Chipotle, a Mexican-inspired fast food restaurant, offers menu items like burritos and tacos. This restaurant chain prides itself on offering naturally raised meats and organic vegetables, as well as hormone-free cheese, milk and sour cream. Many of the items on the Chipotle menu are quite healthy and provide many different nutrients. Other menu items are less healthy. Knowing the difference will help you make the most nutritious meal choice next time you eat at Chipotle.
Vitamins and Minerals
Many of the main courses and side items on the Chipotle menu are rich in vitamins and minerals. The restaurant offers several choices of salsa, which can add a variety of nutrients to your meal. Tomato salsa contains a healthy dose of vitamin C and the corn salsa contains a good amount of fiber. Adding romaine lettuce to your burrito or taco will add vitamin A to your dish, as well as a small amount of iron. A small sprinkle of cheese adds some bone-building calcium to your menu choice. Guacamole will add potassium.
Fiber and Protein
Several of the menu items at Chipotle are healthy choices for increasing your protein and fiber intake. You have the choice between black or pinto beans with most of the entrees on the menu. Both types of beans contain 7 g of protein per serving. Black beans supply 11 g of fiber per serving and the pinto beans provide 10 g. The beef, chicken and pork options for your burrito or taco also contain a high amount of protein, between 24 and 32 g. The guacamole supplies 8 g of fiber per serving.
Fat
While many of the Chipotle menu items are low in fat, others are high in fat you should eat them in moderation. One of the items highest in fat is the sour cream, which contains 10 g of fat, of which 7 g is saturated, in a 2-oz. serving. Holding the sour cream is one of the simplest ways to improve the nutritional value of your meal. Go easy on the cheese, which has 8.5 g of fat, of which 5 g is saturated. Another menu item to avoid is tortilla chips, which have 24 g of fat, with 4 g saturated fat, in each 4-oz. serving. Fill up on beans, fajita vegetables and salsa because they are lower in fat, and much lower in saturated fat.
Sodium
According to David Zinczenko and Ted Spiker, authors of "The Abs Diet Ultimate Nutrition Handbook," one of the main drawbacks to eating at Chipotle is the high sodium content of many of its menu items. The flour tortilla used for the burritos contains 670 mg of sodium and the pinto beans contain 330 mg. The salsas are one of the worst sodium culprits, with between 230 mg and 510 mg per serving. The meats are also high in sodium with between 320 mg and 540 mg in each 4-oz. serving. The chips contain 420 mg and the guacamole contains 190 mg.
References
- Chiptole: Nutrition Facts
- "The Abs Diet Ultimate Nutrition Handbook"; David Zinczenko and Ted Spiker; 2007
Member Comments