Goya Red Kidney Beans: Labelgrade B (75/100)

The short answer

Goya Red Kidney Beans delivers 10g of protein and 160 calories per 1/2 cup (USDA FDC 2421467). Per 100g that’s 7.7g of protein; per oz, 2.2g. The Labelgrade is B (75 / 100): Very low saturated fat and low sugar load.

Why this Labelgrade

How it compares

The most protein of any canned bean here

If you’re shopping the bean aisle specifically for protein, kidney beans are the pick. At 10g per 1/2 cup, these out-protein every other canned bean in our comparison table — black beans, pinto, and chickpeas all sit in the 6-7g range. They also carry the most fiber (7g) and the most carbohydrate (28g), which is the trade-off: kidney beans are a denser, more filling bean, so a serving costs you 160 calories versus 100-120 for the lighter varieties. For a plant eater trying to hit a protein target without animal products, that density is the whole point — two cans folded into a chili or a grain bowl quietly add ~40g of protein and a wall of fiber for the price of a couple of dollars.

The honest framing on the grade: beans like these are genuinely healthy food. Zero saturated fat, 1g of sugar, a real fiber load, and a respectable protein number all push the score up. What pins it at a B rather than higher is twofold — protein density per 100g is modest next to actual meat (these are still ~84% water and carbohydrate by weight), and the sodium is the standout knock at 439mg per serving, the highest in this group.

Sodium is the one real caveat — and you can halve it

This is a seasoned bean — the ingredient list runs long with ham-type flavor, MSG, smoke flavor and tomato, which is why it tastes like a finished side straight from the can and why the sodium runs high. The 439mg per 1/2 cup is about 19% of the FDA’s 2,300mg daily limit. That’s the single thing keeping canned beans, as a category, out of the A range; the beans themselves are nutritionally close to flawless.

The fix is cheap and effective: drain the can and rinse the beans under cold running water for about 30 seconds. That rinses away roughly 40% of the sodium sitting in the packing liquid — taking this product from 439mg down to roughly 260mg per serving — without touching the protein or fiber, which live inside the bean. The catch with this particular product is that rinsing also strips some of the seasoning it’s built around, so if you’re buying it for the recheña-style flavor, you’ll trade a little of that for the lower sodium. For a plainer base where you control the salt yourself, a no-frills bean-in-water variety rinses just as well and starts lower.

Scope

This page covers Goya Red Kidney Beans (10.5 oz/298 g), UPC 041331019804, as represented in USDA Branded Foods FDC 2421467. Goya sells multiple variants in this product line — other sizes, flavors, or fat levels may have different macros and Labelgrade scores. Manufacturers periodically reformulate; always cross-reference the actual package label, especially if you have allergies or dietary restrictions.

Ingredients (from the USDA Branded Foods entry)

RED KIDNEY BEANS, WATER, GREEN BELL PEPPER, TOMATO PASTE, SALT, MONOSODIUM GLUTAMATE, SOYBEAN OIL, DEHYDRATED ONION, GRANULATED GARLIC, NATURAL & ARTIFICIAL HAM TYPE FLAVOR MALTODEXTRIN, SALT, PALM OIL, YEAST EXTRACT, MOLASSES, SILICON DIOXIDE, GARLIC POWDER, ONION POWDER, MEDIUM CHAIN TRIGLYCERIDES, SUNFLOWER OIL, NATURAL & ARTIFICIAL FLAVORS, NATURAL SMOKE FLAVOR AND CITRIC ACID). CULANTRO, HYDROLYZED CORN PROTEIN, OLIVE OIL, ONION POWDER, GROUND OREGANO, DISODIUM EDTA ADDED TO PROMOTE COLOR RETENTION, CARAMEL COLOR, NATURAL HICKORY SMOKE FLAVOR (MALTODEXTRIN, NATURAL HICKORY SMOKE FLAVOR, SILICON DIOXIDE AS ANTICAKING AGENT AND ANNATTO.

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Scope: This page applies specifically to Red Kidney Beans (10.5 oz/298 g) · UPC 041331019804. Other sizes, flavors, or formulations may differ.