
Black pepper
1 slice of bread of choice
1. Toast your slice of bread.
2. Mash one whole avocado until there are no chunks left.
3. Lather the mashed avocado onto the toast.
4. Put chia seeds and black pepper around the slice.
5. Beat your eggs.
6. Let the chili oil sit on the pan on medium heat for about 10 seconds.
7. Dump in the eggs, sprinkle in black pepper, and let the mixture sit until the eggs become less liquidy.
8. Scramble the eggs.
9. Add your scrambled eggs to your toast.
As my go-to meal when I’m in a hurry or am hungry at night, this simple avocado toast recipe is both filling and flavorful. The chili oil, while optional to include, adds a burst of flavor and spice.
Parfait bowl (vegetarian)
Roughly 400 calories and 13 grams of protein
Ingredients:
½ cup of low fat Kefir milk
2.5 tablespoons of chia seeds
¼ cup of berries
⅓ cup of granola
1. Pour Kefir milk into a bowl.
2. Pour in granola.
3. Add chia seeds all around.
4. Add your choice of berries. They can be frozen or regular berries.
This parfait bowl makes for an inexpensive daily meal since the ingredients are often sold in large quantities and last a long time. Not only that, it also takes less than two minutes to prepare.