The

Big
Protein
Cook
Book
It builds muscle. It burns fat. And now, it seems, we can’t get enough.
From supermarket aisles to bespoke nutrition deliveries, protein
has never been so popular. But to feel the full benefit, you need the
right amount. Are you getting your fill? MH ran the macros then
enlisted 12 top chefs to create your ultimate muscle-kitchen guide
WORDS BY EDWIN SMITH - PHOTOGRAPHY BY DAN MATTHEWS

94 MEN’S HEALTH | June 2016

 P
rotein is everywhere. This much is axiomatic. What’s
unusual, however, is precisely where. It’s not just hanging
from the butcher’s hook or filling the chilled aisle. Protein
is now emblazoned across cereal boxes, ice cream tubs and
snack bars. Food marketeers have cottoned on to the fact
that protein is now seen as an elixir, the ‘healthy’ solution
to our needs, be they weightloss, muscle gain or general
wellbeing.
This is good, up to a point. It is good that we’re
finally seeing a collective shift away from
refined carbs toward protein and
fats. But it is unquestionably
bad if some hapless shopper
thinks fortified Frosties
are the key to a trim
physique.
The solution
lies not in labels
but in numbers.
Gym wisdom has
for some time
held that the
magic number is
30 – as in, 30g of
protein being the
optimum amount
the body can process
at any one time. This
is nonsense, says Caspar
Rose, COO of Fresh Fitness
Foods, a macros-minded nutrition
service. “It’s bad science: your body can
absorb far more, processing it from your gut into
MACRO amino acids in your bloodstream.”
YOUR ECONOMICS
PROTEIN FIX, Forget grams, says Rose, it’s far better to think in terms
NOW OVER-
EASY of percentages: “For lean growth, the number you should
have in mind is 35%.” In other words, from breakfast to
12 RECIPES dinner, you should aim for 35% of the calories going down
your gullet to come from protein.
If the prospect of a day’s eating gives you maths lesson
flashbacks, fear not. We’ve crunched the numbers for you
35% PROTEIN and, with the help of men who know their way around a
kitchen, concocted 12 meals – each 35% protein, each
100% delicious. And perhaps even more surprising, there’s
only one chicken breast in sight.
STRONGER YOU

June 2016 | MEN’S HEALTH 95

01 Bone Up On
Meat-Free Muscle
Edamame
Tofu Puree
& Pickled
Shiitake
By Miles Kirby, Caravan
Serves 2
INGREDIENTS
• EDAMAME BEANS, 200G
• SILKEN TOFU, 350G
• SHIITAKE MUSHROOMS, 200G
• SOY SAUCE, 4TBSP
• MIRIN, 4TBSP
• SAKE, 4TBSP
• TOASTED SESAME SEEDS, 2TSP
• CORIANDER LEAVES,
ROUGHLY CHOPPED
02 Add Punch
To Your Patties
Turkey
& Quinoa
Burger
By Stephanie Johnson,
The Recovery Café at
Transition Zone
Serves 2
INGREDIENTS
• TURKEY MINCE, 250G
• COOKED QUINOA, 250G
• DILL, PARSLEY AND MINT
• LEMON, JUICE AND ZEST, ½
• GARLIC CLOVE, MINCED
• PAPRIKA, ½TSP
• HIMALAYAN SALT, ¼TSP
• SEEDED PITTA BREADS, 4
• HOUMOUS, 2TBSP
• SALAD & CORIANDER
96 MEN’S HEALTH | June 2016
YOUR PROTEIN
COUNTS
1\ Use a food processor to pulse
the edamame and tofu together
until they have the consistency
EDAMAME 11G
of a coarse puree. As well
as being a superb source of
vegan protein (there’s only
so much mammal a man can
eat, after all), both contain TOFU 12G
high levels of isoflavones,
manganese and magnesium,
which all contribute to
adamantiumesque bones.
2\ In a small pan, fry the sliced
shrooms until they’re soft SHIITAKE 2G
and wet. Add the soy, mirin
and sake to the pan to make a
sauce, then remove it from the
heat and put to one side until
it cools.
3\ Spoon the edamame puree
into a pot or bowl, scatter the
mushrooms on top and pour
over the sauce. Garnish the dish
with the toasted sesame seeds
and the coriander, and enjoy, MAGIC BEANS
bub. FOR GIANT
GAINS
YOUR PROTEIN
COUNTS
1\ Mulled drinks aside, the real
reason you experienced such
good cheer over Christmas may
QUINOA 8G
have been your dinner. Turkey
is a top source of tryptophan
– an amino acid with proven
mood-lifting powers. Place the
mince in a bowl with the other TURKEY 28G
burger ingredients, then roll
your sleeves up and mix with
your hands. Once combined,
divide into four small patties.
2\ Fry the patties, in a dash of
oil for six minutes on one side, PITTA 11G
then five minutes on the other,
before serving in a seeded
pitta with tomato, chopped
cucumber, mixed leaves and
fresh coriander.
3\ This burger’s flavour alone
is enough to put a smile on your
face, but seal the deal with an
extra dollop of tryptophan-rich
houmous in place of your usual
(and likely sugary) condiment. HAPPY
MEALS
WITH EXTRA
VALUE
 The Big Protein Cook Book

