High-Protein Snacks: 20 Canadian-Friendly Ideas Backed by a Dietitian
Hitting daily protein targets is hard if you rely on meals alone. Here are 20 high-protein snacks you can actually buy or make in Canada, with exact grams.
Written by UnityLife Admin
Edited by the UnityLife editorial team
Most Canadian adults eat plenty of protein at dinner and skimp at breakfast and snack time. Spreading 20–30 grams of protein across 3–4 points in your day does more for muscle retention, satiety and blood-sugar stability than front-loading it at supper. Here are 20 snacks that each deliver 15+ grams.
Fridge-and-go (10–20 g protein)
Plain Greek yogurt (¾ cup, 0–2% fat): 17 g. Add berries and pumpkin seeds for fibre and minerals.
Cottage cheese (¾ cup, 2%): 19 g. Shockingly underrated. Pair with tomato and cracked pepper, or with pineapple.
Skyr (Icelandic Provisions, Siggi’s, Liberté Icelandic): 17 g per 150 g cup.
A hard-boiled egg plus a piece of smoked salmon: 16 g.
Protein pudding (Oikos Pro, Ratio, Iögo Protéine): 15–18 g per cup.
Pantry-stable (15–25 g protein)
Canned tuna packet (light, in water): 16 g. Squeeze lemon and eat with rice crackers.
Canned sockeye salmon: 18 g per ½ can, omega-3 rich.
Roasted chickpeas (Three Farmers, bulk): 15 g per ⅓ cup.
Edamame, shelled and frozen: 17 g per cup.
Jerky made without added sugar (Kooee, Country Prime Meats): 11 g per 28 g stick — eat two.
Grab-and-go (15–22 g protein)
Premier Protein shake: 30 g — heavier end, good for post-workout.
Oikos Triple Zero pouch: 15 g, no added sugar.
Kind Protein bar: 12 g — pair with a glass of milk for 20+ g.
RXBar: 12 g, clean label — again, pair with milk.
Canadian-made Vega or Iron Vegan bars: 12–15 g, plant-based.
DIY (make once, eat five times)
Two-ingredient protein bites: 1 scoop whey + 2 tablespoons peanut butter, roll into 6 balls. Each: ~7 g. Eat three.
Cottage-cheese smoothie: 1 cup milk + ½ cup cottage cheese + 1 scoop protein powder + frozen berries. 40+ g protein.
Overnight oats with Greek yogurt: ½ cup oats + ¾ cup plain Greek yogurt + chia + berries. 25 g protein.
Canned-salmon rice cakes: 2 rice cakes, ½ can salmon mashed with Greek yogurt and dill. 20 g protein.
Tofu pudding: silken tofu blended with cocoa, maple syrup and a pinch of salt. 15 g protein per cup.
How much protein you actually need
Dietitians of Canada recommends roughly 0.8 g of protein per kg of body weight for sedentary adults; active adults, older adults and anyone doing strength training benefit from 1.2–1.6 g per kg.
Practically: a 70 kg (154 lb) adult hitting the 1.2 target wants ~84 g a day. That’s a 25 g snack in each of three breaks plus 25 g at lunch or dinner.
The bottom line
Getting to your daily protein target is mostly about having five go-to snacks on hand. Stock two or three of these at home and one in your bag, and your numbers take care of themselves.
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The bottom line
Getting to your daily protein target is mostly about having five go-to snacks on hand. Stock two or three of these at home and one in your bag, and your numbers take care of themselves.
Frequently asked questions
Plain Greek yogurt (large tub) and cottage cheese are both around 12–15 cents per gram of protein, which is the cheapest you’ll find at a mainstream grocery store.
Sources & further reading
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