HEALTHY EATERS QUESTION- is fast food salad okay?
Phill_Most
4,594 Posts
I'm trying to get right with my eating habits- more green leafy stuff in my diet, more water, less sugar and saturated fats, ya know. Now, me and the wife are watching "Super Size Me" this morning (well, she's taping it- I'll watch it later), and I was just wondering if there's anything wrong with the salads they serve these days at fast food spots like Mick D's, Wendy's etc. I been on them Wendy's side salads instead of fries for about a month and I'm lovin' them shits. But since this IS Wendy's we're talking about here, I'm wondering if there's something about these salads that might make them not really as good for you as they may seem (preservatives, stuff put on them to make them look better, whatever). I depend on the incredible knowledge of Soulstrut whenever I have questions about important things like what I should or should not eat to stay healthy and hopefully live a long and illness free life, and if I do get sick and die after following your advice I will blame you all and probably come back from the dead to haunt your miserable souls forever. Thanks, guys!
Comments
Also, GMO (genetically modified organism) foods are a bigger deal overseas than here in North America; there won't be any conclusive results pertainin' to the effects of GMO foods until they've been in the food chain for a good long time (similar to what potentially will manifest itself w/ cell phones) - gotta say that in all likelihood, what you're gettin' from a fast food operation won't be the freshest, least contaminated (GMO, pesticide, or otherwise) product...
You are right, my man. Only thing is, I live a fast food life, bro- meaning on the go, always into something, picking up kids from school, helping with homework, tryin' to do my own thing, etc. So unfortunately a lot of times I gotta hit the Wendy's drive-in and keep it movin'.
Although I guess if I spent less time thinking up new and meaningful Soulstrut posts I probably would have enough time to prepare healthier meals, huh? I don't know if it would be worth the sacrifice.
If your really in the much of a cruch for time I'd look into getting those pre packaged salads from teh market, the nutricional info is on the side so you can monitor what youre eating and you can pop out the fridge whenever you need without having to prepare anything.
I hear ya Phill on the time constraints, but ever since decidin' to make food @ home, when I occasionally eat out, I'm surprised by the amount of salt (and other additives) included in stuff such as pizza - it tastes like you're gettin' your weekly sodium intake in one sittin'... I'm about to get busy w/ some curried shrimp today, but here's a simple no-fuss recipe that I reach for when I'm pressed for time and/or don't wanna mess w/ too much in the kitchen:
fresh fish fillets (w/ skin on): e.g. snapper, bass, etc.
basil (or rosemary, thyme, etc.)
olive oil
lemon sliced
salt
pepper
anchovies (placed in a bowl of water to dilute the salt in which it's kept in - packagin')
capers (placed in a bowel of water for same reason as above)
Crush the basil (or any of the other herbs) w/ a mortar and pestle, add oil. Put the fillets in a bakin' tray, season w/ salt/pepper, sprinkle on the basil/oil solution, place the anchovies and capers on the fillets, then top w/ the lemon slices - bake for 20 minutes @ 400 F and you're good to go - serve w/ homemade mash potatoes and a salad...
for even easier home cooking, you can follow the above recipe but bake in a tin foil pouch. Therefore the fish steams and there's no messy clean up.
What's the difference between pre-packaged salad and what you purchase at a fast food restaurant? I would venture there is no difference, although you're more likely to see some iceberg lettuce snuck into your mix at a fast food restaurant instead of some of the more "diverse greens."
The other problem is some commercial dressings and pasta sauce have extreme amounts of sugar and salt in em.
Me and the wifey stay late at work/school (same thing for us) about half the time. We've gotten around eating out, well kind of, we still hit up subway once a week, but here's what we do:
On the weekend I make a big vat of soup, something that will stick with you, like fish chowder or tomato & avocado. We've got these little thermoses that were crazy $$$ but paid for themselves in a week.
Then you just throw that in a bag with a piece of bread and a half a sandwich or salad and it's a done deal. Prep time 5 minutes.
We're also doing some portion control. Like if we go out to dinner at chipotle, we'll split one of those burrittos instead of each getting our own. You won't be stuffed to the gils with burritto, but you know you won't feel right if you eat a whole one and shit will put you to sleep!
Wendy's
Salad Fat (g) Saturated Fat (g) Cholesterol (mg) Fiber (g) Sodium (mg)
Chicken BLT Salad with Homestyle Garlic Croutons and Honey Mustard Dressing
Salad Fat (g)= 47.5
Saturated Fat (g)= 12.5
Cholesterol (mg)= 85
Fiber (g)= 4
Sodium (mg)= 1630
Mandarin Chicken Salad with Roasted Almost, Crispy Rice Noodles, and Oriental Sesame Dressing
Salad Fat (g)= 36.5
Saturated Fat (g)= 4.5
Cholesterol (mg)= 59.5*
Fiber (g)= 5
Sodium (mg)= 1520
Spring Mix Salad with Honey-Roasted Pecans and House Vinagrette Dressing
Salad Fat (g)= 44
Saturated Fat (g)= 10
Cholesterol (mg)= 30
Fiber (g)= 7
Sodium (mg)= 1125
Taco Supremo Salad with Taco Chips, Sour Cream, and Salsa
Salad Fat (g)= 34
Saturated Fat (g)= 15.5
Cholesterol (mg)= 80
Fiber (g)= 10
Sodium (mg)= 1695
The reason for this is sodium and cholesterol are high because alot of additives are in there for taste value. Alternatively, Wendy's In-door salad bar you can pick and choose your own vegetables, and cut alot of that fat. Personally, I don't trust the freshness of fast food salad bars. I'm sure they're not taking the time to stock with organic vegetables or even to check to see if you're getting chemically processed vegetables. I also won't eat any fast food salad with cheeses piled on top.
