The Good, The Mid, The Terrible #7: Protein Pasta Edition

There’s truly an insane number of unhinged protein-spiked foods available these days. So many items that are unnecessarily crammed with protein all because someone decided that everyone needs 200g of of the macronutrient shove down their gullets daily to survive.

Do we really need sparkling protein bone both? Do you really need your popcorn to be coated in chalky protein dust? What about your water? Need 20g of protein every time you’re thirsty? (The answer is no!!)

While I prefer to get my protein from natural sources of protein (because they tend to taste better!), there is one category that I do turn to on a regular basis and that is protein pasta. Even I have caved gently to the protein maxxing propaganda, realizing that I feel better when I do eat a certain amount of protein at each meal. And that is what I like about protein pasta — it’s a simple way to sneak in just enough more grams of protein to take a meal from good to filling.

We all seem to forget that pasta is already contains a decent amount of protein (and fiber) naturally. Two ounces of dried pasta contains about 200 calories, 7 grams of protein, and 3 grams of fiber. (Before you get mad at me, yes 7 grams of protein is a reasonable amount. What is not reasonable are foods that have you consume 90g of protein all at once!) The good protein pastas are able to sneak in an additional 3-10 grams per serving without too much alteration to the taste or texture.

There’s a number of different ways to make high protein pastas. I think the best is when a company mixes together durum wheat with some sort (or combination) of pea, chickpea, and wheat proteins. I’ve noticed that the pea protein isolate (made from yellow peas) adds a good dose of protein without also too many heavy starches, which keeps the pasta from feeling gummy and gloopy.

Some brands choose to go the full chickpea flour route, or turn to a lentil or bean base for their noodles. The result is a firmer pasta that feels more akin to whole wheat noodles. The least successful brands are made with a soy flour or egg base, I’ve found and tend to gloop up fast.

I do appreciate, however, that pasta is one of the few protein-boosted products that doesn’t rely on whey/collagen/or some other ingredient from Big Beef to boost its protein content. (This intense obsession cow-based productions is for another newsletter!)

It’s also one of the more affordable ways to sneak a little extra protein into your diet. Protein pasta tends to cost $2-$6 a box (depending on the brand), versus protein ice cream, which often runs at $10 per pint, or protein powder, which can easily cost $30-$50 a tub. Add enough vegetables and sauce to your pasta, too, and it can stretch to feed many people, or be split into several meals.

I’ve tried several of the protein-boosted pastas on the market, and have found a handful of brands that I do genuinely enjoy. They genuinely taste good, carry sauces well, and have a nice al dente bite to them. I think what we all forget sometimes is that eating protein shouldn’t feel like a punishment, or a chore.

Also let me be very clear here, I am not saying that protein pastas should ever replace any opportunity you have to eat beautiful, fresh, handmade pasta. But as a day-to-day and simple way to sneak a little extra protein into your daily eating habits, I will be team protein pasta for life.

Unfortunately, not all protein pastas are created equal. Below, I breakdown my favorites and the ones I cannot stand: ...