Vegetables
How much protein is in asparagus?
Half a cup of cooked asparagus has about 2.2 g of protein.
That's 2.4 g of protein per 100 g, or 11 g for every 100 calories.
Protein per serving
| Serving | Weight | Protein | Calories |
|---|---|---|---|
| ½ cup | 90 g | 2.2 g | 20 |
| 4 spears | 60 g | 1.4 g | 13 |
| 100 g | 100 g | 2.4 g | 22 |
How asparagus compares
Other vegetables, ranked by how much protein you get per 100 calories.
| Food | Protein per 100 g | Protein per 100 calories |
|---|---|---|
| Mushroomswhite, raw | 3.1 g | 14 g |
| Spinachraw | 2.9 g | 12 g |
| Kaleraw | 2.9 g | 8.3 g |
| Cauliflowerboiled | 1.8 g | 8 g |
| Brussels sproutsboiled | 2.6 g | 7.1 g |
| Zucchiniraw, with skin | 1.2 g | 7.1 g |
| Broccoliboiled | 2.4 g | 6.8 g |
| Artichokeboiled | 2.9 g | 5.5 g |
| Green beansboiled | 1.9 g | 5.4 g |
| Cornsweet yellow, boiled | 3.4 g | 3.6 g |
| Potatobaked, with skin | 2.5 g | 2.7 g |
| Carrotsraw | 0.9 g | 2.3 g |
| Sweet potatobaked in skin | 2 g | 2.2 g |
How it fits into a meal
For building muscle, Schoenfeld and Aragon's 2018 review of the research suggests about 0.4 g of protein per kilogram of body weight at each meal, spread over at least four meals a day. At 170 lb (77 kg), that's about 31 g a meal. Half a cup of cooked asparagus covers about 7% of that.
Work out your own daily and per-meal target with the protein calculator.
Nutrition data: USDA FoodData Central ("Asparagus, cooked, boiled, drained", FDC ID 168390). Actual values vary by brand, recipe and cooking method, so treat these numbers as close estimates.