Amaranth
Food · Grain · Food, Typed Supps
Amaranth is a tiny ancient seed packed with a rare protein building block most grains lack, but its calcium doesn't count for as much as milk's does.
Stage by stage
- Mouth & Cooking (Mastication & starch gelatinization): Cooking gelatinizes amaranth's dense starch and ruptures its tiny seed coat, and chewing further exposes the protein- and mineral-rich interior for digestion.
- Stomach (Gastric protein breakdown): Gastric acid and pepsin begin breaking down amaranth's balanced amino acid profile, including lysine, an essential amino acid that most cereal grains supply too little of.
- Small Intestine (Absorption & mineral competition): In the small intestine, amino acids, iron, zinc, calcium, and magnesium are absorbed, though amaranth's oxalates and phytates bind a portion of these minerals and reduce how much crosses into the bloodstream.
- Muscle & Bone (Protein synthesis & mineral use): Absorbed lysine and other amino acids support muscle protein synthesis, while magnesium and manganese contribute to bone matrix formation and enzyme function throughout the body.
Timing
Amaranth is typically eaten as part of a meal, cooked as a porridge, added to soups and stews, or popped like popcorn as a snack.
Time to effect
- Hours to weeks: Digestion and absorption of amaranth's protein and minerals occurs within a few hours of eating, while benefits tied to consistent intake, such as improved overall dietary protein quality, accrue over weeks.
Allergens
None of the fourteen major allergens. Derived from what this food is, not from a product label.
Eating patterns
Fits: Vegan, Vegetarian, Pescatarian, Halal, Kosher, Gluten-free. Depends on the product: Low-FODMAP.
Satiety
154 on the satiety index, where white bread is 100 — high. Modelled from the Holt et al. (1995) measurements.
Environmental footprint
1.6 kg CO2e and 648 litres of freshwater per kg, matched to "Wheat & rye" in Poore & Nemecek (2018), Science 360.
Cost band
Mid — roughly £7 per kg, as a band midpoint rather than a price.
Key nutrients
Nutrition per 100g
- Calories: 102
- Protein: 3.8g
- Carbohydrate: 18.7g
- of which sugars: 0g
- Fat: 1.6g
- of which saturated: 0.4g
- Fibre: 2.1g
- Sodium: 3mg
Food vs. supplement
Amaranth provides complete, lysine-rich protein alongside fiber, minerals, and squalene-rich oil in one food matrix, a combination no single-nutrient supplement replicates.
Kitchen tip
Rinse amaranth before cooking, then simmer with about 3 parts liquid to 1 part grain for 20-25 minutes until thick and porridge-like, or toast and pop the dry seeds briefly in a hot, dry pan.
Common myth
"Amaranth has more usable calcium than milk." In reality: Amaranth's raw calcium content (about 159-186 mg per 100 g) is comparable to milk, but its oxalate content (roughly 229 mg per 100 g, mostly insoluble) and phytates bind a portion of that calcium and reduce how much the body actually absorbs, so gram-for-gram it is not an equivalent calcium source.
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