10 Quick High Protein Paleo Diet Snacks

The Paleolthic diet (also called paleo or the caveman diet) is a diet based on consuming whole, unprocessed foods that would likely have been available to our ancient ancestors. This includes foods such as meat, nuts and fruits and excludes foods like dairy, pasta and bread.

There is a growing body of support for the diet, however, one of the issues many people find is being able to adhere to it over the long-term. Some critics suggest that it tends to be more suited to people who have time to cook and prefer to eat a few big meals each day rather than those that prefer regular snacking.

This hub will show you that this isn’t the case and there are some simple, quick and healthy snacks you can either whip up quickly or prepare or buy that will help you keep your energy levels up throughout the day.

Boiled eggs are an extremely simple and portable snack. You can cook up and peel a bunch in advance then keep them in the fridge ready for quick consumption or grab and go. They’re great with a simple salt and pepper seasoning and can easily be tossed into a quick salad too.

Whilst you may not be the most pleasant person to be around if you don’t have any breath mints on hand, canned tuna is a great fail safe high protein snack option! All you need is a fork (most small tuna cans are easy-open). Most brands have a number of flavours available, but if you are stuck with plain tuna and can’t stand the taste, try some of these seasoning combos:

• Lemon juice, salt and pepper
• Tarragon or dill and pepper
• Lemon, basil and chilli
• Hot sauce, tabasco or Nandos sauce
• Paprika and cumin
• Mustard
• Tomato Salsa
• Thai green/red curry paste and coconut cream

If you’re after some more tuna recipes see this hub (note that some of these recipes do not fit the Paleo diet criteria)

Whilst traditionally part of a main meal, meatballs can also make a great quick fix high protein snack. They are simple to make, just combine some form of ground meat with seasonings (traditional Italian flavours such as garlic, oregano, pepper and salt or Indian flavours such as chilli, garlic, ginger, turmeric and garam masala), onions (you can also throw other vegetables into the mix), coconut or almond flour and an egg and roll into balls. You can then either bake them in the oven (350F for 40-45 minutes) or lightly fry them in some oil. Serve them up with your favourite dipping sauce and/or a side salad.

This article has some great paleo meatball recipes if you need some fresh ideas!

Dice up some chicken, beef, pork, fish, venison, kangaroo or whatever your favourite meat is and wack it on a skewer interspersed with some diced vegetables (peppers, mushrooms, zucchini, onion, cherry tomatoes and asparagus tend to work well). Baste it in whatever marinade you like and then throw it on a hot grill to cook. Easy to have some of these kept ready in the fridge for a quick throw on the grill and snack during the week.

Store bought trail mix tends to be too high in sugars and fats, so I would suggest making your own. To boost the protein content use less dried fruit and more high protein nuts and seeds such as peanuts, chia seeds, almonds and pumpkin seeds (pepitas).

Another very easy grab and go option, additionally very portable and also durable. You can keep this snack ready in the glove compartment of your car for those long trips with few stops or in your backpack for something to snack on when you have a busy schedule or are travelling. For those that need to keep their sodium intake in check, you might want to take a closer look at the jerky you’re buying as most supermarket brands tend to have quite a lot of salt in them.

2 eggs and a banana – that’s it, beat the egg, mash the banana and combine. Sounds too simple to be true, right? To spruce things up I would recommend adding cinnamon, nutmeg and a tablespoon of almond meal. Pour batter and lightly fry in a pan on both sides. To serve up you can treat yourself with a little drizzle of honey or maple syrup (yes, it’s Paleo) if you like!

This childhood favourite now has a healthy paleo version! Cut up a chicken breast into cubes. Beat up an egg or two for eggwash. Dip the chicken in and then coat in a mixture of coconut/almond flour, garlic powder, paprika, oregano, salt, pepper and either bake, deep fry or shallow pan-fry till crispy and golden.

Here’s another super easy one for you. Have some sliced turkey meat lying around? If not get some and use it like you would with a flatbread or wrap! Spread with avocado, bed some spinach and put some thinly sliced crunchy vegetables in the middle such as peppers, carrots and cucumber in the centre. Roll them up and consume!