A food staple is a food that is eaten routinely and is considered the 'staple' of a meal, because it consists of the biggest amount of calories and volume found in the meal.

This section will talk about all the common vegan food staples and how healthy they are. All of these staples can be used as the main caloric source of vegan recipes--as their plain taste combined with their cheap prices and the large array of nutrients they have makes them a good choice for the main source of calories in a diet.

The foods will be sorted by the rate--out of 5--of value of nutrient density per kcal, which is decided according to the protein levels, fiber levels, minerals and vitamins levels, and amount of antioxidants. A couple of processed staples (e.g. white pasta and white rice) will be also included for comparison.

It's sorted by calories, instead of weight or volume, because caloric intake is the most prevalent and important metric in food plans, important to know to be able to fit all the required nutrients inside our usual daily caloric intake. Therefore, foods with the highest nutrient density per kcal are ranked higher, because they would make fitting all the nutrients we need in our daily caloric intake easier.

For each nutrient: If (X - Y) ≤ 0, then *(X / Y) Z If (X - Y) > 0, then [1 + ln((X - Y) / Y)] * Z** X = amount of grams/RDA% of the nutrient per 100 kcal Y = threshold of optimal amount (after which there is decreasing value/diminishing return), Y is based on 700 kcal of the food reaching optimal levels of the nutrient, as 700 kcal represents roughly 1/3 of the average diet, and that is a good average reference for how good a staple is. If a staple is optimal in a nutrient, 700 kcal of the staple would already cover 100% of the ideal amounts of such nutrient for the day, but optimal is not required to eventually hit 100% throughout the day with other foods. Y protein = 10g (70g over 700 kcal as optimal); Y fiber = 7.2g (50g over 700 kcal as optimal); Y vitamin B complex , vitamin A, calcium, potassium, zinc = 14.3% RDA (100%over 700 kcal as optimal) Z = % value multiplier of the nutrient (fiber 4%, all the rest 16%)

