Nutrition Comparison
Chinese Restaurant Takeout: Good Fortune or Not?
Chinese Restaurant Takeout Nutrition Comparison
As with all EN comparisons, this is only a sampling of what’s available. Products are listed alphabetically. = EN’s Picks. Appetizer and soup picks contain no more than 190 calories (10% DV), 4 g fat
(6% DV), 2 g sat fat (10% DV) and 225 mg sodium (9% DV). Side picks contain no more than 300
calories (15% DV), 10 g fat (15% DV), 2 g sat fat (10% DV) and 530 mg of sodium (22% DV). Entrees
contain 200 - 700 calories (10 - 35% DV), 24 g fat (36% DV), 4 g sat fat (18% DV) and 880 mg sodium
(37% DV).
Chinese Restaurant Food
Calories
(1 order, unless otherwise specified)
Appetizers and Soups
Manchu Wok Seafood Rangoon
Manchu Wok Vegetable Egg Roll
Panda Express Cream Cheese Rangoon (3 pc)
Panda Express Hot & Sour Soup
Pei Wei Asian Diner Crispy Potstickers (2 pc)
PF Chang’s Chicken Lettuce Wraps
PF Chang’s Panfried Pork Dumplings (1 pc)
PF Chang’s Spare Ribs
PF Chang’s Steamed Pork Dumplings (1 pc)
PF Chang’s Wonton Soup (Bowl)
Sides
Manchu Wok Lo Mein
Manchu Wok Shanghai Noodles
Panda Express Chow Mein
Panda Express Fried Rice
Panda Express Mixed Veggies
Pei Wei Asian Diner Chicken Fried Rice
Pei Wei Asian Diner Shrimp Lo Mein
PF Chang’s Fried Rice with Pork
PF Chang’s Low Mein with Chicken
PF Chang’s Spicy Green Beans (small)
Entrees
Manchu Wok BBQ Pork
Manchu Wok General Tso’s Chicken
Manchu Wok Oriental Grilled Chicken Manchu Wok Pepper Steak
Manchu Wok Pineapple Chicken
Manchu Wok Sesame Chicken
Manchu Wok Spicy Beef
Panda Express Broccoli Beef
Panda Express Eggplant & Tofu
Panda Express Honey Walnut Shrimp
Panda Express Sweet Fire Chicken Breast
Panda Express Sweet & Sour Pork
Pei Wei Asian Diner Ginger Broccoli Vegetables & Tofu
Pei Wei Asian Diner Honey Seared Chicken Pei Wei Asian Diner Orange Peel Beef
Pei Wei Asian Diner Orange Peel Beef Pei Wei Asian Diner Sesame Shrimp
PF Chang’s Crispy Honey Chicken
PF Chang’s Hunan Pork
PF Chang’s Moo Goo Gai Pan Lunch Bowl on Brown Rice
PF Chang’s Vegetable Chow Fun
Total
Sat Fiber Carb Sodium Protein
Fat (g) Fat (g) (g) (g)
(mg)
(g)
300
150
190
90
150
160
70
344
60
460
21
6
8
3.5
8
7
4
24
2
15
7
1
5
0.5
2.5
1
1
7
1
5
1
1
2
1
1
2
0
1
0
0
20
20
24
12
12
17
6
7
6
45
240
380
180
970
310
650
125
336
125
2410
300
410
400
570
70
500
480
1280
801
165
17
14
12
18
0.5
12
15
52
27
9
3
2
2
4
0
2.5
2.5
16
6
1.5
4
3
8
8
5
2
5
4
6
6
33 850
7
56 1620 17
61 1060 12
85 900 16
13 530
4
66 1210 29
64 1210 25
156 4460 48
90 2991 51
19.5 1080 4.5
240
360
240
170
170
370
180
150
310
370
440
400
310
310
560
350
300
1431
790
760
1000
11
21
9
12
9
14
14
6
24
23
18
23
16
4
30
10
16
69
38
26
8
2.5
3.5
1.5
2.5
1.5
3
3.0
1.5
3
4
3.5
4.5
2.5
1
6
1.5
2.5
12
2
4
0
0
1
0
1
1
0
1
3
3
2
1
2
7
1
6
3
4
0
4
6
12
16
31
20
10
19
46
10
12
19
27
53
36
25
39
59
42
29
147
76
86
184
730
880
1050
510
260
940
560
720
680
470
370
360
1460
380
1990
1870
1520
1530
3700
2000
3000
Note: g=gram, mg=milligram, Sat Fat=saturated fat, carb=carbohydrates, DV=Daily Value, daily requirement based on 2,000
calorie/day diet. Source: restaurant websites.
www.environmentalnutrition.com
4
4
5
4
7
8
4
26
4
35
22
14
19
7
6
14
7
11
7
14
17
13
17
24
21
19
10
48
32
42
8
Who can resist good Chinese food?
The noodles, the sauce, the sweet and
the heat—all packed into those cute little boxes. Plus, a free little dessert that
tells your fortune! Unfortunately, these
tasty meals tend to be sodium-heavy. In
fact, you could easily rack up more than
a day’s worth of sodium in one meal.
But with a little educated ordering, you
can include a good Chinese meal every
now and then in a healthy diet. Keep in
mind, while the nutrition information
given here is for popular chain restaurants, many Chinese restaurants are
Mom & Pop places that don’t use standardized recipes or provide nutritional
information. The numbers below may
be similar to your favorite family-run
restaurant, but not necessarily.
Helpful Hints
Navigating through a Chinese restaurant menu can be a bit like, well, reading Chinese. But with a few pointers,
you can sail right through to a delicious
meal without sacrificing health.
● Try plain white rice instead of fried
rice. Better yet, order whole grain
brown if they offer it. Blank canvas
rice goes well with any type of entrée, and an average serving contains
about 300 calories with little fat or
sodium, compared to much fattier
and saltier fried rice.
● Sauce Warning! The sodium and
fat content in some sauces is shocking. Choose your sauce wisely, and if
you just can’t live without one that is
dripping with fat and sodium, use it
sparingly.
Sauces (about 2 ounces)
Calories Fat (g) Sodium (mg)
Panda Express Potsticker
45
Panda Express Sweet & Sour
80
Pei Wei Asian Diner Lettuce Wrap 50
Pei Wei Asian Diner Sweet Chili 140
Pei Wei Asian Diner Sweet Mustard 170
PF Chang’s Potsticker 50
0 1030
0 180
3 2080
0 800
12 310
2 610
● Save half for later. Most Chinese
restaurants offer notoriously large
portions. No need to eat it all in one
sitting—eat half now and save half
for tomorrow. Just like that you’ve
cut your calorie, fat and sodium intake in half!
— Heidi McIndoo, M.S., R.D.
October 2010