Egg whites may be a tad bland but eggs are generally cheap. Even better, egg whites can be found on their own in the egg section of most stores.
Add a bit of your favorite salsa or add cheese and you have a great snack or meal that is mostly protein.
Is Egg White Protein Complete?
As you can see, egg white protein is definitely complete. The branch chain amino acid content is particularly high. Check out the comparison with whey near the end of the article.
Protein Density of Egg Whites
As usual we’re look at amount of protein relative to calories. However, we express it as the number of calories you have to consume to get one gram of protein, aka the “Caloric Cost” of one gram of protein.
As you can see in the table below, egg whites are very nearly pure protein. It’s hard to to much better than 4.77 Calories per gram of protein using real food.
Protein Source Calories that come with every gram of protein.
Pure Protein ~ 4 Calories
Egg White Protein 4.77 Calories
Chicken Breast 5.32 Calories
Lentils 12.86 Calories
Black Beans 14.90 Calories
Quinoa 27.27 Calories
Brown Rice 48.28 Calories
Other Nutrients and Minerals in Egg Whites
As you probably already know, most of the fats and vitamins are contained within the egg yolk. Egg yolks also add much of the familiar egg flavor. So what is left after you remove the yolk? Read on.
The values below are for 100g of egg whites.
%DV
Selenium %29
Vitamin B2/Riboflavin 26%
As you can see, what remains is basically a B vitamin and selenium… not much else. Toss in some spinach or broccoli if this makes you uncomfortable.
Comparison with Lentils and Soy Protein
The branch chain amino acids are all where we want to see them. Methionine is fantastic relative to lentils and soy beans. If you’re unsure about your methionine intake an egg would definitely fit the bill as a food to fill any gaps. (Assuming you have no dietary restrictions that would exclude an egg.)
Comparison with Whey Protein
Whey is our next benchmark protein. Whey is well known for being an outstanding source of leucine. Still, egg whites hold their own as a leucine source. Interestingly, the valine content of egg whites exceeds the valine content of whey. Also of interest is the methionine content of eggs.
Conclusion
When I first began looking at the amino acid break down for eggs I wasn’t expecting the branch chain amino acids to be as high as they are. This definitely seems to support what body builders and dieters seem to have discovered by trial and error, that eggs are just fantastic sources of protein.
If you’re aware of the slow carb diet, you’ll also be aware that eggs are one of the foods associated with the fastest weight loss.
I’ll leave you with one last tip, a tip I’ve left you with before. That of using the microwave rather than a stove, oven, crockpot, etc. to cook the eggs. There is simply no mess no burning and you can eat the egg from the very dish you cooked it in. Moreover, it tastes virtually the same… unless you happen to like the taste of browned/burnt eggs. Check out the how-to video below.
As always, leave a comment at the bottom
