Two randomized controlled trials have demonstrated that a hypocaloric high-protein diet (30% of energy intake) induces greater reductions in liver fat than a hypocaloric lower-protein diet (10–17% of energy intake), despite similar weight loss between groups.[1][2] However, carbohydrate intake was reduced to accommodate the increase in protein intake in both studies, so it’s unclear how much of the results are attributable to carbohydrate restriction.
Increasing protein intake (whether through high-protein foods or supplementation with essential amino acids) has also been shown to attenuate the increase in liver fat from a hypercaloric diet.[3][4] In addition, a study that had women with obesity supplement with whey protein for 4 weeks observed a significant decrease in liver fat without changes in body weight,[5] but a major limitation of this trial was that it lacked a control group.
Multiple lines of evidence suggest that increasing protein intake could help to reduce liver fat, but further randomized controlled trials are needed to increase confidence in these findings.