Food Fight Quiz: Processed Vs. Fresh

Steak or hot dog?
Steak or hot dog?

Test your health knowledge as farm-fresh foods and their processed competitors go head-to-head: You might think it's always best to steer clear of processed foods but you'll be shocked to find that fresh isn't always best.

1. Oscar Mayer Selects Angus Beef Franks vs. Fresh Sirloin Steak
Hot dogs have come a long way. This new variety from Oscar Mayer contains no artificial flavors, colors, fillers, byproducts, or added nitrates or nitrites. And - get this - they're supposed to be eaten within 7 days of opening the package (not 7 years). But each dog still derives nearly 80 percent of its calories from fat, and contains 420 mg of sodium. Comparatively, sirloin is one of the leanest cuts of beef available, and it's a protein, B-vitamin, zinc, and iron warehouse that has just one ingredient (versus the wiener's 11). Plus: 8 fun ways to eat a hot dog >>

And the best food to eat is…Sirloin Steak (with one important caveat)
That is, you don't eat the whole piece. Here's the dilemma: A hot dog is portion controlled. You eat one, maybe two. But with a steak, most people will clean their plate. If you have an 8- or 12-ounce cut, you can end up consuming significantly more calories and fat than if you'd opted for the hot dog. "The steak is the clear winner because of its nutrient density and high-quality protein," says Molly Morgan, RD, CDN, the author of Choose Right Shopping Guide! and The Skinny Rules!, and owner of Creative Nutrition Solutions in Vestal, New York. "But you still need to be mindful of portion size." That means limiting yourself to a 3-ounce cut (about the size of a deck of cards), and also ordering it grilled or broiled without butter, which is unfortunately standard practice in many steakhouses.
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2. Green Giant Frozen Sweet Peas vs. Fresh-Picked Peas
Within hours of being picked, Green Giant says its peas are given a "quick heat treatment to stop the natural enzymes that can reduce their goodness over time" and then are flash-frozen to "lock in important vitamins." This is the case with many varieties of frozen vegetables. Meanwhile, "fresh" supermarket peas and veggies are picked, packaged and shipped, which can take days or even weeks depending on the distance between field and store.

And the best food to eat is...Frozen Peas
Despite their rough-and-tumble appearance, peas are relatively fragile vegetables that lose many of their nutrients (i.e., 10-20 percent of vitamin C) and much of their sweetness (up to 60 percent) within 24 hours of harvesting. So unless you're picking them from your backyard garden or buying them from a local farm, your supermarket's freezer case is the best source. If you prefer organic, try the Cascadian Farm brand.

3. I Can't Believe It's Not Butter (original) vs. Farm Butter (salted)
A quick comparison of nutritional data in the supermarket aisle might lead you to believe that this one's a toss-up. The farm butter has only two ingredients (sweet cream and salt), and significantly less sodium (8 mg vs. 90 mg per tablespoon). But I Can't Believe It's Not Butter has 30 fewer calories, 3 g less fat, and zero cholesterol and trans fat per tablespoon. It also has more heart-healthy omega-3s.

And the best food to eat is... Farm Butter
If you look closely at the ingredients in I Can't Believe It's Not Butter, you'll spot "partially hydrogenated soybean oil." How can that be? Doesn't it say "0 g trans fat" on the label? Morgan explains that since the amount used is less than 0.5 g, the FDA allows it to be rounded down to zero. Hence, the technically accurate but misleading claim. "But say you have three or four products per day with 0 g trans fat, and each one actually contains 0.3 g or so per serving," she points out. "You could be having 1.2 g or more of trans fat per day while thinking you're not eating any. For health reasons, trans fats should be avoided."

4. Near East Spanish Rice vs. Homemade Spanish Rice
Nutritionally, these two adversaries are roughly equivalent in calories, fat, carbohydrate, protein, and fiber. The packaged product is also pretty natural, with 11 recognizable ingredients. But there is one big difference: When prepared as recommended using the included seasoning packet, the Near East rice contains 910 mg of sodium per cup, which is about 40 percent of your recommended daily allowance (RDA).

And the best food to eat is...Near East Spanish Rice
A controversial decision, no doubt, but three factors influenced us: taste, convenience, and preparation method. Barbara Ruhs, MS, RN, LDN, a former nutrition therapist at Harvard University, founder of Neighborhood Nutrition in Somerville, Massachusetts, and now a retail supermarket dietician in Phoenix, points out that when you're making your own, you have to prepare the rice and also buy, chop and cook the peppers, onions, tomatoes, garlic, herbs and spices. It's a challenging and time-consuming dish to make. And it will likely not satisfy your family as much as what comes out of the box. The key to making it more healthful is using no more than half the contents of the seasoning packet. "That significantly reduces sodium, and it'll still taste wonderful," says Ruhs.

Another advantage is that Near East uses parboiled long-grain rice. Parboiling is a method of production that drives vitamins and minerals from the bran or husk (before it's removed) into the grain. "So even though it's white rice, it still has more nutrients than the plain old white rice you'd probably use to make your own dish," says Morgan. (Parboiled rice can actually contain up to 80 percent of the nutrients of brown rice.) So in the grand scheme of dinnertime, it's better to go with the factory food here and devote your cooking energy elsewhere, where it can make more of a difference.
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