Compared to the calories in the Standard American Diet (SAD), the
calories in vegetables are insignificant. If you pile your plate high
with broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, and kale, you still won't take in
enough vegetable calories to meet your basic calorie needs.
See the two tables below for the calorie count of 49 different
vegetables. |
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| Alphabetical List Of Vegetables | ||||
| Vegetables | Calories Per Ounce |
Vegetables | Calories Per Ounce |
|
| artichokes | 15 | lettuce | 5 | |
| asparagus | 6 | mustard greens | 4 | |
| bamboo shoots | 3 | nopales | 4 | |
| beet greens | 8 | okra | 6 | |
| beets | 12 | onions | 11 | |
| broccoli | 10 | palm hearts | 8 | |
| broccoli rabe | 9 | parsnips | 20 | |
| brussels sprouts | 10 | *peas (a legume) | 22 | |
| cabbage, green | 7 | peppers, green | 6 | |
| cabbage, red | 9 | peppers, red | 9 | |
| carrots | 12 | potatoes | 24 | |
| cauliflower | 7 | pumpkin | 6 | |
| celeriac | 12 | radish | 5 | |
| celery | 5 | rutabaga | 11 | |
| chard | 6 | spinach | 7 | |
| collard greens | 7 | squash, summer | 6 | |
| *corn (a grain) | 23 | squash, winter | 10 | |
| cucumber | 4 | sweet potato | 24 | |
| eggplant | 10 | taro | 40 | |
| endive | 5 | tomato | 5 | |
| fennel | 9 | turnip greens | 6 | |
| green beans | 10 | turnips | 6 | |
| kale | 8 | watercress | 3 | |
| kohlrabi | 8 | yams | 33 | |
| leeks | 9 | |||
*We listed corn and peas with the vegetables because so many people think of them as "vegetable" side dishes. However, they are not really vegetables. Corn is a grain, and peas are legumes.
As you study the first chart, you will discover that every vegetable on the list (except for taro) easily meets our weight loss guidelines. That means we can eat as many of these foods as we want and we will still lose weight. For a better picture, the next chart sorts the calories in vegetables by calorie density.
| List of Vegetables By Calorie Density | ||||
| Vegetables | Calories Per Ounce |
Vegetables | Calories Per Ounce |
|
| bamboo shoots | 3 | palm hearts | 8 | |
| watercress | 3 | broccoli rabe | 9 | |
| cucumber | 4 | cabbage, red | 9 | |
| mustard greens | 4 | fennel | 9 | |
| nopales | 4 | leeks | 9 | |
| celery | 5 | peppers, red | 9 | |
| endive | 5 | broccoli | 10 | |
| lettuce | 5 | brussels sprouts | 10 | |
| radish | 5 | eggplant | 10 | |
| tomato | 5 | green beans | 10 | |
| asparagus | 6 | squash, winter | 10 | |
| chard | 6 | onions | 11 | |
| okra | 6 | rutabaga | 11 | |
| peppers, green | 6 | beets | 12 | |
| pumpkin | 6 | carrots | 12 | |
| squash, summer | 6 | celeriac | 12 | |
| turnip greens | 6 | artichokes | 15 | |
| turnips | 6 | parsnips | 20 | |
| cabbage, green | 7 | peas (a legume) | 22 | |
| cauliflower | 7 | corn (a grain) | 23 | |
| collard greens | 7 | potatoes | 24 | |
| spinach | 7 | sweet potato | 24 | |
| beet greens | 8 | yams | 33 | |
| kale | 8 | taro | 40 | |
| kohlrabi | 8 | |||
So what does this second list of vegetables tell us? Leafy greens and other green vegetables win the weight loss prize. They are loaded with nutrients and contain very few calories. However, their calorie density is actually too low to be a major source of calories. For example, look at this picture:
This huge plate of vegetables contains only 105 calories. To make them yummy, we made our vegan Ranch Dressing recipe and drizzled 1 1/2 ounces of it over the veggies. That added another 76 calories. That is a total of only 181 calories in the entire meal, barely enough to sustain a flea. The calories in vegetables like these are just too low.
This is where the starchy vegetables, like potatoes, sweet potatoes, and yams, play an important role in our meal plan. They have a higher calorie density than the green vegetables, but they are still fine for weight loss. These starchy vegetable calories will satisfy our hunger and provide the fuel we need to run our bodies. Eat your starches without guilt!
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