With fast food convenience on a rise, today’s busy and sometimes lazy consumer might find it easier to go through a drive through than to make a healthy, home cooked meal. You’re probably thinking, “Oh, I’m healthy, I always get a salad when I go out to eat,” but you may be surprised that that so called “nutritious” salad you’re about to scarf down is full of saturated fats and high in calories. If you want to choose a healthier alternative to a McDonald’s Big Mac (surprisingly, none of their salads made this list), which touts a high 550 calories and 29 grams of saturated fat, you may want to stray away from these very unhealthy, high calorie salads.
Applebee’s Fiesta Chicken Chopped Salad - This “healthy” looking salad, even without dressing contains 700 calories, 150 calories more than a Big Mac and nearly half of the daily recommended caloric intake of 1700-2000 calories. And this isn’t even the worst salad on the list.
California Pizza Kitchen’s Thai Crunch Salad with Avocado - Probably the worst offender on the list, containing 1460 calories and 12grams of saturated fat, this tasty, healthy looking salad nearly uses up your daily caloric intake. Even if you get a half salad, you’re still taking in a whopping 810 calories.
T.G.I. Friday’s Pecan Crusted Chicken Salad - This Salad only looks healthy, containing nuts, a variety of fruit and high nutrient romaine lettuce, but it contains a monstrous 1080 calories and 16grams of saturated fat.
Cheesecake Factory’s Caesar Salad - You’d think a classic such as a Caesar salad would be a healthy choice, but Cheesecake Factory, famous for its high calorie comfort food takes the cake at 860 calories with it’s take on this classic salad.
Red Robin’s Crispy Chicken Tender Salad - Innocent and tasty looking, this salad contains a ridiculous 1450 calories. You can get a healthier alternative of this, minus the side bread and dressing for a still high 819 calories.
Chili’s Quesadilla Explosion Salad - Containing a heart attack inducing 1300 calories and a ridiculous 28 grams of fat, this salad is no healthy alternative to a greasy cheeseburger.
Taco Bell’s Taco Salad with Ground Beef - Probably one of the healthiest salads on the list, Taco Bell’s Taco salad at 780 calories and 10 grams of saturated fat, is still no healthy alternative. You’re better off getting one of their supreme tacos, containing only 220 calories.
Outback Steakhouse’s Aussie Crispy Chicken Cobb Salad - With just oil and vinegar, this salad has a calorie count of 1041 and contains 23grams of saturated fat. Even without dressing it still has 790 calories and still 23grams of saturated fat.
Wendy’s Spicy Chicken Caesar Salad - Wendy’s take on the Caesar salad has 780 calories and 16 grams saturated fat. This is actually Wendy’s worst salad health wise, all of their other salads barely beat the McDonald’s Big Mac for caloric value.
Burger King’s TenderCrisp Apple & Cranberry Garden Fresh Salad - BK’s healthy alternative to their greasy flame broiled burgers has 700 calories and 9grams of saturated fat, making it just as bad, if not worse, than one of their famous burgers.
Crispers Thai Chicken Flat Bread Salad - Famous for its salads, Crisper’s makes the list with its Thai Chicken Flat Bread Salad. At just a half order, this salad has a massive 800 calories and 12 grams of saturated fat.
Chipotle’s Chicken Salad with Black Beans and Rice - This salad, with all the fixins including, black beans, brown rice, cheese, fajita vegetables, sour cream, guac, salsa, and vinaigrette, has a ridiculous 1295 calories and 22.5grams of saturated fat. If you’re trying to eat light at Chipotle, it’s not happening.
It goes to show you that just because something is called a “salad” it doesn’t make it healthy for you. Though there are some healthy salad choices at restaurants, there are definitely some disguised as good-for-you alternatives that will make your pants a little tighter around the waist.
Sources:
http://www.calorieking.com/foods/calories-in-fast-food-chains-restaurants_c-Y2lkPTIx.html?bid=-1&sid=141
http://www.takepart.com/photos/15-salads-worse-big-mac/
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-299645/McDs-salad-fattening-hamburger.html
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This article was written by Amanda Rickett. Amanda currently resides in Newaygo, Michigan where she helps to run an organic, all natural food store. She enjoys playing with her cat Lola Boy and binge watching Netflix shows when she needs a moment to relax. She also is a professional writer for Rejuve Health Clinics and enjoys researching various topics related to health.
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