Name	Amount of kcal per gram	Proteins (grams) / 100 kcal	Fibers (grams) / 100 kcal	Vitamin B complex (average RDA) / 100 kcal	Vitamin A (RDA, ug) / 100 kcal	Calcium (RDA, mg) / 100 kcal	Potassium (RDA, mg) / 100 kcal	Zinc (RDA, mg) / 100 kcal
Barley (hulled)	3.45 kcal per gram	3.5	4.9	6.5%	0% (0.3)	1% (9.3)	3% (127.7)	7% (0.8)
Black beans	1.4 kcal per gram	5.9	7.5	9.7%	0% (0.0)	5% (49.3)	6% (277.9)	7% (0.7)
Carrots (raw)	0.41 kcal per gram	2.3	6.8	15%	266% (2037.3)	8% (80.5)	17% (780.5)	5% (0.6)
Carrots (cooked)	0.35 kcal per gram	2.2	8.6	15.8%	270% (2433.3)	9% (85.7)	14% (671.4)	5% (0.6)
Chickpeas	1.39 kcal per gram	5.1	4.6	3.7%	0% (0.8)	3% (32.4)	2% (90.6)	4% (0.5)
Corn	0.67 kcal per gram	3.4	3.0	8.2%	0% (3.4)	0% (4.5)	4% (197.0)	4% (0.5)
Couscous	1.13 kcal per gram	3.4	1.3	3.7%	0% (0.0)	1% (8.4)	1% (44.2)	2% (0.2)
Edamame	1.2 kcal per gram	9.8	4.3	17.7%	1% (12.3)	5% (52.1)	8% (360.3)	10% (1.1)
Fava beans	0.62 kcal per gram	7.7	5.8	13.8%	3% (30.4)	3% (29.0)	7% (311.3)	8% (0.8)
Great Northern Beans	1.4 kcal per gram	7.0	4.5	5.7%	0% (0.0)	6% (64.7)	9% (403.6)	9% (1.0)
Green beans	0.35 kcal per gram	5.4	9.1	15%	10% (90.5)	13% (125.7)	9% (417.1)	6% (0.7)
Green peas	0.78 kcal per gram	6.6	5.8	14.3%	15% (134.6)	3% (30.8)	3% (141.0)	8% (0.9)
Kidney beans	1.24 kcal per gram	6.4	4.4	4%	0% (0.0)	5% (46.0)	5% (223.4)	5% (0.6)
Lentils (brown)	1.16 kcal per gram	7.8	5.1	14.2%	0% (0.4)	2% (16.4)	7% (318.1)	10% (1.1)
Lima beans	1.15 kcal per gram	6.8	6.1	9%	0% (0.0)	1% (14.8)	9% (441.7)	8% (0.8)
Oatmeal	3.79 kcal per gram	3.5	2.7	4.2%	0% (0.0)	1% (13.7)	2% (95.5)	9% (1.0)
Oat bran	2.46 kcal per gram	7.0	6.3	11.8%	0% (0.0)	2% (23.6)	5% (230.1)	11% (1.3)
Pasta (white)	1.58 kcal per gram	3.7	1.1	8.5%	0% (0.0)	0% (4.4)	1% (27.8)	3% (0.3)
Pinto beans	1.14 kcal per gram	6.1	4.8	4.3%	0% (0.0)	6% (55.3)	5% (240.4)	5% (0.5)
Potatoes (with skin)	0.93 kcal per gram	2.7	2.4	10.2%	0% (0.5)	2% (16.1)	12% (575.3)	4% (0.4)
Quinoa	1.22 kcal per gram	3.8	1.9	7.5%	0% (0.2)	1% (14.5)	3% (153.0)	8% (0.8)
Snow peas	0.42 kcal per gram	7.8	6.7	20.3%	14% (122.6)	10% (100.0)	12% (571.4)	8% (0.8)
Soybeans	1.72 kcal per gram	10.6	3.5	7%	0% (0.2)	6% (59.3)	6% (299.4)	6% (0.7)
Split peas	1.18 kcal per gram	7.1	9.0	8.2%	0% (0.3)	1% (11.9)	7% (306.9)	8% (0.8)
Sweet potatoes	0.9 kcal per gram	2.2	3.7	12.5%	119% (1067.6)	4% (42.2)	5% (527.8)	3% (0.4)
Rice (brown)	1.23 kcal per gram	2.2	1.3	7.5%	0% (0.0)	0% (2.4)	1% (69.9)	5% (0.6)
Rice (wild)	1 kcal per gram	4	1.8	6.3%	0% (0.2)	0% (3.0)	2% (100.0)	12% (1.3)
Rice (white)	1.3 kcal per gram	2.1	0.3	6.3%	0% (0.0)	1% (7.7)	1% (26.9)	3% (0.4)
Wheat, whole (pasta)	1.49 kcal per gram	4.0	2.6	6.7%	0% (0.1)	1% (8.7)	1% (64.4)	8% (0.9)

Processed Staple Examples

White pasta

Nutrition of pasta (white) per 100 kcal:

Amount of calories: 100 kcal per 63g
3.7g protein - decent levels of protein
1.1g fiber - poor levels of fiber
Poor levels of minerals, except for selenium
Poor levels of vitamins

Overall rating of nutrition density per calorie: 1.5/5

White rice

Nutrition of rice (white) per 100 kcal:

Amount of calories: 100 kcal per 77g
2.1g protein - poor levels of protein
0.3g fiber - very poor levels of fiber
Poor levels of minerals
Poor levels of vitamins

Overall rating of nutrition density per calorie: 1/5

Whole-foods Staples

Grains

Barley

Hulled barley is the whole foods version of barley.

Nutrition of hulled barley per 100 kcal:

Amount of calories: 100 kcal per 29g
3.6g protein - decent levels of protein
5g fiber - good levels of fiber
Decent levels of minerals, especially manganese and selenium
Decent levels of vitamins, and good levels of lutein + zeaxanthin (powerful antioxidants)
Good levels of antioxidants (manganese, selenium, lutein + zeaxanthin) ++

Overall rating of nutrition density per calorie: 4/5

Corn

Nutrition of corn (yellow, canned, drained) per 100 kcal:

Amount of calories: 100 kcal per 150g
3.4g protein - decent levels of protein
3g fiber - decent levels of fiber
Decent levels of minerals
Poor levels of vitamins, and very good levels of beta-carotene, beta-cryptoxanthin, lutein + zeaxanthin (powerful antioxidants)
Optimal levels of antioxidants (beta-carotene, beta-cryptoxanthin, lutein + zeaxanthin) ++++

Overall rating of nutrition density per calorie: 3.5/5

Oats

Oats can be divided in oat bran (the outer part of the grain) and oatmeal (the inner part of the grain).