YOUR PROTEIN
COUNTS 03 Go Wild For
Performance
Salmon With 1\ Mushrooms regulate blood
sugar and support cardio
SALMON 40G
A Ragu Of endurance, according to
Trompette University at Buffalo– ideal
if you’re hoping to go from
De La Mort 10K trudger to marathon man
By John Watson, No
this year. Wild varieties taste
Man’s Grace
SHROOMS 3G awful unless you clean them
Serves 2
thoroughly, so scrub them then
trim the tough bottoms.
INGREDIENTS
2\ Put a saucepan over a
• TROMPETTE DE LA MORT, 400G medium heat, add half the oil
(OR OTHER WILD MUSHROOM) and a pinch of salt, then sweat
STOCK 2.5G • COCONUT OIL, 30ML the shallots for five minutes.
• SHALLOTS, 2, FINELY SLICED Add the garlic for three more.
• GARLIC CLOVES, 4, In a frying pan, sear the fillets
FINELY SLICED in the rest of the oil until golden
• SKINLESS SALMON FILLETS, 2 brown. Take it out of the pan
• CHICKEN STOCK, 200ML and leave to rest.
3\ Put the frying pan back on a
high heat. Add the mushrooms
REEL IN and toss for two minutes. Add
A NEW the shallot mix, the stock and
PERSONAL stir, until the stock has reduced.
BEST
Serve, with the salmon fillet on
top. Take your time – this isn’t
a sprint.

YOUR PROTEIN
COUNTS 04 Raise Your
Bar Snacks
Lean Venison 1\ Boil four eggs in salt water for
exactly six minutes and
VENISON 22G
Scotch Egg 15 seconds before transferring
By Dom Hamdy & Oli to a bowl of ice water. Leave
Hiam, Scotchtails them for five minutes, then dry,
Serves 4 peel and dust with flour.
2\ In a bowl, mix the thyme
EGGS 10G INGREDIENTS into the mince, season with
• EGGS, 6 salt and pepper and shape into
• FLOUR four patties, before wrapping
• THYME LEAVES, HANDFUL them around the eggs. You
won’t miss pork – Purdue Uni
• VENISON MINCE, 400G
found that meats similar to
• GRATED NUTMEG, ½TSP
BREADCRUMBS 3G those eaten by Palaeolithic-
• PANKO BREADCRUMBS
era man have a better ratio of
brain-boosting DHA-rich fats,
so venison makes for a smart
tweak to this pub grub staple.
3\ Put some flour and nutmeg,
two beaten eggs and the
breadcrumbs into three bowls
and coat the eggs in each
Food stylist: Nico Ghirlando

