Who doesn’t love egg rolls? Crispy on the outside, stuffed with soft veggies and spices and dipped in a sweet sauce…they are a Chinese take-out staple. But considering that an average egg roll packs about 400 calories and 16 grams of fat, they kind of sabotage the lean calories in your well-intentioned steamed Buddha’s Feast.

Food manufacturers have been hard at work creating low-fat and low-cal egg rolls that serve up heaps of taste, but not heaps of weight. When it comes to store-bought egg rolls, we love both Kahiki’s new veggie egg rolls and Trader Joe’s. So we’ve decided to pin them against each other in a food fight. Here are how their stats stack up:

In the right corner is Kahiki Vegetable Egg Rolls. With a mere 70 calories and 2 grams of fat and protein, these egg rolls can be nuked in the microwave and still maintain a decently crispy shell. But for the record, we like ours best baked in the oven for 15-20 minutes. Stuffed with cabbage, carrots and spices, these yummy rolls have a peppery taste that is offset by the 10-calorie sweet and sour sauce packet that comes with it. For $3-$5, depending upon the grocer, you get four egg rolls.

In the left corner is Trader Joe’s Stir-Fried Vegetable Egg Rolls. Coming in at 110 calories, 4 grams of fat, 5 grams of protein, these rolls have higher stats all around than Kahiki’s, but they are also loaded with Vitamin A and stuffed with tofu, bean spouts, Chinese celery, carrots and onions. Their flavor is a bit on the sweet side and the shell when baked is crispy and chewy. You get five good-sized egg rolls in a pack for $3.99.

And the winner is: For taste, the prize goes to Kahiki. Its peppery veggies and stir-fry sauce tastes natural, authentic and so yummy! For nutrition, while Kahiki packs fewer calories and fat grams, Trader Joe’s contains more protein, fiber and vitamins. So we give the nutrition award to Trader Joe’s.

This food fight was particularly tough to call since both egg rolls get high marks all around when it comes to taste, nutrition, cost and preservation of the crispy egg roll shell. Both products can be found in the freezer section and while the microwave is super convenient, our panel prefers the taste and texture of both egg rolls when they are baked in an oven.

Happy eating!

Post from: Diets in Review Blog

Food Fight: Kahiki Vegetable Egg Rolls vs. Trader Joe’s Stir-Fried Veggie Rolls

Recently, I had the chance to sample Kahiki Food’s egg rolls. Not only are they yummy, but their egg rolls contain just a fraction of the calories that most restaurant egg rolls do. The veggie egg roll comes in at 70 calories, the chicken has 80 calories and their pork and shrimp combo comes in at a mere 100 calories!

And these aren’t mini egg rolls either. They are your average-sized egg roll packed with tons of veggies, like cabbage, carrots and water chestnuts with a spicy peppery flavor and a crispy egg roll crust. And they are the first microwaveable egg rolls that retain their crunchy crust even after they are nuked.

Kahiki is a family-owned business that specializes in making healthy authentic Asian food. Not only do they make lo-cal eats but they are also committed to social responsibility. All of their 70 products are packaged in recycled materials, don’t contain MSG and they even recycle their cooking oil through local farmers who turn the oil into bio-diesel fuel. Their complete line of foods, which includes frozen entrees made with antibiotic-free hibachi-grilled white-meat chicken and non-GMO ingredients, can be found in the freezer section of your grocery store.

I recommend checking out their website to learn more about their products and download money-saving coupons that can be used for all of their tasty and healthy eats.

Happy Noshing!

Kahiki generously provided Heather with sample product, but this review is her own opinion and was not sponsored in any way.

Post from: Diets in Review Blog

Food Find: Kahiki’s Healthy and Lo-Calorie Egg Rolls