source of calories in Chinese take out ?

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Trish1c
Trish1c Posts: 549 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I mistakenly thought I was being so good yesterday at lunch. I ordered chicken & mixed vegetables. Granted I ate a large serving, probably close to 2 cups, but I was astonished to have MFP come back with 800 calories! Soy sauce can't have that many calories. What gives? Where / how did I derail my meal?
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  • moochew1972
    moochew1972 Posts: 8 Member
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    Fried in oil perhaps?
  • Treece68
    Treece68 Posts: 780 Member
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    Did you have rice or fried rice?
  • dragon_girl26
    dragon_girl26 Posts: 2,187 Member
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    Did this mix also have a sauce on it? Nuts?
    Did you also eat rice with it?

    A lot of those hidden calories could come from the oil the mix is fried in. If your meal was steamed, it is still possible that the sauce (if there was any) contained sesame or peanut oil. It's also not uncommon for Chinese sauces to contain sherry.
    It is also important to note that while the soy sauce isn't particularly high calorie, it does contain a lot of sodium, which may result in water retention.
  • LazSommer
    LazSommer Posts: 1,851 Member
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    really
  • Rangerfied
    Rangerfied Posts: 93 Member
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    Yes I like Soy Sauce on my rice too. I noticed one day there wasn't a lot of calories but sodium count was very high.
  • Rangerfied
    Rangerfied Posts: 93 Member
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    Oh and I may add that I find it hard with Chinese Buffet's. Best to avoid if at all possible. You really have to guess at how much you've had for portions and it always ends up being far too many calories. But I do have family that likes to go once in a while, so it's hard not to join in on the eating. Especially with the price sometimes and I always feel I want to get my money's worth.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
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    Typically oil, but do you know the count was right? Was it for your restaurant or just some generic version of the dish?
  • Spliner1969
    Spliner1969 Posts: 3,233 Member
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    Any day I eat Chinese buffet I stick to the chicken, watch the amount of sauce I use, skip the fried rice and get the rice noodles instead. Figure on it being a 800-1200 calorie meal and it being very inaccurate. I simply eat light the rest of the day preceding or after and try to get back on track after that day. No need to avoid Chinese buffet if you like it, otherwise life is boring lol. When searching for Chinese menu items in MFP I generally select the ones with the most calories, and estimate what I'm eating in weight/volume. I try to be close but many restaurants aren't listed, and probably don't use a standard recipe anyway unless they are a big chain. I make up for the extra sodium by drinking tons of water that day and the next few days, and I tend to do extra workouts as well to make up for it. No need to skip the good things in life. Just pay for them if necessary. ;)
  • Trish1c
    Trish1c Posts: 549 Member
    edited August 2016
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    It wasn't a buffet. It was a plated lunch.

    I had rice too but I logged that separately. I guesstimated the portion size because I couldn't really tell. It looked like 2 cups to me. I couldn't find the exact thing I was eating on MFP. So I have been holding out (false?) hope that the 800 calorie number was way over. I did pick the one with the highest calorie choice from the MFP menu.

    4 oz of saute'd chicken, 2 cups of mixed vegetables & even a 1/2 cup of soy sauce only add up to less than 500 calories. There were no nuts. I assume the meal was made in a wok which I thought helped reduce the oil in food at least vs deep frying or traditional sauteing.

    I'm on a 1200 calorie "diet". 1700 is my maintenance. Even eating back my exercise calories I went about 250 over which is still under maintenance so all in all it's not that bad. I was just shocked that what I thought was a good meal turned out to be soooo bad.

    I continue to struggle with portion sizes when eating out. Not that I eat too much because I always only ate half of hat was on my plate when I went out but when you can't weigh / measure, who knows.

    At this point though, I think we should have just gone to the local deli & had a turkey sandwich. I really thought I was being good with the veggies. Lesson learned. The sole upside -- veggies drenched in whatever (oil / sauce) still have to be a bit more nutritious then the carbs in bread, right?
  • dragon_girl26
    dragon_girl26 Posts: 2,187 Member
    edited August 2016
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    At this point though, I think we should have just gone to the local deli & had a turkey sandwich. I really thought I was being good with the veggies. Lesson learned. The sole upside -- veggies drenched in whatever (oil / sauce) still have to be a bit more nutritious then the carbs in bread, right?