one (in that order). Then

double-dip in the eggs and
breadcrumbs before shallow
frying for 14 minutes. Serve hot,
with a helping of smug.
ANOTHER
WAY
TO GET June 2016 | MEN’S HEALTH 97
YOLKED
05 Have Your Cake
And Cheat It
Chocolate
Protein
Cheesecake
By Caspar Rose,
Fresh Fitness Foods
Serves 10
FOR THE BASE
• GROUND COCONUT, 50G
• GROUND ALMOND, 100G
• HONEY, 20G
• COCOA POWDER, 50G
FOR THE CHEESECAKE MIX
• COCOA POWDER, 50G
• COTTAGE CHEESE, 300G
• EGG WHITE, 300G
• QUARK, 700G
• VANILLA ESSENCE, 10G
• HONEY, 30G
06 Maca Yourself
Unbreakable
Andina
Superfood
Power Salad
By Martin Morales,
Andina
Serves 2
INGREDIENTS
• COOKED QUINOA, 70G
• AMARANTH, 35G
• RAW TUNA, 100G
• BUTTER BEANS, 50G
• RED CHILLI, ½, CHOPPED
• TOMATO, ½, CHOPPED
• SMALL RED ONION,
½, CHOPPED
• BLUEBERRIES,
HANDFUL
• AVOCADO, ½, CUBED
• MACA POWDER, 10G
• SACHA INCHI OIL, A DRIZZLE
• LIME, A SQUEEZE
98 MEN’S HEALTH | June 2016
YOUR PROTEIN
COUNTS
1\ If dessert is something
you only eat on cheat days,
you’re doing it wrong. Mix the
QUARK 9G
ingredients for the base in a
food processor then press them
into a square baking tray lined
with parchment paper. Bake
at 180°C for 10 minutes, then ALMONDS 2.5G
leave to cool.
2\ Using your trusty food
processor, blitz the cheesecake
mix ingredients together until
smooth, and pour onto your
base. Sales of quark – the EGG WHITE 3.5G
once-unfashionable low-fat,
high-protein cheese – shot
up by 38% last year. Your
depleted, post-workout muscles
are about to find out why.
3\ Turn your oven down to
150°C and bake the cheesecake
for about 15-20 minutes. Leave
it to cool before slicing into
10 portions. Paul Hollywood
himself would shake your hand. ENJOY
YOUR
JUST
DESSERTS
YOUR PROTEIN
COUNTS
1\ If a tough week in the office
(or at the gym) has sapped
your strength, bin the takeaway
TUNA 12G
menu and prep this energy-
restoring salad. Tip the quinoa
and amaranth into a pan with
double the volume of water.
Simmer for 15 minutes. QUINOA 2.5G
2\ Cut the tuna into 1cm cubes
and mix in a bowl with the
beans, chilli, tomato, onion and
blueberries (an antioxidant
powerhouse). Place the
avocado cubes on top of your BEANS 1.5G
salad and season with lime
juice, salt, pepper and Sacha
Inchi oil.
3\ Add a few teaspoons of
water to the maca to make
a puree. Ignore limp boasts of
it being ‘nature’s Viagra’ – the
hard science shows that this
plant’s real power is its ability
to release energy from food.
Squeeze the puree onto each
corner of the plate and unleash
your meal’s potential. FINE-TUNA
YOUR
MENTAL
POWERS
 The Big Protein Cook Book

YOUR PROTEIN
COUNTS

07 Freeze Out
WHEYHEY 6G
Sugar Cravings
1\ OK, so this isn’t an ice cream
Sugar-Free sandwich like mamma used to
Oat Cookie make, but then again, mamma
wasn’t trying to pack on 5kg of
Ice Cream lean muscle. Preheat the oven
FLOUR 1.5G
Sandwich to 180°C and mix everything bar
By Keith Goddard, Arch the ice cream and almonds in a
65 Private Dining large bowl. Scoop 20 spoonfuls
Serves 10 of the mix onto a lined baking
tray, leaving space between
INGREDIENTS each; they’re going to expand.
2\ Bake for 10 or 15 minutes
OATS 0.6G • OATS, 50G
then leave to cool. Take a
• BUTTER, 125G
spoonful of ice cream and
• EGG YOLKS, 3
dollop on top of one cookie,
• HONEY, 1TBSP
then put another on top to form
• SALT, 1 PINCH a sandwich.
• FLOUR, 125G 3\ Roll your sandwich over
• BAKING POWDER, 5G the ground almonds – studies
• WATER, 50ML show the nuts boost weightloss
• WHEYHEY CHOCOLATE and, combined with low-GI
ICE CREAM, 500ML oats and satiating protein in
• GROUND ALMONDS, 50G the ice cream, this will satisfy
A SWEETER
DEAL FOR
your sweet tooth without
LEAN MASS compromising your efforts on
the Wattbike.

