Egg vs Paneer vs Dal: Which Has More Protein? (IFCT 2017)
Egg, paneer and dal are all common protein foods in an Indian diet, and which one has more depends on the unit: per 100 g, per 100 kcal or per serving. This guide puts all three side by side using the ICMR-NIN Indian Food Composition Tables 2017 (IFCT 2017), and names the exact row each time (raw or boiled egg, white or yolk, dry dal) because they differ. For how many eggs a day and the weight-loss angle, see our eggs a day guide.
The short answer
By IFCT 2017, a whole boiled poultry egg has 13.43 g of protein per 100 g, paneer has 18.86 g and dry masoor dal 24.35 g. Per 100 kcal the order flips for egg and paneer: the egg gives 9.1 g and the paneer 6.2 g. For serving sizes we chose, one boiled egg of about 50 g gives 6.7 g, 50 g of paneer 9.4 g and 30 g of dry masoor dal 7.3 g. Our reading: none of the three wins every way, so say which unit you mean.
Thirteen IFCT 2017 rows, ranked by protein per 100 g
Each row is one IFCT 2017 Table 1 row, per 100 g edible portion as listed in the book; energy in kJ is converted at 4.184 kJ per kcal. The dals are dry and uncooked; the eggs are the rows named. The last column is our arithmetic: 1,000 divided by the protein per 100 g, to the nearest gram.
| Food (IFCT 2017 row) | Protein per 100 g | Water per 100 g | Calories per 100 g | Protein per 100 kcal | Grams that hold 10 g protein |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masoor dal (lentil dal), dry (B013) | 24.35 g | 9.71 g | 322 kcal | 7.6 g | 41 g |
| Moong dal (green gram dal), dry (B010) | 23.88 g | 9.77 g | 326 kcal | 7.3 g | 42 g |
| Toor dal (red gram dal), dry (B021) | 21.70 g | 9.20 g | 331 kcal | 6.6 g | 46 g |
| Paneer (L003) | 18.86 g | 51.96 g | 305 kcal | 6.2 g | 53 g |
| Egg, poultry, omelette (M007) | 16.53 g | 68.48 g | 170 kcal | 9.7 g | 60 g |
| Egg yolk, poultry, boiled (M006) | 16.13 g | 51.42 g | 308 kcal | 5.2 g | 62 g |
| Egg yolk, poultry, raw (M003) | 15.74 g | 53.57 g | 297 kcal | 5.3 g | 64 g |
| Egg, country hen, whole, boiled (M009) | 14.43 g | 70.43 g | 183 kcal | 7.9 g | 69 g |
| Egg, poultry, whole, boiled (M004) | 13.43 g | 73.46 g | 148 kcal | 9.1 g | 74 g |
| Egg, poultry, whole, raw (M001) | 13.28 g | 76.51 g | 135 kcal | 9.9 g | 75 g |
| Egg white, poultry, boiled (M005) | 12.37 g | 83.54 g | 53 kcal | 23.5 g | 81 g |
| Egg white, poultry, raw (M002) | 10.84 g | 86.68 g | 45 kcal | 24.3 g | 92 g |
| Milk, whole, cow (L002) | 3.26 g | 86.64 g | 73 kcal | 4.5 g | 307 g |
The omelette row is a prepared dish (its fat is 11.60 g per 100 g against 10.54 g for the boiled whole egg), and the country hen row comes from one region where the poultry whole-egg rows are the mean of six. We use the poultry rows for the comparisons below.
Per serving, with weights we chose
IFCT lists food per 100 g, so a serving needs a weight, and these are ours: an egg is about 50 g of edible portion, which is an assumption and will differ from the egg in your hand. Egg sizes and food tables differ, so another source can give a slightly different figure per egg; the figures here are the IFCT 2017 row.
| Serving (weights are ours) | Protein | Calories |
|---|---|---|
| 1 boiled egg (about 50 g edible) | 6.7 g | 74 kcal |
| 2 boiled eggs (about 100 g edible) | 13.4 g | 148 kcal |
| 50 g paneer | 9.4 g | 153 kcal |
| 30 g dry masoor dal | 7.3 g | 97 kcal |
| 30 g dry moong dal | 7.2 g | 98 kcal |
What the numbers say
- Boiling raises the figure per 100 g. The whole poultry egg has 13.28 g per 100 g raw and 13.43 g boiled, with water falling from 76.51 g to 73.46 g.
