Fit Trip: Sugar Thai Cuisine, Ellensburg, WA

Thai food is definitely one of America’s (and MY) favorite ethnic cuisines.  

It’s also healthy in that many dishes contain a wide variety of vegetables, and it’s possible to make lean protein choices like shrimp, chicken or tofu.  However, as many of us would suspect, but perhaps really would prefer not to know (as we delight in finishing an entire dish of Pad Thai), some Thai dishes have a lot more calories and fat than you might expect. Coconut milk and fried dishes are two of the main culprits.  Fish sauce, shrimp paste and curry paste all are high in sodium.

As with any restaurant eating, a little advance knowledge and pre-planning goes a long way in avoiding high calorie choices but enjoying yourself nonetheless!

Here’s a list of Healthiest and least healthy Dishes to order at Sugar Thai Cuisine, and some tweaks for making some of your favorites at home with less calories.

The WORST choices for your waistline at Sugar Thai

1. Pad Thai – Sigh…everyone’s favorite dish is probably the worst offender on the Thai restaurant menu.  This tasty stir fried noodle dish can pack 700 – 1400 categories in a restaurant serving.  The extra calories come from the fact that this dish is made primarily of rice noodles that are then stir fried in oil.  One cup of rice noodles on its own is 200 calories, but many restaurant Pad Thai servings contain 4 cups of noodles or more. 

2. Coconut Curry – Thai coconut curries can range 600 – 800 calories per serving not including the rice.  Musaman is typically the richest, using the most coconut milk of any curry. Coconut milk contains around 200 calories per serving.  While it is a healthy food, it is still high in calories and fat and must be eaten sparingly.  Coconut curry simply uses too much of this fatty milk for it to be an appropriate serving. Additional calories come from oil and fatty meats like duck, dark meat chicken, or fatty beef.

3. Thai Iced Tea – It may not sound so bad, but this sweet drink can contain as many calories as a Starbucks Frappucino.  Often containing coconut milk and sweetened with condensed milk, a serving averages around 200 calories per serving.

4. Sticky Rice Dessert with Mango –  Can rice and fruit really be so bad?  Yes, unfortunately it can.  Made with glutinous rice, coconut milk and sugar, this dessert is absolutely incredible.  However, it packs more than 500 calories per serving.

The BEST menu choices at Sugar Thai to help you keep fitting in those skinny jeans!

1. Tom Yum (Hot & Sour) Soup – This flavorful chicken or vegetable broth based soup is made of shrimp, mushrooms, curry, lemongrass and chiles, and only contains about 140 calories per serving.  Beware, however, there is also a version made with coconut milk called Tom Yum Kha.

2. Stir Fried Vegetable Dishes - These come in many variations, but often include mixed vegetables and chicken, shrimp or beef.  Depending on how much oil is used in the stir frying, these dishes typically run around 300 calories.

3. Cashew Chicken – Another stir fried dish that typically includes some vegetables, cashew chicken generally runs around 375 calories per serving.  However, a serving is often only 1/3 of the portion served at the Thai restaurant.

4. Salad Rolls – These are appetizers made of soft rice paper wrapped around steamed shrimp, lettuce, cilantro, cucumber and carrot and dipped in a dipping sauce. Since these are not deep fried, they’re quite healthy and low in calories at about 60 calories per roll.

5. Chicken Satay – While it is an appetizer on most Thai menus, chicken satay can make a great entree too!  These chicken skewers which are dipped in peanut sauce are super tasty and have only about 300 calories per serving. But do go easy on the dipping sauce!

***Erin's Menu choices

I choose either the salad roll appetiser and the tom yum hot & Sour soup. (The soup is very filling, and sipping away at it while my family chows down on their meal helps me feel satisfied!)

OR I get the Cashew chicken and eat 1/3 of the plate.  Sugar Thai's dishes are HUGE!!!! Plus I have the added bonus of bringing home 2 more meals for later on in the week! I Love Stir Fried vegetable as well, but make them a lot at home, so I prefer to have something different when I go out!

Fit Tip: Many dishes come with rice or noodles.  I avoid the white rice and noodles! :)

So next time you have a hankering for some DELICIOUS Thai food, eat out with confidence at Sugar Thai!  You CAN Eat Thai & Eat HEALTHY!!!!!

Sugar Thai Cuisine

306 North Pine Street, Ellensburg, WA 98926

(509) 933-4224