White_Lord t1_j2cewqh wrote on December 31, 2022 at 5:13 AM

>why do legumes have so much more protein than other plants?

They don't, if you're comparing the whole plants. Plants have different parts and we don't always eat the same thing. Sometimes we eat the plant itself (like the leafs) which is usually rich in fibers, sometimes we eat the fruit which is mainly carbs, sometimes we eat the seeds which are generally rich in proteins.

Lentils, beans and so on technically are seeds.

kct11 t1_j2epb35 wrote on December 31, 2022 at 6:36 PM

Grains such as rice, wheat and corn are also seeds and they have less protein than legumes on a dry weight basis.

Edit to address whole plant differences: If you look at forage crops, legumes such as alfalfa have much higher protein content in the whole plant than grasses.