Sesame chicken vs. General tso's chicken — Health Impact and Nutrition Comparison

Calories

General Tso's and sesame chicken are both high-calorie foods. A 100-gram serving of each dish provides around 15% of the recommended daily calorie intake.

Sesame chicken provides 293 calories per 100g serving, while General Tso's chicken provides 295 calories in an equal serving. One average order of sesame chicken provides 1603 calories, while one of General Tso's contains 1580 calories.

Protein

Compared to General Tso's chicken, sesame chicken is around 1.5g richer in protein per 100g serving. The protein in General Tso and sesame chicken is high quality. One order of these dishes covers the daily value of all essential amino acids.

General Tso's chicken has more essential amino acids than sesame chicken.

Fats

General Tso's chicken is higher in fat by about 2g per 100g serving, containing 16.36g, while sesame chicken has 14.25g of fat. Regarding cholesterol content, sesame chicken has 59mg, while General Tso's chicken has slightly less, with 53mg.

The amount of unsaturated and saturated fat in both chicken dishes is nearly equal. The fat compositions of these two dishes are similar. Both sesame and General Tso's chicken contain over 50% polyunsaturated fats, followed by monounsaturated and saturated fats. However, a 100g serving covers over 12% of the recommended daily value of saturated fats.

Fat Type Comparison

Fat type breakdown side-by-side comparison

Sesame chicken

1

Saturated Fat: Sat. Fat 2.41 g

Monounsaturated Fat: Mono. Fat 3.546 g

Polyunsaturated fat: Poly. Fat 6.885 g

General tso's chicken

2

Saturated Fat: Sat. Fat 2.76 g

Monounsaturated Fat: Mono. Fat 3.879 g

Polyunsaturated fat: Poly. Fat 7.501 g

Contains less Sat. FatSaturated Fat

-12.7%

~equal in Monounsaturated Fat ~3.879g

~equal in Polyunsaturated fat ~7.501g

Carbohydrates

Sesame chicken is higher in carbohydrates, by about 2.8g per 100 g serving, due to net carbs such as starch and sucrose. While both dishes are insufficient sources of dietary fiber, General Tso's chicken is slightly richer in fiber. Sesame and General Tsos chicken provide 26.9g and 23.9g of carbohydrates per 100g, respectively.

Starch and sucrose are the predominant carbohydrates in these dishes. There is also glucose and fructose in sesame chicken, whereas there is none in General Tso's chicken.

Carbohydrate type comparison

Carbohydrate type breakdown side-by-side comparison

Sesame chicken

3

Starch: 10.7 g

Sucrose: 11.79 g

Glucose: 2.18 g

Fructose: 2.01 g

Lactose: 0 g

Maltose: 0 g

Galactose: 0 g

General tso's chicken

1

Starch: 11.83 g

Sucrose: 10.46 g

Glucose: 0.62 g

Fructose: 0.51 g

Lactose: 0 g

Maltose: 0 g

Galactose: 0 g

Contains more SucroseSucrose	+12.7%
Contains more GlucoseGlucose	+251.6%
Contains more FructoseFructose	+294.1%

Contains more StarchStarch

+10.6%

~equal in Lactose ~0g

~equal in Maltose ~0g

~equal in Galactose ~0g

Vitamins

It's hard to choose a definitive winner in this category as the two dishes are rich in different vitamins.

General Tso's and sesame chicken are excellent sources of B-complex vitamins, containing nearly equal amounts. However, sesame chicken is slightly higher in vitamins B1, A, E, and B3 (niacin), B2, B6, and vitamin B12.

General Tso's chicken is slightly higher in vitamins  D, K, B5, C, B9, and folate.

Vitamin Comparison

Vitamin comparison score is based on the number of vitamins by which one or the other food is richer. The "coverage" charts below show how much of the daily needs can be covered by 300 grams of the food.

