Fiber + Legumes & Beans with Fiber

Cannellini beans fiber comes to about 11 grams per cup when cooked from dry, and Mayo Clinic lists canned cannellini at about 13 grams per cup. That’s roughly 40% to 46% of the Daily Value, with about 17 grams of protein alongside it.

Lima beans fiber ranges from about 9 grams per cup for frozen baby limas to about 13 grams per cup for large limas cooked from dry. Either way, they rank among the higher fiber vegetables you can buy and bring around 12 to 15 grams of protein.

Soybeans fiber comes to about 10 grams per cooked cup, less than most beans, but that same cup carries nearly 29 grams of protein. How much fiber you actually get from soy depends on the form, from whole soybeans and edamame down to tofu and soy milk.

Black eyed peas fiber comes to about 11 grams per cooked cup, or 5.6 grams per half cup for just 99 calories, one of the lowest calorie counts of any legume. They also bring about 13 grams of protein and close to 90% of a day’s folate per cup.

Split peas fiber comes to about 16 grams per cooked cup, nearly double what you get from a cup of green peas, plus about 16 grams of protein. In a Canadian trial, muffins made with yellow pea flour lowered fasting insulin in overweight adults within four weeks.

Lentils fiber reaches about 15.6 grams in a cooked cup, and red, green and brown lentils land within a whisker of each other. Swapping half the rice or potatoes on your plate for lentils also cut the blood sugar response by roughly 20 to 35% in a Canadian trial.

Chickpeas fiber comes to about 12.5 grams per cup cooked from dry and about 9.6 grams per cup canned and rinsed, alongside roughly 14 grams of protein. In one Australian study, adding four cans of chickpeas a week raised fiber intake by almost 7 grams a day and nudged cholesterol down.

Navy beans fiber tops the common bean list at about 19 grams per cooked cup, or 10.5 grams per 100 grams. Those small white beans also bring about 15 grams of protein and more than half a day’s folate, which makes them one of the most efficient high fiber foods you can buy.

Pinto beans fiber adds up to about 15 grams per cooked cup, or 9 grams per 100 grams, which puts them near the top of the bean aisle. That fiber, plus about 15 grams of protein, helps explain why a pinto bean and rice plate raises blood sugar more gently than rice alone.

Kidney beans fiber comes to about 13 grams per cooked cup, or 7.4 grams per 100 grams, along with about 15 grams of protein. Canned kidney beans keep most of that fiber, but dry red kidney beans must be boiled thoroughly, because undercooked ones carry a natural toxin that heat destroys.