YOUR PROTEIN
COUNTS 08 Ram Your
Risk Of Illness
Grilled Lamb 1\ Take your potatoes and
carrots – fit to burst with
LAMB 40G
Loin, Carrots cancer-fighting carotenoids
And Capers – and add them to a saucepan
By Stevie Parle, with butter and water. Put
the lid on and cook. After 25
Craft London
minutes, add salt, pepper and
Serves 2
POTATOES 1G a little chilli to the pan and
boil off any remaining water
INGREDIENTS
by removing the lid. Mash the
• POTATOES, SLICED, 60G vegetables into a puree.
• CARROTS, CHOPPED, 160G 2\ Season the lamb loin with
• BUTTER, 40G salt and pepper and place in a
CARROTS 0.5G
• WATER, 150ML hot, oven-proof frying pan with
• DRIED CHILLI, PINCH a little oil; three minutes on
• LAMB LOIN, 400G each side will do. Shove it in an
• OLIVE OIL, 2TSP oven heated to 200°C for five
• CORIANDER SEEDS, 2TSP minutes before removing the
• CAPERS, 2TSP meat and leaving it to rest.
• VINEGAR, 2TSP 3\ Add the coriander seeds,
• MINT LEAVES, 20 capers and vinegar to the
pan and mix together. Slice
the lamb and serve it over
the carrot puree, pouring the
ROAST YOUR minty, capery pan juices on top.
BIG-C ODDS Your cancer risk is like a lamb
to the slaughter.

June 2016 | MEN’S HEALTH 99

09 Give Up YOUR PROTEIN
COUNTS

Fat For Lentil

Breaded Tofu 1\ Put the lentils in a large bowl
with the shallots, Thai basil,
With Lentils & chilli, oil, vinegar, and salt and
LENTILS 3.5G

Sweet Chilli pepper and stir well. Everyone’s

By Alexis Gauthier, aware that chillies fire up your
metabolism, but did you know
Gauthier Soho
this calorie-burning power is
Serves 2
enhanced by the vitamin B3- EGG 3G
rich lentils?
INGREDIENTS
2\ Break an egg into a bowl
• LENTILS, COOKED, 50G and mix in the milk. Dip the
• SHALLOT, ½, SLICED tofu in the mixture, transfer to
• THAI BASIL, CHOPPED another plate and cover with
• CHILLI, ¼, CHOPPED breadcrumbs. Heat a spoonful TOFU 11G
• OLIVE OIL, 50ML of olive oil in a frying pan –
• BALSAMIC VINEGAR, 1TBSP when it starts to smoke, slide
• AN EGG in the tofu and cook for two
• FRESH MILK, 1TBSP minutes (try your best to stop it
• FIRM TOFU, 175G from sticking).
• BREADCRUMBS, 25G 3\ Slice the tofu thinly, then
layer it between the dressed
lentils. Refrigerate it for a
couple of hours before plating
up with a splash of olive oil,
balsamic and some more STAY ON THE
chopped basil. Fat loss FITNESS
is a dish best served cold. PULSE

