Vegan Sources of Iron

Want to know vegan sources of Iron in India? No problem. Staple items in any pantry are actually some of the highest, specifically lentils and spices. Who know cumin packed 1.8 mg per teaspoon? That's about 10 percent of your daily requirement!

So yet again, spinach is a superstar bringing 6.4 mg of iron per 1 cup!

• Lentils: Fantastic in as a vegan source of iron and protein. Keep eating your dals and your doctor will never mention the word "anemic" around you again.
• Cocoa: I threw this in here because I love my hot chocolate. I know a bag of this sells at Brown Tree for 80 rs, which isn't half bad! Chocolate is also high in iron, but you'll want to limit yourself to the darkest, high quality chocolate available...and only a square per day!  
• Chenna: Some chickpea curry isn't the only way to get in some iron. Try making some hummus as well: the added tahini will boost the amount of iron by 1 mg for 2 tablespoons. 
• Pumpkin seeds: They're great straight out of a bag, but they're also really easy for some quick roasting with a bit of salt, olive oil and cumin. Or, grind them up, add some water, spices, lemon, and you've got yourself a raw dip.
• Cashews: Yep, kajus are a great vegan source of iron. I'm definitely going to try this kaju katli recipe at some point, but I'll skip the foil and maybe I'll try making a date sweetener instead of a sweetener from straight sugar. 

Other plant based sources of iron available in India...

Spring onions, 1.5 mg

Dried Apricots 1/2cup, 3.8 mg

Sun dried tomatoes 1/2cup, 2.5 mg

Butterfruit (1 cup pureed), 1.4 mg

Raw Nuts and Seeds (per 1 oz)

Pumpkin and squash seeds, 4.3 mg

Sesame seeds, 4.1 mg

Organic raw Tahini (1 tablespoon), 3.0 mg**

Cashew nuts, 1.9 mg

Pine nuts, 1.6 mg (delicious but also expensive)

Flax seeds, 1.6 mg

Hemp seeds, 1.3 mg (I've found these at Brown Tree, but they're expensive)

Grains

Crude rice bran (2 tablespoons) 2.7 mg

Sprouted wheat (1/2 cup) 1.2 mg

Raw Beans (Per 1 cup serving)

Peanuts, 6.7 mg

Sprouted lentils, 2.5 mg

Snow peas, sugar snap peas, 2.0 mg

Other

Dried spirulina (1 tablespoon), 2 mg

Cumin seed (1 teaspoon), 1.3 mg

Dried Thyme (1 teaspoon), 1.2 mg

Cooked Veggies (Per 1 c)

Spinach, 6.4 mg

Potato (1 large baked), 3.2 mg

Beet greens, 2.7 mg

Collards, 2.2 mg

Brussels sprouts, 1.8 mg

Turnip greens, 1.2 mg

Broccoli, 1.0 mg

Cooked Grains (Per 1 cup serving)

Spelt, 3.2 mg

Quinoa, 2.8 mg

Multigrain bread,(2 slices), 1.4 mg

Brown rice, 0.8 mg

Cooked Beans (Per 1 cup serving)

Soybeans, 8.8 mg

Lentils, 6.6 mg

Black beans, 3.6 mg

Pinto beans, 3.6 mg

Garbanzo beans, 3.2 mg

Kidney beans, 3.0 mg

Peas, 2.4 mg