This Fruit Contains The Most Protein

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When you think about high protein foods, fruits probably aren't the first thing that come to mind. Vitamins, minerals, fiber, sure, but high protein is typically equated with meats, dairy, and beans. So if you're after protein with a punch of fruity sweetness, you're in luck. The two elements do coexist, and it's passion fruit that you'll want to add to your shopping list. In fact, one cup of passion fruit pulp has 5.2 grams of protein. When you consider that a single egg has 6 grams of protein, the amount in passion fruit is pretty impressive.

This tropical fruit has a long growing season and thrives in warm climates, so it grows well in places like Southern California, Florida, Hawaii, and the southernmost regions of the Gulf Coast. Still, it can be difficult to find in standard grocery stores, so if you do spot it, you may even overlook it because you don't know what it is. While there are several types of passion fruit, most of what you'll find in stores are dark red or purple in color. The skin isn't edible, so to eat it, you need to split the passion fruit in half and scoop out the bright yellow pulp and black seeds inside. They grow to be about 3 inches, so you'll probably require multiple fruits to yield a full cup of pulp.

The taste? Absolutely delicious, with a flavor that is described as a blend of other tropical fruits like citrus, guava, pineapple, and melon. It has a good bit of acid, so there's a good balance between sweet and tang.

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Since passion fruit can be pretty tart on its own, it's excellent to mix it with other foods to balance out its potency. In the morning or as a snack, try incorporating it into other high protein foods like cottage cheese, Greek yogurt, or your favorite smoothie. If you like fruit salad, stir in a couple of large scoops of passion fruit pulp for tons of tropical flavor. You can even enjoy the fruit with a cup of high protein coffee.

Passion fruit juice makes an excellent salad dressing, too; just use it as a substitute for vinegar or lemon juice in your vinaigrettes. As for the main dish, passion fruit tastes great with other proteins, like chicken and fish. It works particularly well with fatty fish like salmon, trout, and halibut because the acidity balances out the oil. You can mix it into ceviche (firm, lean, white fish is the best for this dish), poke bowls, and sushi rolls, as well. When it's time for dessert, you can find a place for passion fruit in many dishes, from scooping on top of ice cream (try it with coconut pineapple ice cream or vanilla), to mixing it in puddings, to incorporating it into cheesecake.