Muscle & Fitness UK – July 2019

GETTY IMAGES

RAMEN VS. PHO

FIGHT CARD

WINNER: PHO

Serving: 2 cups

564

CALORIES

36 g

PROTEIN

4.2g

SUGAR

54 g

CARBS

19 g

FAT

300

CALORIES

14 g

PROTEIN

1 g

SUGAR

35 g

CARBS

7 g

FAT

PHO-GET

ABOUT IT

What’s the

better take-out

option, ramen

or pho?

R

amen still conjures

up images of that

indestructible block

of microwavable

noodles we actually

called dinner once upon a

time. But the real-deal

ramen (above right)—a

Japanese dish of pork

broth, fresh noodles, meat,

and other toppings—has

become the cool kid on the

culinary block, with ramen

shops popping up all over

the country. Eateries

offering its Vietnamese

counterpart, pho (below

right), are also on the rise,

and while both dishes

make for solid options to

fuel you up after a killer

workout, we wanted to

know which soup is the

healthier choice to slurp.

Go for the pho, says Amy

Goodson, R.D., a Dallas-

based sports dietitian.

“Ramen is typically higher

in calories, and that’s

because when you’re

getting a serving of ramen,

you’re often getting more

noodles,” she says.

“Whereas pho has more

broth.”

Ramen’s signature thick

and cloudy broth comes

from the hunk of pork

fat it’s cooked with. And

it’s topped with a soy-

marinated egg that’s

usually sky-high in sodium.

Meanwhile, pho’s clear

beef-broth base is derived

from simmered beef bones,

yielding less fat. And

because it’s made with rice

flour, it’s gluten-free, unlike

ramen.

By Lizbeth Scordo

NUTRITION