10 Add Fuel YOUR PROTEIN

COUNTS

To The Fire
Chilli Con 1\ When it comes to whipping
up a mid-week meal, simplicity
Turkey is a virtue. But that’s no excuse
TURKEY 23G
By Christian Coates, to default to Pain Grillé aux
Soulmatefood Beans. To make gains of
Serves 4 the temporal and muscular
varieties both, prep a batch of
INGREDIENTS this chilli on Sunday night and BEANS 4G
• ONION, CHOPPED dine like
• GARLIC, 6 CLOVES a king for the rest of the week.
• TURKEY MINCE, 400G 2\ Start by drizzling some
olive oil into a large pot.
• CHOPPED TOMATOES, 2 TINS
Sauté the onion and garlic for
• TOMATO PASTE, 3TBSP
three minutes. Next it’s time TOMATOES 2G
• KIDNEY BEANS, 1 TIN
for the turkey, the criminally
• RED PEPPER, 2, CHOPPED
undervalued member of the
• CHILLIES, 2
protein-rich poultry family.
• HONEY, 2TBSP Add it to the pot and cook until
• CHILLI POWDER, 6TBSP it’s white all over.
• OREGANO, 4TSP 3\ Throw in the rest of the
• CAYENNE PEPPER, PINCH ingredients and simmer on low
for about an hour. That’ll give
you time to polish off another
episode of The Walking Dead
before divvying it up into TORCH
Tupperware, or devouring on FAT, NOT
the spot. MUSCLE
MASS

100 MEN’S HEALTH | June 2016

 The Big Protein Cook Book

YOUR PROTEIN
COUNTS 11 Get The Best
Of The Breast
Chicken With 1\ Chicken breast can seem
like the lowest common
CHICKEN 33G
Pistachios denominator when it comes
& Yoghurt to getting your lean protein,
By Ed Sargent, Head but this easy dish adds a bit of
panache to a tired old bird.
Chef, Aladino’s
First, sear the meat in a hot pan
Serves 2
PISTACHIOS 5G using coconut oil, then transfer
it to an oven pre-heated to
INGREDIENTS
150°C for 15 minutes.
• CHICKEN BREAST, 2 2\ Meanwhile, grind the
• COCONUT OIL pistachios in a pestle and
• ROASTED PISTACHIOS, 50G mortar before chopping and
YOGHURT 1.5G
• RED CHILLI, 2 dicing the chilli. Take out the
• GREEK YOGHURT, 30G seeds if you can’t stand the
• SPINACH, 2 BIG HANDFULS heat, but stay in the kitchen
• LEMON, SQUEEZE long enough to run the nuts
and chilli through the yoghurt,
adding a squeeze of lemon.
3\ Remove the chicken from
the oven and rest for three
minutes. Serve on a bed of
UPGRADE spinach, top with the dressing
YOUR and tuck in. But be warned:
POULTRY once you’ve tried this, grilled
GAINS
chicken with a side of broccoli
will be off the menu for good.

12 Reap Meat’s
YOUR PROTEIN
COUNTS

Raw Power
Steak Tartare 1\ With zero cooking time,
you’ll be feasting on this
BEEF 32G
With Melba- powerfully nutritious starter
Style Toast in the time it takes you to chop
By Chris Zachwieja, up the ingredients. First, slice
the bread very finely, place it
Boisdale Belgravia
on a tray and brush with olive
Serves 2
SOURDOUGH 5G oil. Season with the salt and
cracked black pepper.
INGREDIENTS
2\ Warm the bread for five
• SOURDOUGH BREAD, 200G minutes in a preheated oven at
• BEEF FILLET, 300G, DICED 175°C. Next, combine the steak
STEAK SAUCE sauce ingredients and store
SHALLOTS 1G • TOMATO KETCHUP, 70G them in a container.
• DIJON MUSTARD, 10G
3\ Mix together the shallots,
capers, gherkins and herbs,
• TABASCO SAUCE, DASH
then plate up with the steak
• WORCESTERSHIRE
and pour over the sauce.
SAUCE, DASH
Serve with the toast and take a
HERB MIX moment to enjoy the fact that
• SHALLOTS, 2, DICED eating raw meat enhances your
• LILLIPUT CAPERS, body’s ability to absorb and
2TSP, SLICED process protein, according to a
• COCKTAIL GHERKINS, study published in the journal
2TSP SLICED Molecular Nutrition & Food
STEAK YOUR Research. Plus it makes you feel
CLAIM TO • PARSLEY, 1TSP, SLICED
SIZE • TARRAGON, 1TSP, SLICED pretty damn manly.

June 2016 | MEN’S HEALTH 101