Low-calorie foods: chart per 100 g and per portion

• Low-calorie base: cucumber, salad leaves, courgette, cabbage and berries are about 15-50 kcal per 100 g.
• Few calories, lots of protein: chicken breast, cod, tuna, egg whites and 0% Greek yogurt give 13-24 g of protein per 100 kcal.
• What to measure: oil, nuts, peanut butter and cheese are calorie-dense; healthy too, but count them by the serving.

Low-calorie foods chart: under 60 kcal per 100 g

The table lists 34 foods with at most 60 kcal per 100 g, starting with the lowest (USDA FoodData Central). The portion is a typical amount in one meal; where we have no portion of our own, we use 80 g.

Water does much of the “diluting”: cucumber is about 95% water and strawberries about 91%. That is why they fill your stomach for few calories, but they do not last long alone and need pairing with protein.

Few calories, lots of protein: the building blocks of a fat-loss diet

These foods are under 140 kcal per 100 g and give at least 10 g of protein. The third column shows efficiency: grams of protein per 100 kcal.

Meat and fish are listed raw: they lose water when cooked, so 100 g of cooked meat has more calories (chicken breast goes from 120 to 165 kcal). Always use the weight you measure.

Watch out: healthy but calorie-dense

These are among the best ingredients; they are just not low in calories. A serving is small, but it adds up:

Two tablespoons of oil add 248 kcal to a tray of vegetables. That is not bad, but count it.

Low-calorie recipes: under 300 kcal

19 of our recipes are 300 kcal or less per serving, and 16 of them have at least 15 g of protein. With the best protein-to-calorie ratio: Tuna Rice Cakes (187 kcal, 25 g protein); Smoked Salmon Cucumber Bites (136 kcal, 18 g protein); Vanilla Berry Shake (287 kcal, 36 g protein).

Snack · 5 minTuna Rice Cakes187 kcal25 g proteinSnack · 8 minSmoked Salmon Cucumber Bites136 kcal18 g proteinSnack · 5 minVanilla Berry Shake287 kcal36 g protein

How to feel full on few calories

• Volume: vegetables, soup and salad fill half the plate for few calories.
• Protein: have 25-40 g at every meal; it satisfies best.
• Fibre: pulses, wholegrains and berries slow hunger.
• Cooking method: oven, grill or steam, and little fat stays in. A tablespoon of oil is about 120 calories.
• Measuring: weigh in grams for the first two weeks; after that your eye gets much better.

Are there “negative calorie” foods?

No. The idea rests on digestion using energy, but that is about 5-15% of the calories you eat (20-30% for protein), so 100 g of cucumber at 15 kcal never goes below zero. Low-calorie foods are still a good base for a diet.