The Healthiest Orders at Moe's Southwest Grill —and What to Avoid
Moe's Southwest Grill is a popular fast-casual Tex-Mex chain restaurant originating in Atlanta, Georgia. With locations across the United States, it is a reliable food option when you're traveling, on the go, or are unsure of what to eat for dinner. If you're looking for a nutritious meal when heading to Moe's, we can help you find the best healthy orders off their menu.
Sticking to health goals at fast-casual restaurants can be difficult, but it is possible. Knowing what to look for and how to adjust your order to amplify nutrition is key. Although you should limit some ingredients, like fried items, we want to focus on what foods you can add to your meals, namely vegetables.
Here, we explain how to order at Moe's and provide examples of healthy meals that preserve the satisfaction and flavors you crave.
How to Make Healthy Choices at Moe's
One of the great things about Moe's is that you can customize any order based on preferences or nutrition and health goals. This helps you make healthier choices at Moe's. Here are some factors to consider when ordering at Moe's when you want to eat healthy:
Opt for sauce-free proteins: Choose grilled or plain menu options, like white chicken meat instead of the saucier adobo chicken.
Focus on what you can add to the dish: Include vegetables, fresh herbs, or pickled items for more flavor and nutritional balance. Not all vegetables at Moe's are fresh. Still, adding grilled onions or peppers provides a fiber and vitamin boost.
Opt for small mains: A salad or taco will be your best bet at Moe's. Still, as mentioned, you can customize any dish. Use this list of healthy orders at Moe's as a guide—if your meal of choice isn't on here, consider if you can tweak it to boost the nutrition while retaining the flavors you love.
RELATED: 6 Healthiest Fast-Food Tacos to Try Right Now
What to Avoid at Moe's
High-fat options: Restaurant food is cooked in more oil and salt than homemade meals, so calories and fat content can add up quickly. Moe's offers fatty ingredients such as toppings like sour cream, queso, and bacon bits. If you include these items, add fresh vegetables for a more balanced meal.
Large portion sizes: Portions are larger at restaurants than at home. Even the healthier choice at Moe's can comprise half of your daily calories. Keep calories in check by ordering salads without the taco shell salad bowl, which adds 455 calories. Most burritos at Moe's are made with a 12-inch tortilla, which provides 310 calories. Instead, ask for the 10-inch tortilla, which has 200 calories and is used for quesadillas. You can always save some food as leftovers and use it later as a component of another meal.
Free chips and salsa: Ditch the chips and salsa that accompany each meal. Chips and salsa add more calories to the already large portion size without enhancing nutrition. Instead, add salsa to your meal to boost freshness and vegetables.
Unhealthier menu options: Although you can customize any meal at Moe's, some dishes should be limited. Nachos come in large portions with many toppings that quickly add calories. Instead of nachos, try a salad or burrito bowl. Or, if you want to retain the crunch of nachos but with fewer calories, opt for a taco with a crunchy shell and add vegetables and lean proteins like white meat chicken or tofu for a well-balanced dish.
Now that you know some general tips for choosing healthy orders off the Moe's menu, read on to learn about 7 of the healthiest orders you can make. Then, check out the 8 Unhealthiest Restaurant Tacos to Stay Away From.
The Best Healthy Orders at Moe's
1. Burritos
Ingredients: flour tortilla, white meat chicken, pinto beans, grilled onions, grilled peppers, shredded lettuce, pico de gallo, shredded cheese
Nutrition (per order):
Calories: 742
Fat: 27 g (Saturated fat: 13 g)
Carbs: 84g (Fiber: 15 g, Sugar: 6 g)
Protein: 51 g
Controversial opinion: rice isn't necessary in a burrito. Skipping the rice reduces calorie content by 150 calories, but the burrito remains satisfying because of the fiber and protein. Fiber in the beans and grilled peppers contribute to satiety.
Although this burrito ditches the rice, it isn't technically low-carb. With 84 grams of carbohydrates per serving, this burrito remains satisfying with its carbohydrates from the flour tortilla and pinto beans.
Plus, this burrito is a significant source of protein. Adults are encouraged to consume 0.8 to 1 gram of protein per kilogram of body weight. For a 150-pound person, this equates to 54 to 68 grams of protein daily. One burrito provides 51 grams of protein, or 94% of recommended protein, mostly from the white meat chicken and pinto beans.
