If you go to the chip shop, you’d better not choose this snack | to eat

The answer is more complicated than it seems. First, we need to define what “healthy” and “unhealthy” actually mean in this context. “These are terms that require a lot of nuance,” explains dietician Fimke van Lier. “Age, gender, health, lifestyle, and many other factors influence what your body does and doesn’t need.”

Products from deep fryers are not included in the so-called food triangle or in the Netherlands “Schijf van Vijf”. However, this does not mean that you can never eat these products, says Tara Ekenar, a spokeswoman for the Dutch Nutrition Center. The advice is clear not to eat these snacks too often and not too much. But what is the “least harmful” order in the chip shop? Van Lier: “For the average person who is not on a specific diet, I would take calories as a guideline. And because we see a lot of cardiovascular disease, saturated fat also plays an important role in the assessment.”

The nutritionist studied the most popular snacks from the table above and commented on them. The perfect Van Liere snack that instantly marks it out Satay chicken: “It has the lowest calories and the lowest total amount of fat, especially saturated. So that’s very useful here. But that’s also because in this overview it’s nothing more than chicken breast pieces, so no sauce.” And those chicken strips, which are also important. Too bad, they don’t get put into the French fries bowl.

Don’t you eat meat, or would you rather eat something else? then spring roll Also a good option: “The spring rolls also fared well in the test because they have relatively few saturated fats. So that would be one ‘second best’ Maybe.”

What you don’t particularly want to ask when you want to watch your diet is Mexico. Van Lier: “It has 390 calories. That’s a lot. And a good portion of that is also made up of saturated fat.” The amount of salt doesn’t help either. For comparison: the recommended daily amount is 6 grams. “And you’ll get enough of that thanks to your basic diet.” Add to that the fact that Mexicano also has lower nutritional value, with less protein per gram than satay, and it becomes clear that the delicacy doesn’t quite pay off.

Comparing the nutritional values ​​of fried foods is one way to find the “best” option, but according to Van Lier, we’re missing an important part of the story: portions. “Bitter is less healthy than satay, but you can give a better dose of bitterness to chicken nuggets.” This is more difficult with Mexicano or Bear’s Claw.

What this comparison also lacks are sauces. “When it comes to the sauce, I’m pretty sure ketchup The best option because it does not contain fat. Curry contains a lot of sugars.” For comparison: “A tablespoon of mayonnaise contains 130 calories, and a tablespoon of ketchup has 13.”

But does that mean that from now on you can only order guilt-free satay with ketchup? Absolutely not, says Van Lier: “These are snacks that most of us eat no more than once a week, rather than every day. As a result, they have less of an impact on your total calorie intake.” Or as a nutrition center spokesperson concludes: “If you eat a healthy, varied diet, it’s okay to grab something from the deep fryer now and then. But not too much, not too much.”

a look. A man uses an air fryer while riding a train in the Netherlands