Oat bran

Nutrition of oat bran per 100 kcal:

Amount of calories: 100 kcal per 41g
7.1g protein - optimal levels of protein
6.3g fiber - optimal levels of fiber
Good levels of minerals, especially manganese, phosphorus and selenium
Decent levels of vitamins, and good levels of lutein + zeaxanthin (powerful antioxidants)
Very good levels of antioxidant (manganese, selenium, lutein + zeaxanthin) +++

Overall rating of nutrition density per calorie: 5/5

Oatmeal

Nutrition of oatmeal per 100 kcal:

Amount of calories: 100 kcal per 27g
3.6g protein - decent levels of protein
2.7g fiber - decent levels of fiber
Decent levels of minerals, especially manganese
Low levels of vitamins, and decent levels of lutein + zeaxanthin (powerful antioxidants)
Good levels of antioxidants (manganese, lutein + zeaxanthin) ++

Overall rating of nutrition density per calorie: 3/5

Rice (black)

Rice (brown)

Nutrition of brown rice per 100 kcal:

Amount of calories: 100 kcal per 81g
2.2g protein - poor levels of protein
1.3g fiber - poor levels of fiber
Decent levels of minerals, especially manganese
Decent levels of vitamins

Overall rating of nutrition density per calorie: 2/5

Rice (red)

Rice (wild)

Nutrition of wild rice per 100 kcal:

Amount of calories: 100 kcal per 100g
4g protein - good levels of protein
1.8g fiber - poor levels of fiber
Poor levels of minerals
Decent levels of vitamins, and good levels of lutein + zeaxanthin (powerful antioxidants)
Decent levels of antioxidants (lutein + zeaxanthin) +

Overall rating of nutrition density per calorie: 2.5/5

Wheat

Whole Wheat Pasta

Nutrition of whole wheat pasta per 100 kcal:

Amount of calories: 100 kcal per 67g
4g protein - good levels of protein
2.6g fiber - decent levels of fiber
Good levels of minerals, especially manganese and selenium
Decent levels of vitamins, and good levels of lutein + zeaxanthin (powerful antioxidants)
Good levels of antioxidants (manganese, selenium, lutein + zeaxanthin) ++

Overall rating of nutrition density per calorie: 3.5/5

Legumes

Black beans

Nutrition of black beans (canned, drained) per 100 kcal:

Amount of calories: 100 kcal per 72g
5.9g protein - good levels of protein
7.6g fiber - optimal levels of fiber
Decent levels of minerals
Decent levels of vitamins

Overall rating of nutrition density per calorie: 4/5

Black-eyes Peas

Cannellini beans

Nutrition of cannellini beans (canned) per 100 kcal:

Amount of calories: 100 kcal per 130g
6g protein - Optimal levels of protein
5g fiber - good levels of fiber
Decent levels of minerals
Good levels of vitamins
Levels of antioxidants: ?

Overall rating of nutrition density per calorie: 4/5

Chickpeas (garbanzo beans)

Nutrition of chickpeas (canned, drained, rinsed) per 100 kcal:

Amount of calories: 100 kcal per 72g
5.1g protein - good levels of protein
5.6g fiber - good levels of fiber
Decent levels of minerals, especially manganese
Poor levels of vitamins, and decent levels of beta-carotene (antioxidant)
Decent levels of antioxidants (manganese, beta-carotene) +

Overall rating of nutrition density per calorie: 4/5

Edamame

Nutrition of edamame (cooked from frozen) per 100 kcal:

Amount of calories: 100 kcal per 83g
9.9g protein - optimal levels of protein
4.3g fiber - good levels of fiber
Good levels of minerals, especially manganese
Good levels of vitamins, especially folate and vitamin K, and very good levels of beta-carotene, lutein + zeaxanthin (powerful antioxidants)
Very good levels of antioxidants (beta-carotene, lutein + zeaxanthin) ++++

