How A lot Protein Can You Get From a Hen Breast?

Hen breast is an effective supply of lean protein. A 3-ounce cooked hen breast gives round 26 grams of protein. Excessive-protein diets can construct muscle, help weight reduction, and hold you feeling full between meals.

Hen breast has essentially the most protein per ounce. For instance, 1 ounce of hen breast has about 8–9 grams of protein. The identical quantity of thigh meat has 6–7 grams of protein.

Hen wings and hen drumsticks have barely much less protein as a result of they’re smaller and include extra pores and skin and bone in comparison with lean breast meat. This is how totally different cuts of hen evaluate:

Hen Reduce
Serving Measurement (cooked)
Protein

Hen breast
3 ounces (oz)
25.9 grams (g)

Hen thigh (boneless)
3 oz
19.2 g

Drumstick
1 medium drumstick (about 2.3 oz)
14.7 g

Wing
1 wing (about 1.5 oz)
10.5 g

One of the best minimize of hen relies on your well being targets and what you get pleasure from consuming. Right here’s how the totally different cuts stack up nutritionally:

Hen breast: Skinless hen breast is the leanest minimize. It’s low in saturated fats and energy whereas being excessive in protein.
Thighs and drumsticks: Darkish meat cuts are increased in fats, which helps them keep tender and flavorful. They are often loved sparsely, however an excessive amount of saturated fats could elevate ldl cholesterol and coronary heart illness danger.
Wings: Hen wings have much less meat and extra pores and skin, which provides further saturated fats. They’re additionally typically fried and coated in sauce, which may enhance the calorie, sodium, and fats content material. Selecting baked or grilled wings and eradicating the pores and skin could make them a more healthy possibility.

Hen breast is usually thought-about the healthiest minimize, however all components of the hen can match right into a balanced weight loss plan. As a result of hen breast is decrease in fats, it may be drier than fattier cuts like hen thighs or hen drumsticks, which keep extra tender and juicy.

A number of elements can have an effect on how a lot protein you find yourself consuming. This contains:

Bone-in vs. boneless: Bone-in cuts weigh extra, however a few of that weight is bone. Boneless cuts provide you with extra meat and protein per ounce.
Pores and skin-on vs. skinless: Pores and skin-on hen is increased in fats and energy. Eradicating the pores and skin lowers fats and energy whereas preserving the protein content material the identical.
Cooking technique: Excessive-temperature cooking strategies, corresponding to grilling or roasting, could cause hen to lose water and moisture. This makes the meat denser and may enhance the protein content material per ounce. Boiling or stewing retains extra moisture, so the quantity of protein per ounce could also be barely decrease.
Serving dimension: Bigger parts include extra whole protein. For instance, a 6-ounce hen breast has about 52 grams of protein. A median 3-ounce portion of hen is concerning the dimension of your palm or a deck of playing cards.

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U.S. Division of Agriculture: FoodData Central. Hen, broiler or fryers, breast, skinless, boneless, meat solely, cooked, grilled.