There are few things I love to do more in this world than eat. Sure, that includes going out to new restaurants and picking from menus listed with ingredients I can’t pronounce or trying popular street foods in cities I’m visiting for the very first time, but more often than not, eating just means sitting down to a simple, home-cooked meal made with familiar ingredients I’ve enjoyed my entire life. In these cases, I’m not looking for the most novel flavors or the most creative uses of ingredients; I simply want to feel satisfied, full, free of hunger until my next meal.
For most of my life, I’d assumed that beyond gorging myself with carbs (a tactic I admittedly frequently employ), the best way to feel full was to eat plenty of animal protein. My parents would load my plate with ground beef or baked chicken breast or thick slabs of bacon, all that came with the promise to make me feel fuller for longer than the bread or pasta I preferred.
So, when I experimented with veganism in college, I assumed that I’d be hungry much of the time, forced to eat five meals a day in place of my normal three, constantly making up for the lack of meat on my plate with fistfuls of raw spinach and sad, unseasoned cubes of tofu. But after switching to a diet drastically higher in plant-based protein, particularly beans, than I was accustomed to, I found the opposite to be true: I was actually feeling fuller than ever, despite the lack of meat.
These days, I’m past my vegan phase, but when I’m feeling ultra-hungry and want to binge until I’m slightly past a comfortable level of fullness, I still opt for beans over meat. And it turns out that’s not just a me thing: A 2016 study found that meals based on vegetable protein sources (in this case, beans and peas) were more satiating than meals based on veal and pork. The bean-focused meals made study participants feel fuller and led to lower calorie intakes in subsequent meals. Researchers think beans’ higher fiber content, which is an important macronutrient when it comes to alleviating hunger, is responsible for the filling nature of these meals.
This is great news for everyone who loves to eat as much as I do. Animal protein tends to be significantly more expensive than whole food, plant-based protein sources like beans, so opting for a diet heavier in beans can help you save money while making you feel fuller and more satiated at the same time. And let’s face it: If you’re making a decision about what to eat based on environmental concerns, beans are absolutely a better option than meat. Bean production has a significantly smaller environmental impact than does meat production.
And if that’s not reason enough to incorporate more beans into your diet, then consider the fact that increased bean consumption may reduce the risk of diseases like heart disease, diabetes and various types of cancer. Higher bean intakes are also associated with lower levels of obesity and overweight, and legumes can be incorporated into a wide variety of diets, ranging from vegan to gluten-free.
I’m not saying you should never eat meat or that you should immediately replace your favorite beefy burger recipe with a soggy black bean burger inexplicably devoid of seasonings. I’m not even saying that you should start eating bowls of beans every day simply to reap some positive health benefits. All I’m saying is that if you love to eat—really eat—a lot, you may want to find ways to incorporate more beans into your diet. That you can find more fullness and more joy from a food that’s good for your health and for the environment just goes to show how much love the humble bean truly deserves.
Samantha Maxwell is a food writer and editor based in Boston. Follow her on Twitter at @samseating.