- The yolk has more protein per 100 g than the white, and the white has far more per calorie. Boiled yolk 16.13 g against boiled white 12.37 g per 100 g, but 23.5 g against 5.2 g per 100 kcal.
- Dry dal leads per 100 g, but it is dry. It takes about 41 g of dry masoor dal, 53 g of paneer or 74 g of boiled whole egg to hold 10 g of protein.
- Whole cow milk is the everyday comparison at the low end. The whole cow milk row (L002) has 3.26 g of protein per 100 g, so it takes about 307 g of milk to hold 10 g, against 74 g of boiled whole egg.
For dals side by side, see which dal has the most protein; for paneer against tofu, see paneer vs tofu; for protein across more foods, see the high-protein Indian foods guide.
What this page leaves out
- Fried or curried eggs, and cooked dal: IFCT 2017 Table 1 has no cooked-dal row, and cooking oil is not counted.
- The cholesterol, price and cooking questions: our eggs a day guide covers some of them; this page adds up protein, water and energy only.
- Protein quality or digestibility, a protein target, and anything about weight loss or health outcomes: the page makes no such claim.
Log your eggs, paneer and dal and see the day add up
NYUS is an AI diet and workout coach. You can log foods by search or barcode against 8,900+ foods with calories and macros, and a weekly check-in adjusts your calories, macros and step goal once enough is logged. It gives general information, not medical advice. No ads, no data sold.
Join the NYUS waitlistFrequently asked questions
Which has more protein, egg or paneer?
Per 100 g, paneer (IFCT 2017, L003) has more: 18.86 g against 13.43 g for a whole boiled poultry egg (M004). Per 100 kcal the egg is ahead, 9.1 g against 6.2 g, because paneer has 24.78 g of fat per 100 g. For one boiled egg of about 50 g (our weight) the protein is 6.7 g, against 9.4 g for 50 g of paneer.
Does egg white or egg yolk have more protein?
Per 100 g, the yolk has more in IFCT 2017: boiled yolk (M006) 16.13 g against boiled white (M005) 12.37 g, and raw yolk (M003) 15.74 g against raw white (M002) 10.84 g. Per 100 kcal the white is far ahead: 23.5 g against 5.2 g for boiled yolk, because the yolk has about 308 kcal per 100 g and the white about 53 kcal.
Does an egg have more protein than 30 g of dal?
Not on these rows. 30 g of dry masoor dal (B013) holds 7.3 g of protein by our arithmetic, against 6.7 g for one boiled egg of about 50 g. The dal figure is for dry, uncooked dal; a katori of cooked dal has water added and holds less per 100 g, and IFCT 2017 has no cooked-dal row.
How much protein should I get from eggs, paneer or dal?
We have not looked up a protein target for any body weight, so this guide gives none and makes no claim about health or weight. Ask a doctor or registered dietitian what amount is right for you.
Sources
- ICMR-NIN, Indian Food Composition Tables 2017 (IFCT 2017). Table 1, per 100 g edible portion, rows opened and read from the PDF twice on 24 Oct 2026: dals B013 and B010 (PDF page 42) and B021 (page 43); milk and paneer L002, L003 (page 57); egg rows M001 to M007 and M009 (page 58). Energy converted from kJ at 4.184 kJ per kcal.
The serving weights, the grams that hold 10 g of protein, the protein-per-100-kcal figures and every sentence starting "Our reading" are NYUS's own arithmetic or opinion, not from a study. Names in brackets are our matching to the IFCT row names.