RELATED: 8 Unhealthiest Restaurant Tacos to Stay Away From Right Now
2. Burrito Bowls
Ingredients: White meat chicken, pinto beans, seasoned rice, grilled onions, grilled peppers, shredded lettuce, pico de gallo
Nutrition (per order):
Calories: 611
Fat: 11 g (Saturated fat: 6 g)
Carbs: 97 g (Fiber: 16 g, Sugar: 7 g)
Protein: 41 g
Calories can quickly add up with burritos, given the flour tortilla and range of toppings. Burrito bowls ditch the tortilla for a lower-calorie alternative to a burrito. Skip fattier toppings like cheese, sour cream, and queso, and instead, load up on vegetable toppings full of fiber, vitamins, and minerals. Select the white meat chicken, which has fewer calories and less sodium than the adobo chicken.
We also recommend choosing the seasoned rice instead of the cilantro lime rice, which contains more than 40% of your daily sodium. The seasoned rice has 380 milligrams of sodium, compared to the 992 milligrams in one serving of cilantro lime rice. For reference, the Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend keeping sodium intake to less than 2,300 milligrams daily.
3. Nachos
Ingredients: chips, steak, pinto beans, pickled jalapenos, pico de gallo, shredded cheese
Nutrition (per order):
Calories: 1,059
Fat: 55 g (Saturated fat: 16 g)
Carbs: 117 g (Fiber: 21 g, Sugar: 3 g)
Protein: 41 g
Although a higher-calorie and fat option, nachos can be healthified by adding pinto beans. The fiber in pinto beans contributes to its health benefits, and a 2001 study found that eating one ounce of beans daily increased longevity by approximately eight years.
A high-fiber diet is associated with reduced risks of diabetes, high cholesterol, and inflammation—factors that affect longevity. Pickled jalapenos add heat and more nutrition: Jalapenos are an excellent vegetable source of vitamin C.
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4. Stacks
Ingredients: shredded cheese, corn tortillas, ground beef, pinto beans, shredded lettuce, pico de gallo
Nutrition (per order):
Calories: 527
Fat: 29 g (Saturated fat: 14 g)
Carbs: 49 g (Fiber: 16 g, Sugar: 4 g)
Protein: 33 g
Stacks are unique to Moe's. They feature a flour tortilla enveloping a crunchy taco shell and filling. Adding pinto beans increases the Stacks' nutritional content, namely fiber. With 16 grams of fiber per serving, this stack provides more than 50% of the daily fiber recommended by the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Fiber benefits gut and heart health and is essential to weight management. Include beans in your next order for a satisfying and satiating stack.
5. Quesadillas
Ingredients: flour tortilla, white meat chicken, grilled peppers, pico de gallo, shredded cheese
Nutrition (per order):
Calories: 484
Fat: 21 g (Saturated fat: 10 g)
Carbs: 40 g (Fiber: 3 g, Sugar: 3 g)
Protein: 38 g
Enhance the nutrition content of the classic quesadilla by adding white meat chicken and grilled peppers. Chicken provides protein, one of the essential macronutrients. Aiming for at least 20 grams of protein per meal ensures you stay full and meet daily protein goals. Additionally, protein is required to maintain and gain muscle mass. Grilled peppers add a pop of color and essential micronutrients like vitamin C, necessary for collagen production and immune health.
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6. Tacos
Ingredients: crispy corn tortilla, chicken, grilled onions, shredded lettuce, pico de gallo, shredded cheese
Nutrition (per order):
Calories: 199
Fat: 15 g (Saturated fat: 7 g)
Carbs: 17g (Fiber: 4 g, Sugar: 4 g)
Protein: 17 g
A healthier order shouldn't sacrifice texture and flavor. The crispy corn tortilla has nutrition similar to the regular corn tortilla but provides crunch, contributing to overall meal satisfaction. Perhaps not the first thing you think of when eating vegetables, tacos are an excellent vehicle for consuming more produce. Pico de gallo, shredded lettuce, and grilled onions help you meet daily vegetable recommendations while supplying additional layers of flavor and texture.
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7. Salads
Ingredients: romaine lettuce, tofu, pinto beans, cilantro, tomatoes, corn pico, grilled onions, grilled peppers, cucumbers, black olives, Southwest vinaigrette
Nutrition (per order):
Calories: 456
Fat: 26 g (Saturated fat: 8 g)
Carbs: 45 g (Fiber: 19 g, Sugar: 8 g)
Protein: 25 g
Although we often consider salads healthier, that's not always the case. Creamy dressings, crispy toppings, and other add-ins quickly convert a salad from a healthy alternative to a high-calorie, high-fat option.
Skip the tortilla shell and stick with chopped lettuce for the base of the salad. Instead, opt for corn pico for starchiness and a boost of fiber. Try tofu and beans for a lower-fat and lower-calorie salad. Not only are beans and tofu inherently low-fat and low-calorie but diets higher in plant-based proteins are linked with longer lives. Order your dressing on the side if you want to keep your calories and fat on the lower end.
