Chinese food draws criticism

I eat chinese food quite regularly. Infact, the Jade House, a small (cheap) chinese place next to my work is somewhat my daily resuce as i dont cook and usually spend long hours working to even get time to cook - so walk up a block to Jade, get some rice and chicken/shrimp for $5.50 ande i am set to go. But a news report about concerns related to the use of sodium in chinese food is making me think twice before eating chinese. Ok, not that i will stop but its worth keeping ones eyes and ears open when news about food comes out. So it appears that ..... (my little comments pepper this news story)

The typical Chinese restaurant menu is a sea of nutritional no-nos, a consumer group has found. A plate of General Tso's chicken, for example, is loaded with about 40 percent more sodium and more than half the calories an average adult needs for an entire day.

The battered, fried chicken dish with vegetables has 1,300 calories, 3,200 milligrams of sodium and 11 grams of saturated fat.

That's before the rice (200 calories a cup). And after the egg rolls (200 calories and 400 milligrams of sodium). (I admit i dont eat all that at once.)

"I don't want to put all the blame on Chinese food," said Bonnie Liebman, nutrition director of the Center for Science in the Public Interest, which did a report released Tuesday.

"Across the board, American restaurants need to cut back on calories and salt, and in the meantime, people should think of each meal as not one, but two, and bring home half for tomorrow," Liebman said.

The average adult needs around 2,000 calories a day and 2,300 milligrams of salt, which is about one teaspoon of salt, according to government guidelines.(ok, we know that one)

In some ways, Liebman said, Italian and Mexican restaurants are worse for your health, because their food is higher in saturated fat, which can increase the risk of heart disease. (hahahaha. Italian sure does - the cheese in their can kill you)

While Chinese restaurant food is bad for your waistline and blood pressure — sodium contributes to hypertension — it does offer vegetable-rich dishes and the kind of fat that's not bad for the heart.

However — and this is a big however — the veggies aren't off the hook. A plate of stir-fried greens has 900 calories and 2,200 milligrams of sodium. And eggplant in garlic sauce has 1,000 calories and 2,000 milligrams of sodium. (I dont really buy that. Greens having 900 calories?)

"We were shocked. We assumed the vegetables were all low in calories," Liebman said.

Also surprising were some appetizers: An order of six steamed pork dumplings has 500 calories, and there's not much difference, about 10 calories per dumpling, if they're pan-fried.

The group found that not much has changed since it examined Chinese food 15 years ago. That's not all bad, Liebman said.

The group says there is no safe harbor from sodium on the Chinese restaurant menu, but it offers several tips for making a meal healthier:

_Look for dishes that feature vegetables instead of meat or noodles. Ask for extra broccoli, snow peas or other veggies.

_Steer clear of deep-fried meat, seafood or tofu. Order it stir-fried or braised. (That seems like good advice. I have seen them really fry that tofu)

_Hold the sauce, and eat with a fork or chopsticks to leave more sauce behind.

_Avoid salt, which means steering clear of the duck sauce, hot mustard, hoisin sauce and soy sauce.

_Share your meal or take half home for later. (So its really the portions that also matter. Did anyone hear SuperSize me?)

_Ask for brown rice instead of white rice. (I vote for this one. Its much healthier)

I think this is good information but again not unduly an alarm because the calories would compare with foods from other cuisines too. Basically we all are just used to eating too much processed foods high in calories. So its just not chinese that we should worry about.

I do know that when i am hungry and there are not many options at 11 pm, iam going to be ordering my rice with shrimps at the Jade House. Ok, this time perhaps ask them for less sauce.