Sesame chicken

7

General tso's chicken

5

Contains more Vitamin AVitamin A	+211.7%
Contains more Vitamin B1Vitamin B1	+48.1%
Contains more Vitamin B2Vitamin B2	+90.7%
Contains more Vitamin B3Vitamin B3	+38.8%
Contains more Vitamin B6Vitamin B6	+32.2%
Contains more Vitamin B12Vitamin B12	+13.6%
Contains more CholineCholine	+76.6%

Contains more Vitamin CVitamin C	+60%
Contains more Vitamin DVitamin D	+100%
Contains more Vitamin KVitamin K	+41%
Contains more FolateFolate	+37.5%

~equal in Vitamin E ~1.21mg

Minerals

These two chicken dishes are similar in their mineral compositions overall. Nonetheless, sesame chicken is slightly richer in magnesium, selenium, and copper, while General Tso's chicken is higher in iron and zinc.

While both dishes are high in salt, General Tso's chicken contains slightly less sodium. The sodium content per 100g serving of sesame and General Tsos chicken is 482mg and 435mg, respectively.

Mineral Comparison

Mineral comparison score is based on the number of minerals by which one or the other food is richer. The "coverage" charts below show how much of the daily needs can be covered by 300 grams of the food.

Sesame chicken

2

General tso's chicken

1

Contains more MagnesiumMagnesium	+22.2%
Contains more SeleniumSelenium	+16%

Contains more ZincZinc

+42.9%

~equal in Calcium ~12mg

~equal in Potassium ~201mg

~equal in Iron ~1.16mg

~equal in Copper ~0.046mg

~equal in Phosphorus ~127mg

~equal in Sodium ~435mg

~equal in Manganese ~0.075mg

Glycemic Index

Boiled chicken contains nearly no carbohydrates and has a glycemic index of 0. However, the coating and the deep-frying significantly raise this value.

The glycemic indices of General Tsos and sesame chickens have not yet been calculated. With a glycemic index of 46, they are about the same as chicken nuggets. (1).

Insulin Index

The insulin index values of foods show how eating a particular item raises blood insulin levels. Additionally, no research has been done on General Tsos and sesame chicken's insulin index levels. Compared to roasted chicken, which has an insulin index of 23, chicken nuggets have been shown to have an index of 41 (2, 3). This value is classified as having a low insulin index.

Acidity

Both sesame chicken and General Tso's chicken have acidic properties. Still, sesame chicken has a slightly higher acidity level, with a PRAL of 6.8, compared to General Tso's chicken, which has a PRAL of 6.2.

Cardiovascular Health

Several mechanisms suggest that frequent consumption of fried food increases the risk of hypertension, coronary heart disease, stroke, heart failure, and coronary mortality, including an increase in blood "bad" cholesterol levels (4, 6).  Sesame and General Tso's chicken also contain a high sodium content. Diets high in sodium have also been shown to cause high blood pressure (7).

Diabetes

For those at risk of diabetes, sesame, and General Tso's chicken should be taken strictly in moderation, even if they may have low glycemic and insulin index values. When discussing diabetes risk, the cooking technique could be as important as the meal's contents. Compared to cooking meat at moderate temperatures like boiling, steaming, and stir-frying, cooking meat at high temperatures like deep-frying, grilling, and barbecuing raises the risk of type 2 diabetes (8).

Obesity 

Plenty of fried meals can dramatically increase calorie consumption since they contain more calories than non-fried ones. Weight gain may result from this. 

 Furthermore, research suggests that because trans fats in fried meals can alter hormones that control hunger and fat storage, they may significantly contribute to weight gain (9).

Numerous observational studies have demonstrated a positive correlation between fried food consumption and obesity, regardless of the cause—high trans fat or high-calorie content (10, 11). 

  Sources

1. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5852758/
2. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/
3. https://ses.library.usyd.edu.au/handle/2123/11945
4. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33468573/
5. https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/news
6. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4632424/
7. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6770596/
8. https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/2018/03/23/how-meat-is-cooked-may-affect-risk-of-type-2-diabetes/
9. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20644558/
10. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33825582/
11. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6196377/