Both meat and vegetarian options are featured in a new list of “the worst foods in America” that appears in the 2011 edition of “Eat This, Not That!,” which suggests healthier alternatives to certain foods at fast food and chain restaurants as well as grocery stores.
The Blimpie Special Vegetarian 12-inch sandwich comes in as the “worst ‘healthy’ sandwich” with 1,180 calories — only 170 calories less than Wendy’s Triple Baconator, which was named the “worst fast food burger.” The “worst kids’ meal,” California Pizza Kitchen’s Kids Curly Mac ‘n’ Cheese, has a total of 1,038 calories per serving, while the “worst pizza,” a cheese, individual-sized Uno Chicago Grill Classic Deep Dish Pizza, packs 2,310 calories, 165 grams fat and 4,920 milligrams sodium. TGI Friday’s Santa Fe Chopped Salad was named the “worst salad,” with 1,800 calories.
Meatier meals named to the list include Outback Steakhouse’s Baby Back Ribs, which were named the “worst ribs” at 2,012 calories for a full rack without sides, and Hardee’s Loaded Biscuit ‘N’ Gravy with large Hash Rounds, which takes home “worst fast food breakfast” with 1,530 calories.
Poultry dishes also made the list, like “worst chicken entrée” Cheesecake Factory Crispy Chicken Costoletta and its 2,494 calories, or “worst appetizer” Outback Steakhouse Kookaburra Wings, with 2,145 calories and 184 grams fat. Stouffer’s White Meat Chicken Pot Pie comes in as the “worst supermarket meal” with 1,160 calories.
As far as sodium is concerned, “worst Chinese entrée” P.F. Chang’s Double Pan-Fried Noodles Combo (with beef, pork, chicken and shrimp) packs 7,692 milligrams of sodium, along with 1,820 calories and 84 grams fat.
Neither meat nor poultry was implicated in the “worst food in America:” Cheesecake Factory Bistro Shrimp Pasta, with 2,727 calories and 78 grams saturated fat — more, a Men’s Health online slideshow points out, than three packages of Oscar Mayer Center Cut Bacon.
By Dani Friedland
Other News From Meatingplace.com
Butterball teaches children about responsible agriculture
Butterball has partnered with an educational resource provider to develop classroom learning materials to teach kids about the importance of responsible agriculture.
The Garner, N.C.-based processor’s “Celebrate Agriculture” Weekly Reader program will provide the materials to more than 200,000 educators who teach a total of 6 million students.
“Weekly Reader has been a trusted educational resource for teachers for more than 100 years,” Butterball CEO Keith Shoemaker said in a news release. “We are excited to work with such a well-known and credible organization to educate students on how socially responsible agricultural process lead to animal health and healthy food for consumers.”
Designed for students in grades three through six, “Celebrate Agriculture” includes math, nutrition and science activities, and a teacher’s guide with step-by-step instructions for incorporating the activities into their lesson plans.
Tom Johnston
Made-from-scratch main courses down from 30 years ago
While consumers are eating many of the same foods they ate in 1980, preparations and cooking-appliance preferences have changed, according to research from The NPD Group.
Thirty years ago, 72 percent of dinner main dishes were homemade. That figure now stands at 59 percent, with ready-to-eat and frozen foods playing a growing role, the Rosemont, Ill.-based market research firm said. While sandwiches are still among the top foods Americans eat, ready-to-eat, frozen or foodservice sandwiches are more common.
“Americans have an ever increasing need for convenience when it comes to eating,” Mark East, president of The NPD Group’s North American food and beverage unit, said in a statement. “We fully expect this trend to continue as ready-to-eat meals prepared outside the home and eaten in-home, fresh and frozen foods are all forecasted to grow notably in the next decade.”
As consumers prepare meals, convenience appliances are increasingly popular. Microwave-prepared meals have doubled since 1980, and households reporting that they use a slow cooker at least once in a two-week period have risen by 67 percent over the last three decades. Grills also remain popular, with more than a third of households saying they use the grill to prepare a meal at least once in a two-week period. Grill usage increased by 42 percent between 1998 and 2008.
In terms of the future, the NPD Group says stovetops and microwaves will keep their status as the most-used meal preparation appliances through 2018. Slow cooker usage is expected to rise by 16 percent and grill use is expected to increase by 11 percent.
“The fast and hectic pace of the lives we lead has had the single greatest impact on this country’s eating behaviors,” East said. “It’s clear by the changes we’ve observed over the past 30 years that the Google generation wants things now.”
Dani Friedland
meatingplace.com
