The 8 Unhealthiest Menu Items at Panda Express

Known for being iconic Chinese inspired dishes Like Orange Chicken and chow mein, Panda Express It has become a staple of American fast food culture. But while these meals are undeniably delicious, they often come with a hefty nutritional price tag, containing high levels of sodium, fat, and sugar.

Panda Express’s cooking methods, such as toasting and frying, combined with sodium- and sugar-heavy sauces, give its dishes its distinctive flavor; but these same methods also consume calories, sodium, and sugar.

This said, Panda Express offers healthier optionsLike Chicken with Mixed Vegetables and Mushrooms. “There are also meals that are 250 calories or less per serving. smart wok“says Roxana Ehsani, MS, RD, CSSD, LDNA registered dietitian nutritionist warns, however, that even these can still be high in sodium.

To help you navigate the menu, we asked Ehsani to help us identify the worst dishes for your health. Here are eight of the unhealthiest menu items at Panda Express. Don’t miss for better options The 8 Healthiest Menu Items at Panda Express.

Eggplant and Tofu

Nutrition (Made to Order):
Calorie: 340
Oil: 24 g (Saturated Fat: 3.5 g)
Sodium: 520mg
carbohydrates: 23 g (Fiber: 3 g, Sugar: 17 g)
Protein: 7 grams

Just because a meal includes all vegetables doesn’t mean it’s healthy. Although the Eggplant and Tofu order is meatless, it is the dish with the second highest fat content on the Panda Express menu (24 grams), behind Peking Beef (27 grams). It also has the third highest sugar content (17 grams).

“While you may be thinking that eggplant and tofu is a nutritious choice (it’s pretty low in calories, containing only 340 calories), it has one of the highest amounts of total fat on the menu,” says Ehsani. “It has 24 grams of total fat per serving, which is more than any other vegetarian dish on the menu.” To put this into perspective, McDonald’s Quarter Pounder with Cheese It contains 26 grams of fat.

Honey Walnut Shrimp

Nutrition (Made to Order):
Calorie: 360
Oil: 24 g (Saturated Fat: 3.5 g)
Sodium: 590mg
carbohydrates: 27 g (Fiber: 1 g, Sugar: 8 g)
Protein: 11 grams

These crispy shrimp are breaded and fried, increasing the carb and fat content, and then sautéed with sweet pecans for a serving or two of carbs and sugar.

Sweet and Sour Chicken Breast

Nutrition (Made to Order):
Calorie: 300
Oil: 12 g (Saturated Fat: 3 g)
Sodium: 260mg
carbohydrates: 40 g (Fiber: 1 g, Sugar: 24 g)
Protein: 10g

This order has the highest sugar content of all orders at Panda Express.

“While this dish isn’t very high in sodium, it’s pretty high in carbs and sugar since it’s just a chicken dish,” says Ehsani. “It contains the highest amount of added sugar in the dish, containing 24 grams of sugar, probably due to the addition of sweet and sour sauce plus pineapple chunks.” American Heart Association He recommends limiting your added sugar intake to 25 grams per day, so this one serving will get you almost 100% of your daily limit.

Orange Chicken

Nutrition (Made to Order):
Calorie: 490
Oil: 23 g (Saturated Fat: 5 g)
Sodium: 820mg
carbohydrates: 51 g (Fiber: 2 g, Sugar: 19 g)
Protein: 25g

It’s no surprise this sweet chicken dish It’s made with tons of sugar and carbs, thanks to orange sauce and battered (and fried) chicken.

“Orange chicken is usually dipped in batter, deep-fried, and then dipped in sweet orange sauce,” says Ehsani. “Without rice or noodles, chicken alone still contains 43 grams of carbohydrates, with 18 grams of that coming from added sugar, bread and sauce.”

The 9 Best High-Protein Restaurant Chain Breakfast Orders

Beijing Beef

Nutrition (Made to Order):
Calorie: 480
Oil: 27 g (Saturated Fat: 5 g)
Sodium: 600mg
carbohydrates: 46 g (Fiber: 2 g, Sugar: 21 g)
Protein: 14 grams

“You might think this is a healthy dish because it has peppers and onions, but (the Peking Beef) is covered in a tangy sauce, which increases the total calories and sugar calories as well,” says Ehsani.

Eating this dish is equivalent to opening eight Starburst packages.

Chow Mein

Nutrition (Made to Order):
Calorie: 510
Oil: 20 g (Saturated Fat: 3.5 g)
Sodium: 860mg
carbohydrates: 80 g (Fiber: 6 g, Sugar: 9 g)
Protein: 13 grams

These wheat noodles contain some fiber, thanks to the onion, celery, and kale, but are very high in fat and contain the highest amount of sodium of all Panda Express meals.

“Chow Mein“Although it’s a popular noodle dish you might want to try, a single plate has 23 grams of fat and almost half the daily requirement for sodium,” says Ehsani. “It’s best to skip the noodles here, see if you can order plain noodles that are sodium-free.”

The 10 Unhealthiest Pasta Dishes from Restaurants

Chicken Egg Roll

Nutrition (Per Roll):
Calorie: 200
Oil: 10 g (Saturated Fat: 2 g)
Sodium: 340mg
carbohydrates: 20 g (Fiber: 2 g, Sugar: 2 g)
Protein: 6 grams

Despite this egg roll It’s filled with seemingly healthy ingredients (cabbage, carrots, mushrooms, scallions, and chicken), fried in a wonton wrapper, and thus high in carbs but low in protein.

“You’re consuming nearly one meal’s worth of sodium and 12 grams of fat in just one chicken and egg burrito. You’re also likely eating more than one egg burrito, so when you add another dish and side ingredient to this meal, it’s well above your daily sodium allowance.”

Fried Rice

Nutrition (Made to Order):
Calorie: 520
Oil: 16 g (Saturated Fat: 3 g)
Sodium: 850mg
carbohydrates: 85 g (Fiber: 1 g, Sugar: 3 g)
Protein: 11 grams

Even though fried rice contains vegetables (peas, carrots, and green onions), that does not make it healthy. Fried rice is the Panda Express menu item with the highest number of calories and the second highest amount of sodium.

“Fried Rice at Panda Express is full of sodium and fat. Even though it has chili veggies in it, it’s not a healthier choice compared to regular rice,” says Ehsani. “Choose meals with less than 500 milligrams of sodium per meal, which is well above this recommendation of 850 milligrams per bowl. Opt for steamed rice that does not contain fat or sodium.”

Maximum daily recommended amount of sodium 2,300 milligrams per daySo eating this dish, which is often served alongside other protein starters, will help you reach 37% of your daily requirement.

The 20 Best Low-Sodium Fast Food Orders

This story has been updated to include additional input, fact checking and copy editing.