10 Healthy Foods High in Folate Menu Verywell Fit Nutrition Weight Management Nutrition Facts Nutrition Basics Diets Meal Plans Meal Delivery Services View All News Fitness and Nutrition What to Buy How We Test Products Fitness Gear Nutrition Products Tools Recipe Nutrition Calculator Weight Loss Calorie Goal BMI Calculator Body Fat Percentage Calculator Calories Burned by Activity Daily Calories Burned Pace Calculator About Us Editorial Process Meet Our Review Board Search Nutrition Basics 10 Healthy Foods That Are High in Folate By Shereen Lehman, MS Shereen Lehman, MS Shereen Lehman, MS, is a healthcare journalist and fact checker. She has co-authored two books for the popular Dummies Series (as Shereen Jegtvig). Learn about our editorial process Updated on January 27, 2021 Medically reviewed Verywell Fit articles are reviewed by board-certified physicians and nutrition and exercise healthcare professionals. Medical Reviewers confirm the content is thorough and accurate, reflecting the latest evidence-based research. Content is reviewed before publication and upon substantial updates. Learn more. by Barbie Cervoni MS, RD, CDCES, CDN Medically reviewed by Barbie Cervoni MS, RD, CDCES, CDN Barbie Cervoni MS, RD, CDCES, CDN, is a registered dietitian and certified diabetes care and education specialist. Learn about our Medical Review Board Print Folate is a B-complex vitamin that's essential for the production of DNA and RNA, so it's needed for normal cell replication and division. A folate deficiency can lead to a type of anemia called megaloblastic anemia, in which your blood cells are large and can't carry enough oxygen to the cells in your body. Also, women who are, or may become, pregnant, need folate to reduce the risk of a birth defect called spina bifida. The average adult needs about 400 micrograms folate every day (pregnant women need about 600 micrograms per day). Some foods, such as breakfast cereal, enriched white rice or pasta, some brands of orange juice, and products made with white flour, are enriched with several vitamins and minerals, including folate. Lentils (308 mcg per cup) and lima beans (37 mcg per cup) also provide folate. You can also take it as a dietary supplement, but there are a number of foods that are naturally rich in folate. Learn more about our 10 favorite sources of folate. 1 Chicken Liver Verywell / Alexandra Shytsman Eating chicken liver will provide you with lots of folate as well as vitamin A and the other B-complex vitamins. Each chicken liver has about 47 calories, 7 grams of protein and will give you about 38 percent of your daily need for folate. 2 Sunflower Seeds Verywell / Alexandra Shytsman Sunflower seeds are high in several minerals and vitamin E as well as folate. One tablespoon of seeds will give you about 5 percent of your daily need for folate, 21 percent of your daily need for vitamin E, and 9 percent of your magnesium. 3 Asparagus Verywell / Alexandra Shytsman Asparagus is low in calories but loaded with vitamins and minerals. One cup of cooked asparagus has 2/3 of your daily target for folate and more than a day's worth of vitamin K, for only about 40 calories. 4 Chickpeas Verywell / Alexandra Shytsman Chickpeas are high in protein, fiber, and minerals that your body needs to stay healthy. They're also high in folate. One cup of cooked chickpeas has 72 mcg or 18% of your daily folate needs covered. They're not low in calories—that single cup has 263 calories, but it's perfect as a plant-based protein source for a healthy meal. 5 Turnip Greens Verywell / Alexandra Shytsman Turnip greens are high in folate as well as fiber and several essential nutrients including calcium, magnesium, vitamin A, and vitamin C. They're also super low in calories at 53 calories per cup of cooked greens. And about that folate? One cup will meet 53.8 mcg or 13% percent of your daily needs. 6 Spinach Verywell / Alexandra Shytsman Spinach is another green leafy vegetable that's high in folate and so much more, including iron, calcium, and potassium, vitamin, A, C, and K, and fiber. One cup of raw spinach cover 15 percent of your daily folate need, and it's also low in calories — only seven calories. One cup of cooked spinach has 308 mcg of folate or 77% of your folate requirement and provides only 49 calories. The reason for the substantial difference in folate between raw and cooked spinach is due to the fact that it cooks down substantially. It takes a lot of raw spinach to make a cup of cooked spinach. 7 Peanuts Verywell / Alexandra Shytsman Here's a healthy snack that's high in folate, vitamin E, healthy monounsaturated fats, and several minerals. One ounce (about 32 shelled peanuts) will give you 17% percent of your daily recommended intake of folate. It also has about 161 calories, so it's perfect as an afternoon snack. 8 Brussels Sprouts Verywell / Alexandra Shytsman Brussels sprouts are high in most vitamins and several minerals, plus they're a good source of dietary fiber. One cup gives you almost a quarter of your daily recommended intake for only 56 calories. 9 Endive Jennifer Greco / Getty Images There's a trend here with green leafy veggies, and even ones we haven't mentioned (like kale and collards) are good sources. Here's a lovely green that'll give you nine percent of your daily folate need for only six calories. You'll also get plenty of vitamins A and K and lots of flavor with a cup of endive. 10 Black-Eyed Peas Verywell / Alexandra Shytsman Black-eyed peas are loaded with protein and fiber, plus lots of minerals. They're not too high in calories at 180 per cup. And you'll get 12% of your folate requirement with one cup. 7 Sources Verywell Fit uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy. Lentils, from dried, no added fat. USDA FoodData Central. Lima beans, from canned. USDA FoodData Central. Chickpeas, from canned, no added fat. USDA FoodData Central. Turnip greens and turnips, frozen, cooked, boiled, drained, without salt. USDA FoodData Central. Spinach, fresh, cooked, no added fat. USDA FoodData Central. Peanuts, unroasted. USDA FoodData Central. Organic Black Eyes Peas. USDA FoodData Central. Additional Reading United States Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service. National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference Release 28. By Shereen Lehman, MS Shereen Lehman, MS, is a healthcare journalist and fact checker. 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