WORST APPS, SIDES, AND STARTERS
10. Worst Seafood Appetizer: Long John Silver’s Breaded Clam Strips
320 calories, 19 g fat (4.5 g saturated, 7 g trans fat), 1,190 mg sodium
The restaurant industry began to shift away from frying in partially hydrogenated oil 10 years ago. Now, Long John Silver’s is one of the few places left clinging to their trans-fatty fare. The word that should have set you off was “breaded”—it implies fried in oils, and in this case, those oils are packed with heart-harming trans fat. Who wants to order friend seafood through a squawk box anyway? Luckily, Long John also serves up a number of dishes that will boost good cholesterol, none better than the simple grilled fillet of salmon.
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Lobster Stuffed Crab Cake
170 calories, 9 g fat (2 g saturated), 390 mg sodium
9. Worst Kids' Side: Bob Evans Smiley Face Potatoes
271 calories, 16 g fat (3 g saturated), 334 mg sodium
These incessantly smiling potatoes are more than just creepy; they’re more fat-and-calorie-packed than Bob’s Sirloin Steak. Let this be a lesson to you youngsters: Just because they’re smiling, doesn’t make them nice.
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Home Fries
163 calories, 6 g fat (1 g saturated), 677 mg sodium
8. Worst Drive-Thru Side: Arby’s Large Mozzarella Sticks
700 calories, 35 g fat (14 g saturated, 1 g trans), 1,940 mg sodium
Fried cheese is never a good idea, but as a sandwich sidekick, it spells certain disaster. Anything with as much saturated fat as a Double Whopper should not be called a appetizer or side. Arby’s menu presents a sides conundrum, given that their entire roster of “Sides and Sidekickers” receives the deep-fried treatment, but the Potato Cakes are the clear winner among them. If it’s cheese you crave, order the French Dip ‘N Swiss or Ham and Swiss Melt instead to save more than 300 calories.
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Potato Cakes (small)
260 calories, 15 g fat (2 g saturated), 400 mg sodium
7. Worst Starter Salad: Cosi Cobb Salad
720 calories, 55 g fat (12 g saturated), 1,347 mg sodium
Learn to Lighten Up! On sandwiches and salads that include Così Vinaigrette, this little phrase will switch you to fat-free vinaigrette. Easiest 300-calorie savings ever. Ordering salad out is risky business, but this Shanghai standby offers plenty of lean protein and fresh vegetables without the normal salad pitfalls.
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Shanghai Chicken Salad
316 calories, 13 g fat (2 g saturated), 850 mg sodium
6. Worst Chicken Appetizer: Denny’s Buffalo Chicken Strips (5)
720 calories, 32 g fat (0 g saturated), 2,780 mg sodium
Another example of how 2 seemingly similar items can be worlds apart in terms of nutrition. We’ve seen worse strips, to be sure, but when you can have a basket of wings for fewer than half the calories, why would you choose these? We’ve never seen a leaner wing than the ones coming from Denny’s. But like any good wings, these should be shared (especially with that sodium count).
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Buffalo Wings
330 calories, 20 g fat (5 g saturated), 1,860 mg sodium
5. Worst "Healthy" Starter: P.F. Chang’s Chicken Noodle Soup
600 calories, 20 g fat (4 g saturated), 2,550 mg sodium
Researchers from Penn State found that starting dinner with a bowl of soup can cut calorie intake over the course of a meal by up to 20 percent. But when you start dinner with 100 percent of your daily sodium allotment, why bother going on? It’s the best part about getting sick: the promise of chicken noodle soup yet to come. Studies have shown it works, too, but no study could have planned on the torrent of sodium that swirls among Chang’s noodles. Experts recommend capping your daily sodium intake at 2,400 milligrams. Any more than that can put you at an increased risk for heart disease, not to mention swell you up with retained water. Unfortunately, all Chang’s soups suffer a similar fate. Your only choice is to swap out your bowl for a smaller cup.
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Egg Drop Soup (cup)
60 calories, 3 g fat , 640 mg sodium
4. Trans-Fattiest Side: A&W Breaded Onion Rings (Large)
480 calories, 27 g fat (7 g saturated, 7 g trans fat), 990 mg sodium
No fried food on A&W’s menu escapes the harsh bath in partially hydrogenated oil, with the onion rings absorbing the most. Until they make the switch to trans fat free frying oil, skip all curds, fries, rings, and nuggets. Only the smallest available portion of corn dog nuggets contains little enough trans fat to be rounded down to zero—if you must order a side dish, make it this one.
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Corn Dog Nuggets (Small)
180 calories, 8 g fat (2 g saturated, 0 g trans), 520 mg sodium
3. Worst Dip Appetizer: Chili’s Hot Spinach & Artichoke Dip with Chips
1,610 calories, 103 g fat (42 g saturated), 1,610 mg sodium
Sure, there are artichokes and spinach in this dip, but they are drowned in cheese and mayo. Plus, the chip-and-dip combo lends itself to mindless munching at the table. Opt for an app that won’t test your self control, like the eggrolls. With almost half the fat and 1/3 the sodium, they are one of the safest items on Chili’s appetizer menu.
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Triple Dipper Southwestern Eggrolls with Avocado Ranch (2 each)
560 calories, 32 g fat (8 g saturated), 1,320 mg sodium
2. Worst Potato Side: Dairy Queen Chili Cheese Fries
1,020 calories, 51 g fat (15 g saturated), 2,360 mg sodium
This is DQ’s real Blizzard.You can almost feel your blood pressure rise just looking at this catastrophe. Too bad it’s listed as a side, gobbling up an entire day’s worth of sodium and half a day of calories before you move on to your burger. This one’s a no-brainer: chili, cheese, fried potatoes. But even a savvy eater couldn’t possibly anticipate how bad these 3 ingredients could be when combined by one heavy-handed fast-food company. Stick with classic ketchup and recapture nearly a days worth of sodium and 930 calories.
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French Fries (regular)
310 calories, 13 g fat (2 g saturated), 640 mg sodium
1. Worst Appetizer in America: On the Border Firecracker Stuffed Jalapenos with Chili Con Queso
1,910 calories, 135 g fat (38 g saturated), 6,050 mg sodium
Tex-Mex cooks are never shy with the salt, but this dish breaks even their reckless boundaries. Each little cheese-stuffed popper contains more than 1,000 milligrams of sodium. Appetizers are the most problematic are of most chain-restaurant menus. That’s because they’re disproportionately reliant on the type of cheesy, greasy ingredients that catch hungry diners’ eyes when they’re most vulnerable—right when they sit down. Seek out lean protein options like grilled shrimp skewers or ahi tuna when available; if not, simple is best—like chips and salsa.
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