Overall rating of nutrition density per calorie: 4.5/5

Fava beans

Nutrition of fava beans per 100 kcal:

Amount of calories: 100 kcal per 161g
7.7g protein - optimal levels of protein
5.8g fiber - good levels of fiber
Decent levels of minerals
Good levels of vitamins, and very good levels of beta-carotene, lutein + zeaxanthin (powerful antioxidants)
Optimal levels of antioxidants (manganese, beta-carotene, lutein + zeaxanthin) ++++

Overall rating of nutrition density per calorie: 4.5/5

Great Northern beans

Nutrition of Great Northern Beans (canned, drained) per 100 kcal:

Amount of calories: 100 kcal per 72g
7g protein - optimal levels of protein
4.5g fiber - good levels of fiber
Decent levels of minerals
Poor levels of vitamins

Overall rating of nutrition density per calorie: 4/5

Green beans

Nutrition of green beans (cooked from frozen) per 100 kcal:

Amount of calories: 100 kcal per 357g
5.3g protein - good levels of protein
10.7g fiber - optimal levels of fiber
Good levels of minerals, especially manganese
Very good levels of vitamins, especially vitamin A, folate, C and K, and very good levels of alpha-carotene, beta-carotene and lutein + zeaxanthin (powerful antioxidants)
Optimal levels of antioxidants (alpha-carotene, beta-carotene, lutein + zeaxanthin, manganese) ++++

Overall rating of nutrition density per calorie: 5/5

Green peas

Nutrition of green peas (canned, drained) per 100 kcal:

Amount of calories: 100 kcal per 147g
6.6g protein - optimal levels of protein
7.2g fiber - optimal levels of fiber
Decent levels of minerals
Very good levels of vitamins, especially vitamin A and vitamin K, and very good levels of beta-carotene, lutein + zeaxanthin (powerful antioxidants)
Optimal levels of antioxidants (beta-carotene, lutein + zeaxanthin) ++++

Overall rating of nutrition density per calorie: 5/5

Kidney beans

Nutrition of kidney beans (canned, drained) per 100 kcal:

Amount of calories: 100 kcal per 81g
6.5g protein - optimal levels of protein
4.5g fiber - good levels of fiber
Decent levels of minerals
Poor levels of vitamins

Overall rating of nutrition density per calorie: 4/5

Lentils (brown)

Nutrition of lentils (brown) (canned, drained) per 100 kcal:

Amount of calories: 100 kcal per 86g
7.8g protein - optimal levels of protein
5g fiber - good levels of fiber
Decent levels of minerals
Good levels of vitamins

Overall rating of nutrition density per calorie: 4.5/5

Lentils (green)

Lentils (red)

Lima beans

Nutrition of lima beans (canned, drained) per 100 kcal:

Amount of calories: 100 kcal per 87g
6.8g protein - optimal levels of protein
6.1g fiber - optimal levels of fiber
Decent levels of minerals, especially manganese
Decent levels of vitamins
Decent levels of antioxidants (manganese) +

Overall rating of nutrition density per calorie: 4.5/5

Pinto beans

Nutrition of green peas (canned, drained) per 100 kcal:

Amount of calories: 100 kcal per 88g
6.2g protein - optimal levels of protein
4.8g fiber - good levels of fiber
Decent levels of minerals
Poor levels of vitamins

Overall rating of nutrition density per calorie: 4/5

Red beans

Snow peas

Nutrition of snow peas (cooked from frozen) per 100 kcal:

Amount of calories: 100 kcal per 192g
6.7g protein - optimal levels of protein
6g fiber - optimal levels of fiber
Good levels of minerals, especially manganese and iron
Optimal levels of vitamins, especially vitamin A, C and K, and optimal levels of beta-carotene and
Very good levels of antioxidants (manganese, beta-carotene, lutein + zeaxanthin) ++++

Overall rating of nutrition density per calorie: 5/5

Soybeans

Nutrition of soybeans (canned, drained) per 100 kcal:

Amount of calories: 100 kcal per 58g
10.2g protein - optimal levels of protein
3.5g fiber - decent levels of fiber
Decent levels of minerals, especially manganese and iron
Decent levels of vitamins
Decent levels of antioxidants (manganese) +

