Healthy Fast Food Guide | Chipotle | Detailed

Overview

In general, Chipotle has very high sodium levels due to all the seasoning they use. Thankfully, there are healthy options, so the key will be keeping our sodium as low as possible and using nutritional tactics to get the most out of our order.

Recommendations

Chicken Burrito Bowl (Full Order):

Tip: make sure to split your burrito bowl in half (including the chicken, so the protein is evenly dispersed!) to allow you to eat the other half later to maintain stable blood sugar levels, which help maintain balanced energy throughout the day.

1. Chicken — the leanest meat available on Chipotle’s menu. Request a double portion of chicken to improve the burrito bowl split

Tip: When you are requesting your meat in person, ask for chicken. After you’ve asked for chicken, then ask for double meat. The reason for this procedure is a human one.

Typically, the person serving you will hear chicken and give you a full scoop. If you tell them you want double chicken right away, however, then they will reduce the amount in each scoop. They probably do this to calibrate the current amount of chicken available so they don’t run out before a new batch is made

Thus, when you ask for double chicken after they provide the first scoop, you will get a full double portion because they’ve already “shown their hand” and will be uncomfortable giving you less than another full scoop. This is not always the case but happens surprisingly often.

1. Brown Rice — lowers cholesterol, helps digestive tract, and promotes fullness. In most scenarios, whether at Chipotle or another restaurant, brown rice is more nutritious than white rice or fried rice
2. Black Beans — maintains healthy bones, lowers blood pressure, and assists in fighting heart disease. Ask for both pinto and black beans. Chipotle won’t offer it, but they will give it to you free of charge, so make sure to request it
3. Pinto Beans — detoxifies the body, improves the nervous system, and maintain blood pressure
4. Fajita Vegetables — Onions have lots of nutrients, antioxidants, and improve heart health and Peppers are high in antioxidants, maintain eye health, and reduce the risk of chronic illnesses. Typically, Chipotle won’t offer it won’t offer it if you’ve chosen meat, but they will give it to you free of charge when requested
5. Guacamole — 20 different vitamins and minerals, improves heart health, and lower cholesterol and triglyceride levels. Chipotle charges a premium for guacamole, however, I believe it’s still worth it for the good fats (monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats) and fiber
6. Roasted Chili-Corn Salsa — high in nutrients, fiber, and a moderate amount of good fats. A moderate amount of sodium, but I believe this is worth it compared to other salsas offered

Optional Add-ons:

• Corn tortillas — if you’d like, you can request free corn tortillas from Chipotle. Corn tortillas have more nutritional benefits than flour tortillas because they’re high in fiber, strengthen cells and bones, and help metabolism. If you decide to order the corn tortillas, remove the brown rice or one of the beans (pinto or black) from your order to compensate for the additional carbohydrates of the tortillas

• Romaine Lettuce — this makes the bowl big and tough to control without much nutritional value compared to the other add-ons, but there’s nothing wrong with adding this because they’re rich in antioxidants, prevent bone loss, and improve heart health
• Tomatillo Red/Green Salsa — good health benefits, however, the reason I’ve excluded this from the order is that the sodium is quite high, and I don’t believe the nutritional benefits outweigh it

More Useful Tools

Quick Guide — for when you’re on the go and/or need to know what the suggestions are without all the detail

Detailed Notes — consolidated notes for each fast-food establishment