It's a good choice to eat healthy, but DIY is the freshest way.
- spidey
good question, I'm basing my reccomendation on 2 things
1. In the documentary "Supersize Me" Morgan Spurlock makes mention of how McDonalds salads actually contain sugar. It makes me wonder what other elements are added to salads sold at the different fast food spots
2. the nutricional information for the prepackaged salads from the market is right there, so you can montor what youre taking in.
Yah, over sauced and WAAAAY over cooked. Growing up with Italian home cooking really spoiled me. I remember going to a friends families house several years ago. They had one bowl of damn near liquid spaghetti (which they kept reffering to as "Good Noodles"), and one bowl of (microwaved?) Marinara sauce. They poured that italian ketchup on so heavy it looked like i was eating red tortilla soup. Blech.
I asked if they didnt prefer their pasta al dente.
they thought i meant served with ice cream.
ANyways, back to the point, the best fast food salad (taste wise) is at Pollo Loco. Its got a bunch of chicken in it, Cooked serano's, and seemingly good quality lettuce. To make it healthier i ask for VERY little dressing, then just throw some salsa in there to sauce the motherfucker up.
Sween -
Some of the issues stemmin' from sugar concerns naturally occurrin' versus refined - the sugars in carrots aren't as bad healthwise as the over-refined sugars that you'd add to coffee/tea/soft drinks/etc. (those tend to be digested easily and enter the bloodstream rapidly, saturated amount leadin' to carbohydrate production which is then converted to fat/lipids once that hits a ceilin')...
Cherry tomatoes...
It doesn't sound too bad if you're stingy/goin' light on the dressin', like everyone's mentioned - them jawns are effectively about makin' dinero so if it's about usin' the lowest grade means to make food taste good, includin' refined sugars in dressin', so be it...
It's why monosodium glutamate (MSG) is so popular in flavored potato chips - adds taste that would be more expensive to duplicate usin' actual real ingredients...
The problem w/ MSG is that it mimics an active nervous system transmitter (i.e. an analog) -> if you're constantly slammin' your neurons w/ transmitters, there's no time to recuperate and your nerves become fatigued over time, leadin' to potential chronic neurosystem ailments... I guess that Biochemistry degree I picked up (though not in the field whatsoever now) over a decade ago has some utility
I stock up on salads at Trader Joes and bring those for lunch and eat them with dinner at home. TJs is awesome for healthy prepared food and easy to make meals.
Get your health on!
the golden rule is one part acid (vinegar, lemon juice etc) to three parts oil, but lessen up on the oil if it's something heavy like sesame or a rich extra virgin olive oil.
I never buy bottled dressing, it tastes so processed.
Word to your cholesterol in-take.
i don't want to take this thread off in other directions but isn't sodium supposed to be good for you ? I have read on here from Tony and others that sodium is bad. My father lathers his food with salt and i always tell him lots of sodium is bad for you, which he counters with that it's been found to be good.
which is it ?
dave
but the salads should be ok. I read in Newsweek this week that a lady dropped 20 pounds in a month eating nothing but McDonalds salads and 'healthy' items from their menu, and made her own film about it in response to Super Size Me.
The other thing is portion size and exercise.
isn't that al fresco?
If you cook w/ salt then you shouldn't have to use it as a condiment. Too much sodium is bad. Plus use Kosher or Sea Salt not table salt.
You do need sodium as part of your diet (as well as iodine which usually is added to salt - a deficiency of iodine will produce gout) to regulate your cellular osmotic balance - HOWEVER, you only need about 1 and 3/4 teaspoons of salt per day (2300 mg max) to maintain this... Excess salt can result in chronic conditions such as hypertension as well as water retention (to balance out the salt solute w/in the body) which in turn can lead to edema...
If you cook without salt and only use it as a condiment, you'll end up using less and tasting more.
Probably no cholesterol in salad dressing tho. It's likely "good" fat (monounsaturated), versus "bad" fat (saturated and so-called trans-fats or hydrogenated fats). Olive oil is pretty good for you. Stay away from the oreos filled with hydrogenated fat tho. The shit is pretty deadly. Another strike against filling up on processed food.
http://my.webmd.com/content/article/71/81217.htm
I was raised in a household that doesnt shower everything w/ salt.
Alot of products already contain salt/sodium. I prefer to use salt while cookin' and not after, because it breaksdown/dissolves quicker.
good answer.
- spidey
It's easy to have a salad that can be its own meal - adding things like chick peas, romano beans, lentils, radishes, cold pasta, couscous, bulgar, quinoa make it more hearty.
I don't eat at fast food places, so I have no idea what the salads are like. In the tv commercials though - they don't look too hot - a lot of iceberg lettuce. Ick.