104 Grams Of Protein For $1.50? – CleanTechnica

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“I like black-eyed peas,” said the lady behind me at the grocery store checkout counter. There was a sale on them at a discount grocery store: 5 cans for $4. That was about a month ago, but recently at a different store there was a one-pound bag of black-eyed peas for $1.50. Looking at the nutritional panel on the back showed this amount of black-eyed peas has about 104 grams of protein. A little over 100 grams of protein for $1.50?

How much ribeye steak is needed to reach 104 grams of protein? It would be about 19 ounces of ribeye steak, which costs $12–20 per pound, and premium cuts can cost more. The ribeye would cost about $14 on the low end or a bit over $20 on the high for the non-premium cuts. The black-eyed peas are only $1.50.

Some people think/believe/claim that plant foods don’t have all the 9 essential amino acids, but there are many that do. Black-eyed peas are one of them. They aren’t missing any of the essential amino acids though they may have less amounts of some of them. To bolster the levels of an amino acid or acids, other foods with those amino acids can be added to the diet.

For human health, fiber is considered to be an essential nutrient, but beef doesn’t have any. The black-eyed peas do have fiber.

Here’s what Harvard Health says about fiber: “A new analysis of almost 250 studies confirmed on a large scale that eating lots of fiber from vegetables, fruits, and whole grains can decrease your risk of dying from heart disease and cancer. Those who ate the most fiber reduced their risk of dying from cardiac disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, and/or colon cancer by 16% to 24%, compared to people who ate very little fiber. The study also concluded that more fiber is better. For every additional 8 grams of dietary fiber a person consumed, the risk for each of the diseases fell by another 5% to 27%. Risk reductions were greatest when daily intake of dietary fiber was between 25 and 29 grams.”

In the context of sustainability news, consuming more plant foods is better for the planet because they tend to be lower in carbon, or much lower. Beef is the highest carbon food, or one of the highest carbon foods. Of course, plant foods are much better ethically and morally speaking because choosing them means less senseless death of animals.  My black-eyed peas were soaked in water overnight and then cooked the next day. Toss in some organic marinara sauce, some organic curry powder, and some organic avocado for seasoning and a little fat. The cost for half the bag of black-eyed peas was 75 cents.

At some grocery stores, there are quite a number of protein bars — some cost $3.00 or more. They usually contain about 10-20 grams of protein and some are crammed with sugar. The black-eyed peas I bought recently cost $1.50 for 5 to 10 times more protein and they have no sugar, no fat, no sodium, and no cholesterol.