    If you're basing it on calories, not necessarily. It's kind of comparing apples and oranges, as each one has different nutrients. There isn't anything wrong with the carbs in bread.
    Plus, not to nitpick on the carb thing, but didn't you mention you also had rice? :wink: (not that there is anything wrong with that, either)
  • Trish1c
    Trish1c Posts: 549 Member
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    I'm not nitpicking the carb thing. My point was that I thought I was helping myself by having vegetables rather than a sandwich.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,506 Member
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    It's one day. You normally don't go wrong with chicken and vegetables, but if it's Asian, there may be a lot of oil. So make sure you're not eating large portions.

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  • gothchiq
    gothchiq Posts: 4,598 Member
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    Everything made in a restaurant has much more fat and sugar than it would if you did it at home. It's easier (no sticking to the pans) and tastes better so that's what they do.

    The rare times I get Chinese I make sure that the meat and vegetables are steamed. Then I use 1/2 cup of the rice (must also be steamed) and like 2 tbsp of the sauce, which comes on the side when you order those "dieter's specials" like I do. If they offer these all steamed, sauce on the side versions, get that and you will be able to keep the calories down with a minimum of mystery.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
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    Trish1c wrote: »
    It wasn't a buffet. It was a plated lunch.

    I had rice too but I logged that separately. I guesstimated the portion size because I couldn't really tell. It looked like 2 cups to me. I couldn't find the exact thing I was eating on MFP. So I have been holding out (false?) hope that the 800 calorie number was way over. I did pick the one with the highest calorie choice from the MFP menu.

    It could be. There's going to be huge variation.
  • Queenmunchy
    Queenmunchy Posts: 3,380 Member
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    gothchiq wrote: »
    Everything made in a restaurant has much more fat and sugar than it would if you did it at home. It's easier (no sticking to the pans) and tastes better so that's what they do.

    The rare times I get Chinese I make sure that the meat and vegetables are steamed. Then I use 1/2 cup of the rice (must also be steamed) and like 2 tbsp of the sauce, which comes on the side when you order those "dieter's specials" like I do. If they offer these all steamed, sauce on the side versions, get that and you will be able to keep the calories down with a minimum of mystery.

    That's what I do too - plain steamed protein and vegetables. I usually just save the rice for my family, and if we get delivery, I make my own peanut sauce with peanut flour.
  • laur357
    laur357 Posts: 896 Member
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    Beyond soy sauce, you'll find things like straight up oil, chili oil, honey/sugar, vinegars, oyster sauce, dried peppers, corn starch, sesame oil/seeds, etc., some of which are definitely high in calories. (And delicious!) At a takeout place near home, I've seen them just ladle in peanut oil to start, so probably 1/4-1/2 a cup of oil to build a dish. That pretty sheen/glazed look on the sauce coating the food is usually indicative of a decent amount of oil.

    My at-home, 'lightened' versions usually contain about 1-2 tablespoons of oil + some of the other ingredients, and generally have many fewer calories. They never quite taste as good though, so I make some room for the real deal every once in a while. :)

    Also, chicken, shrimp, and beef in a number of takeout recipes are often fried to start. Some are full-on breaded and fried, then added to sauce. Others are coated in corn starch then fried to make them a little crisp and to thicken the sauce.
  • deadliftsandnoodles
    deadliftsandnoodles Posts: 312 Member
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    Chinese food is pretty greasy and calorie dense. I apologise on behalf of my people
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,876 Member
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    sounds like you just picked some generic entry from the database so the true calories could be more or could be less.

    a lot of chinese food is cooked in oil...oils have a lot of calories...sauces often have a lot of calories as well...but really, who knows here...you're just taking a shot in the dark with a generic entry and guestimate of your actual serving.
  • DataSeven
    DataSeven Posts: 245 Member
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    Rice, batter, and deep fried meat. Try to avoid foods that have heavy, sweet sauces and where the meat is coated in batter or cornstarch and then fried. Lemon chicken, general tso chicken, etc... A favorite of mine is broccoli beef, as the beef tends to be just stir fried and not coated in anything.
  • bemyyfriend0918
    bemyyfriend0918 Posts: 241 Member
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    The problem with Chinese food is that even the chicken and veggies are sautéed in that oil they use in their pans. Soy sauce doesn't really have any calories, but the sauce they use on their dishes is called "brown sauce" or something like that. It's a mix of teriyaki, soy, and butter. To be honest when I go for Chinese I order a small white rice and an order of chicken on a stick. I eat about a cup of the white rice with soy sauce on it (which is about 214 calories for the cup) and about two of the chickens (which is about 250 calories). Not great, but certainly doesn't destroy my day....

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