Taco Bell's Tacos Are More Nutritious Than You May Have Thought

When we think of healthy fast food menu items, the first place most of our minds go is to the salad section of the menu. These salads can be a delicious, healthy option in some cases, but there are also plenty of chain restaurant salads that you should never order. While the Taco Bell menu doesn't feature salads per se, there are a couple of bowls — such as the Veggie Bowl and Cantina Chicken Bowl — that meet that particular criteria. However, you may be surprised to learn that the chain's iconic crunchy taco is actually a pretty nutritious option. If you want a fast food treat with a healthy amount of protein, look no further.

One Crunchy Taco from Taco Bell contains 170 calories, 9 grams of fat, 4 grams of saturated fat, 310 milligrams of sodium, and 7 grams of protein — with no sugar, that's not bad at all. That means if you order the 3 Crunchy Tacos Combo and get something nice to drink like seltzer water or unsweetened tea, you are looking at just 510 calories, 27 grams of fat, 12 grams of saturated fat, 930 milligrams of sodium, and 21 grams of protein. While that doesn't sound terribly unhealthy, numbers are hard to interpret in a vacuum. To really judge the nutritious nature of Taco Bell's Crunchy Taco, we probably ought to compare it to some other popular fast food options.

Take Wendy's, for example. On its own, the Dave's Single cheeseburger contains 580 calories, 36 grams of fat, 14 grams of saturated fat, 1.5 grams of trans fat, 1080 milligrams of sodium, 7 grams of sugar, and 29 grams of protein. That means that a Wendy's burger has 70 more calories than that three-taco combo, not to mention 9 more grams of fat, 150 more milligrams of sodium, and 7 more grams of sugar. When you tack on the small fries that come with a combo meal, you add an additional 260 calories, 12 grams of fat, 420 milligrams of sodium, and 4 grams of protein. While the Wendy's option comes with an extra 12 grams of protein, it falls far behind by every other metric.

This is, of course, not unique to the Wendy's menu. The McDonald's Quarter Pounder with Cheese, for instance, doesn't stack up against the three-taco combo too favorably either. If you add in the fries that come with a combo meal, you are looking at 750 calories, 37 grams of fat, 13.5 grams of saturated fat, 1.5 grams of trans fat, 1330 milligrams of sodium, 10 grams of sugar, and 37 grams of protein. Again, this combo comes in as a high-protein fast food option, but it is also much higher in the fat, sodium, and calorie count categories. Clearly Taco Bell's Crunchy Taco beats out these burger joints in most metrics of nutrition. But how does it compare to the other tacos on the brand's own menu?

There is never a shortage of innovation on the Taco Bell menu; the brand is constantly playing with new concepts. While not every wild idea has been a winner — such as these discontinued Taco Bell menu items — there are an impressive array of unique items on the chain's menu, including a variety of different tacos. After breaking down the classic Crunchy Taco, you'll be pleased to know that these cactus apples don't fall too far from the ... prickly pear?

If you are more of a soft taco person, you needn't worry. Taco Bell's Soft Beef Tacos come in at a very respectable 180 calories, 8 grams of fat, 4 grams of saturated fat, 500 milligrams of sodium, 1 gram of sugar, and 9 grams of protein. Very similar to the crunchy taco. Likewise, the Nacho Cheese Doritos Locos Taco — the one with the shell coated in nacho cheese flavor — isn't too dissimilar either. At 170 calories, 10 grams of fat, 4 grams of saturated fat, 370 milligrams of sodium, less than 1 gram of sugar, and 7 grams of protein, the biggest difference from the classic crunchy taco is probably an extra 60 milligrams of sodium.

If protein is your thing, try getting a soft taco filled with chicken. These tacos contain only 160 calories, 5 grams of fat, 2.5 grams of saturated fat, and 1 gram of sugar but contain 500 milligrams of sodium and 12 total grams of protein (that's three more grams of protein than the beef alternative). A bit more sodium than the original, but also loads more protein.