What I'd Order at a Chinese Restaurant to Lose Weight

Chinese takeout has one simple rule: steamed or stir fried, never breaded and glazed.

John Schaefer, fat loss coach for 27 years · Updated October 2026

Type your goal weight and every order below shows how much of your calories and protein it covers. Same math I use with clients: goal weight x 12 for calories, goal weight x 0.7 for protein.

What do I order?

Tell me where you're eating and your goal weight. I'll tell you exactly what to get, with the calories and protein.

Want me to email you your numbers? Your calories, protein, carbs and fats for your goal weight, plus this page so you have it at the table.

Answers are estimates from published nutrition data, not medical advice.

What I order

Steamed chicken or shrimp with broccoli

Lunch style

Sauce on the side, use a spoonful

450calories45gprotein

For a 150 lb goal: 25% of your calories and 43% of your protein for the day.

Kung pao chicken with steamed rice

Carb meal

Your carb meal, one cup of rice

900calories50gprotein

For a 150 lb goal: 50% of your calories and 48% of your protein for the day.

Beef and broccoli

Lunch style

How I order it, the calories and the protein are in the Eating Out Playbook, along with 60 other chains and 25 kinds of restaurants.

See the Playbook ($7) →

The move: Order egg drop or hot and sour soup first. It fills you up for about 100 calories.

Skip these

General Tso's chicken1,400 cal
Pork fried rice1,000 cal
Lo mein1,000 cal

Drinks: Tsingtao is about 140 calories a bottle.

Estimates for a typical restaurant portion in the US. Treat them as a close guide.

How I fit any restaurant into the day

Protein firstEat the protein, then the vegetables and fats, then the carbs. You're satisfied before the bread matters.

One carb meal a dayBread, rice, pasta, potatoes, fries. Keep the big carb hit to one meal. On a night out, that's dinner.

Zoom out to the weekFat loss runs on your weekly average. One dinner out is easy to absorb when the rest of the week is steady.

The Eating Out Playbook

Every restaurant you go to, already figured out.

60 chains and 25 kinds of restaurants, including every chinese spot. Search the place you're going, pick an order, and see how it fits your goal weight before you sit down. Works on your phone, $7 one time.

Get the Playbook Free: my numbers

Quick answers

What is the healthiest thing to order at a Chinese Restaurant?

Steamed chicken or shrimp with broccoli: Sauce on the side, use a spoonful. Around 450 calories and 45g of protein.

What should I skip at a Chinese Restaurant when I'm losing weight?

General Tso's chicken (1,400 calories), Pork fried rice (1,000 calories), Lo mein (1,000 calories).

What about drinks?

Tsingtao is about 140 calories a bottle.