Overall rating of nutrition density per calorie: 4/5

Split peas

Nutrition of split peas (canned, drained) per 100 kcal:

Amount of calories: 100 kcal per 86g
7.1g protein - optimal levels of protein
7.2g fiber - optimal levels of fiber
Decent levels of minerals, especially manganese and iron
Decent levels of vitamins

Overall rating of nutrition density per calorie: 4.5/5

Potatoes

Nutrition of potatoes (boiled with skin) per 100 kcal:

Amount of calories: 100 kcal per 132g
2.1g protein - poor levels of protein
3.2g fiber - decent levels of fiber
Decent levels of minerals, especially potassium
Decent levels of vitamins, and good levels of lutein + zeaxanthin (powerful antioxidant)
Decent levels of antioxidants (lutein + zeaxanthin) +

Overall rating of nutrition density per calorie: 3/5

Sweet potatoes

Nutrition of sweet potatoes per 100 kcal:

Amount of calories: 100 kcal per 111g
2.2g protein - poor levels of protein
3.7g fiber - decent levels of fiber
Good levels of minerals, especially manganese
Optimal levels of vitamins, especially vitamin A, and optimal levels of beta-carotene (powerful antioxidant)
Very good levels of antioxidants (manganese, beta-carotene) ++++

Overall rating of nutrition density per calorie: 4.5/5

Carrots

Carrots (raw)

Nutrition of carrots (raw) per 100 kcal:

Amount of calories: 100 kcal per 244g
2.3g protein - poor levels of protein
6.8g fiber - optimal levels of fiber
Good levels of minerals, especially potassium
Optimal levels of vitamins, especially vitamin A, C and K, and very good levels of alpha-carotene, beta-carotene and lutein + zeaxanthin (powerful antioxidants)
Optimal levels of antioxidants (vitamin C, alpha-carotene, beta-carotene, lutein + zeaxanthin) ++++

Overall rating of nutrition density per calorie: 4.5/5

Carrots (cooked)

Nutrition of carrots (cooked) per 100 kcal:

Amount of calories: 100 kcal per 286g
2.2g protein - poor levels of protein
8.6g fiber - optimal levels of fiber
Good levels of minerals, especially manganese
Optimal levels of vitamins, especially vitamin B6, A, C and K, and very good levels of alpha-carotene, beta-carotene and lutein + zeaxanthin (powerful antioxidants)
Optimal levels of antioxidants (vitamin C, alpha-carotene, beta-carotene, lutein + zeaxanthin) ++++

Overall rating of nutrition density per calorie: 4.5/5

Couscous

Nutrition of couscous per 100 kcal:

Amount of calories: 100 kcal per 89g
3.4g protein - decent levels of protein
1.3g fiber - poor levels of fiber
Decent levels of minerals, especially manganese and selenium
Poor levels of vitamins, and some levels of lutein + zeaxanthin (powerful antioxidants)
Some levels of antioxidants (lutein + zeaxanthin) +

Overall rating of nutrition density per calorie: 4/5

Quinoa

Nutrition of sweet potatoes per 100 kcal:

Amount of calories: 100 kcal per 83g
3.7g protein - decent levels of protein
2.2g fiber - poor levels of fiber
Decent levels of minerals, especially manganese
Decent levels of vitamins, and good levels of lutein + zeaxanthin (powerful antioxidants)
Good levels of antioxidants (manganese, lutein + zeaxanthin) ++

Overall rating of nutrition density per calorie: 3/5

Common Whole-food Staples

Contents

Processed Staple Examples

White pasta

White rice

Whole-foods Staples

Grains

Barley

Corn

Oats

Oat bran

Oatmeal

Rice (black)

Rice (brown)

Rice (red)

Rice (wild)

Wheat

Whole Wheat Pasta

Legumes

Black beans

Black-eyes Peas

Cannellini beans

Chickpeas (garbanzo beans)

Edamame

Fava beans

Great Northern beans

Green beans

Green peas

Kidney beans

Lentils (brown)

Lentils (green)

Lentils (red)

Lima beans

Pinto beans

Red beans

Snow peas

Soybeans

Split peas

Potatoes

Potatoes

Sweet potatoes

Carrots

Carrots (raw)

Carrots (cooked)

Couscous

Quinoa

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