Its extremely hard to get protein from just plants and fortified foods - cost wise and the amount of food you would have to consume vs protein rich meat.
You don’t “need” any specific foods as long as you meet micro/macro/caloric/fiber nutrition requirements. Some people like the taste and preparation of meat. The problem is the amount,type and quality of that meat.
Nah it's super easy to get enough protein just from plants. Lets say your 160 lbs, which translates to about 58 grams of protein daily [1]. Then lets take a look at some high protein plants: https://www.healthline.com/health/food-nutrition/19-high-pro...
You can trivially hit daily protein goals with just a few cups of various beans, and thats ignoring things life tofu, seitan, leafy greens, etc.
Besides, we know folks can get enough protein from plants alone, as there are many plant-based athletes and bodybuilders.
I can assure you it’s very very…very.. easy to get enough protein. I have been gaining muscle while just barely caring about what plants I eat. Cheap too. I spent about the national average on food costs for the month.
The modern American diet consumes about double the protein needs.
For a plant based diet one only needs to invest maybe a day or two of research to figure out what foods to eat to get enough protein.
You don’t “need” any specific foods as long as you meet micro/macro/caloric/fiber nutrition requirements. Some people like the taste and preparation of meat. The problem is the amount,type and quality of that meat.