The Best High-Protein Taco Bell Orders For Every Craving
No matter what your fitness or wellness goals are, getting enough protein in your diet is a key part of fueling your body. According to the USDA, the Recommended Dietary Allowance for protein is around 0.36 grams per pound of body weight, depending on your age, height, and activity level. As a general estimate, adults need 46-56 grams of protein per day, but you can calculate your exact needs on the USDA website.
The USDA has plenty of recommendations for the best way to meet your protein requirements, including consuming mostly lean protein that includes a good mix of seafood, nuts, and plant-based sources. But it's not always easy to make that perfect food-pyramid plate happen every day, whether that's due to a busy schedule, listening to your body's cravings, or just having a fun night out.
And sometimes, a girl's just gotta have her Taco Bell. Thankfully, with its variety of high-protein orders and delivery systems (we're looking at you, Crunchwrap), this beloved takeout option has plenty of meals with 20-plus grams of protein to fuel your body and keep you feeling satisfied. We scoured the brand's website for the nutrition info on every menu item and picked out the best high-protein Taco Bell options for your next drive-through run. (We stuck mostly to options for over 20 grams, but there are plenty others just below that number.)
Whether you are on your way home from a workout or need a fulfilling breakfast, here are the highest-protein Taco Bell orders you can place.
High-Protein Taco Bell Menu Items
Grilled Cheese Burrito: 23-29 grams
The grilled cheese burritos are made with a nacho cheese sauce and extra three-cheese blend sprinkled on top and grilled. It ranges from 23 grams of protein for beans to 26 grams for just cheese, 28 grams for steak, and 29 grams for chicken.
Quesadilla: 18-29 grams
If you opt for the purist's quesadilla — just the three-cheese blend and a flour tortilla — you'll get 18 grams of protein. Add steak and chicken and that number soars to 26 grams. Go for the Cantina Chicken version, which includes slow-roasted chicken, and you'll get 29 gams, one of the highest-protein offerings on the menu.
Breakfast Quesadilla: 23-28 grams
What makes a quesadilla count as breakfast? Eggs, which are sandwiched between a flour tortilla along with a meat (there's sausage for 23 grams of protein, bacon for 25 grams, and steak for 28 grams) and cheese to deliver a quesadilla with a solid 28 grams of protein.
Grande Toasted Breakfast Burrito: 21-27 grams
Eggs, cheese, and potato bites, wrapped in a flour tortilla and grilled. That sounds good any time of day, to be honest. You'll get 21 grams of protein if you add sausage, 23 grams for bacon, and 27 grams for steak.
Cantina Chicken Burrito: 25 grams
This is basically the Cantina Chicken Bowl, but wrapped in a a grilled flour tortilla. Cross your fingers that the Avocado Verde Salsa Packet isn't out of stock by the time you place your oder.
Cantina Chicken Bowl: 25 grams
Taco Bell's bowls are surprisingly colorful — a sign that they're packed with nutrient-rich veggies. This one includes chicken, beans, and cheese (all high in protein), as well as purple cabbage, fresh pico de gallo, guac, and seasoned rice.
Breakfast Crunchwrap: 21-24 grams
Taco Bell's beloved Crunchwrap also exists in breakfast form, clocking in at 21 grams of protein if you order it with bacon or sausage and 24 grams of protein if you opt for steak.
Hash Brown Toasted Breakfast Burrito: 18-24 grams
Choose from sausage (18 grams of protein), bacon (20 grams of protein), or steak (24 grams) in this burrito that combines the best of both worlds — burritos and hash browns — while providing plenty of protein.
Cheesy Double Beef Burrito: 21 grams
It contains double the seasoned beef as a regular crunchy taco — and the protein content proves it.
Cheesy Gordita Crunch: 20 grams
This beloved menu option features a crunch taco wrapped in a warm flatbread with cheese between the layers. There's the regular version and the Doritos Nacho Cheese version, and both deliver 20 grams of protein.
Three-Cheese Chicken Flatbread Melt: 20 grams
This soft flatbread has cheese, cheese sauce, and chicken, all of which add in protein for a grand total of 20 grams.
Nachos BellGrande: 17-20 grams
Your basic nachos, with beans, cheese sauce, and beef (for 17 grams of protein), steak, or chicken (each for 20 grams of protein).
Kaley Rohlinger is a freelance writer for PS who focuses on health, fitness, food, and lifestyle content. She has a background in the marketing and communications industry and has written for PS for over four years.