The Healthiest Fast Food Fish Sandwich: A Nutritional Comparison

Here’s how the fried fish sandwiches from Burger King, Wendy’s, Arby’s, Popeyes, Bojangles and McDonald’s stack up.

There are fish sandwiches on fast food menus all over the country around this time every year, as if the prayers of the faithful had called them there.

Of course, this huge catch of fried fish is mostly meant to satisfy the hunger of Catholics who, before 1966, didn’t eat red meat on Fridays, not just during Lent. Once upon a time, Roman Catholics ruled the Cincinnati suburbs, making hamburger sales their main source of income was a sure way to fail for restaurant owners like Louis Groen. In the early 1960s, Groen did just that. He was a McDonald’s franchisee, back before the chain was a household name. The nearby Big Boy restaurants, which served a fish sandwich every Friday, were killing him.

That’s why Groen started working with McDonald’s corporate team to make the Filet-O-Fish sandwich, even though McDonald’s owner Ray Kroc was totally against the idea. “Hell no!” Kroc apparently told Groen, according to “Grinding It Out: The Making of McDonald’s,” Kroc’s 1977 book. “I don’t care if the Pope himself comes to Cincinnati. He can eat hamburgers like everybody else. We are not going to stink up our restaurants with any of your damned old fish. ”Advertisement.

Kroc was placing his bets — literally — on a creation he called the Hula Burger. It was two slices of cheese paired with a slice of grilled pineapple, tucked into a toasted bun. Kroc loved to have one for lunch. Groen and he bet that the business would sell both the Filet-O-Fish and the Hula Burger on a Friday. Whichever sandwich sold the most would earn a spot on the permanent menu. It was a landslide. Hula Burgers: 6; Filet-O-Fish: 350.

Kroc wrote in “Grinding It Out” that they first sold it only on Fridays in a few places. But people wanted it so badly that they made it available every day in all of their stores starting in 1965, advertising it as the “fish that catches people.” ”.

Following almost 60 years, all the major fast food chains serve a fish sandwich during Lent, if they don’t already do so all year. The variations between each are small but significant. Many chains use Alaskan pollock, a flaky white fish, as their main ingredient. The fish is then covered in a seasoning mixture and topped with different kinds of vegetables and meat. There is a surprising amount of individuation to be conjured from this tight handful of ingredients. Advertisement.

Is the tartar sauce sweet or sour? Does the chain add two more acids by putting pickles on the sandwich? Is the bun brioche or potato? Is the coating thick or thin? Spiced or just plain? Does it come with a slice of cheese or a half-slice like on the Filet-O-Fish? (By the way, this is not an accident; Kroc wrote about it in his book.) ).

That is, this wave of seasonal sandwiches was carefully planned and advertised to appeal to people who are hungry during Lent. All these fried fishes are a prayer answered not by God but by corporate America.

For the following ranking, I tried 10 fish sandwiches at six national chains. You’ll notice that the sandwich that started it all didn’t make the list. The Filet-O-Fish I tried was greasy, bready, and chewy in a strange way. Its fish was muddy, and, worse, it was smothered in tartar sauce. It was the kind of lackluster bite that makes you think: Bring on the Hula Burger!.

The Wendy’s Crispy Panko Fish Sandwich

Wendy’s wins the sandwich-naming sweepstakes with its seasonal fish offering. If the Bojangler conjures up s of horror-flick serial killers, the Crispy Panko Fish Sandwich does the opposite: It suggests a workhorse chef who has labored for days to create a coating that amplifies the crunch that attracts many of us to fried foods in the first place. True to form, this sandwich crackles under tooth, down to the very last bite. The crunch is a pleasure all its own. The fillet itself is formed from “wild caught Alaskan pollock” — Wendy’s is quick to point out the sustainability of this fishery — and paired with tartar sauce, pickles, American cheese and romaine. The tartar sauce isn’t afraid of acidity, which does what it’s supposed to do: contain the fishiness of the fillet while emphasizing its sweet oceanic flavors.Advertisement

$6.16 per sandwich, but prices vary by location.

The Arby’s Crispy Fish Sandwich

The coating on this sandwich is thick, providing both crunch and a modest amount of chewiness, as if Arby’s slipped mochi rice dough into the batter. The chain relies on pollock, as many do, because the species is cheap, abundant and available in the wild, which allows operators to market their fish as “wild caught.” The mild pollock comes slathered with a tartar sauce that runs sweet, no doubt due to its generous application of high-fructose corn syrup. Tucked into a sesame seed bun that holds its shape better than its squishy brioche bun competitors, the fillet is accompanied by lots of shredduce, that clever portmanteau for shredded lettuce. The sandwich feels a bit more processed than its peers. But it also just works. I devoured the thing.Advertisement

$5.49 per sandwich, but prices vary by location.

Blind Fast Food Fish Sandwich Taste Test

What is the healthiest fast-food fish sandwich?

We didn’t expect McDonald’s to make the cut for the healthiest fast-food fish sandwich, but we were pleasantly surprised by their Filet-O-Fish nutrition. At under 300 calories, this sandwich offers 16 grams of protein and 2 grams of fiber while also providing under half the level of sodium of many other fast-food fish sandwiches.

Which fast food restaurants have fish sandwiches?

The Arby’s Crispy Fish Sandwich 4. Bojangles’ Bojangler Fish Sandwich 3. The Wendy’s Crispy Panko Fish Sandwich 2. Burger King’s Fiery Big Fish 1. Popeyes’ Classic Flounder Fish Sandwich Every year around this time, fish sandwiches start appearing on fast-food menus across the country, as if summoned by the prayers of the faithful.

Are fish sandwiches healthy?

Fish sandwiches don’t always have to be battered, fried, and smothered in tartar sauce. We’ve included Jimmy John’s Totally Tuna sandwich which offers 21 grams of protein with lower saturated fat counts than many of the other fish sandwiches on the market. With 5 grams of fiber, too, this sandwich can help you keep your gut regular.

Which fast food sandwich has the lowest calories?

1. McDonald’s Filet-O-Fish McDonald’s has been serving the iconic Filet-O-Fish since 1965, and it’s one of the healthier fast food fish sandwiches out there. It’s the lowest in calories and sodium, compared to the others, says Yelena Wheeler, M.P.H., R.D.N., of MIDSS.