In recent years, supermarket shelves have been filled with prepared dishes that are successful because with them what the customer achieves is saving time in the kitchen. There are all kinds, traditional stews, vegetable creams, lasagna…, or salad. The Organization of Consumers and Users (OCU) has analyzed eight ready-to-eat salads and has found that they contain high levels of fat and salt. In fact, a single supermarket serving provides 62% of the recommended daily salt.
The analysis carried out by the entity has revealed a “common excess” in the eight products purchased in several supermarket chains. Salt adds up to 1.15 grams per 100 grams on average, which in a serving of about 250 grams represents 62% of the recommended daily amount.
In addition to this consideration, the OCU considers that another of the problems found is the presence of all types of additives, up to six on average per product, some of which it considers inadvisable for generating hypersensitivity and allergy reactions, such as benzoate.
In addition, the organization warned of its surprising caloric content, since despite being made with vegetables, potatoes, peas, carrots, etc., they contain a large amount of mayonnaise, which makes the fat content very high (but not fat). saturated, since mayonnaises are mainly made with vegetable oils).
This high amount of mayonnaise translates into a fat intake of 15.5 grams per 100, which for a 250 gram serving represents 67% of the recommended daily amount in a 2,000 kilocalorie diet. Likewise, this product is not a source of protein, since it only contains a few proteins from eggs and tuna.
“Among the 8 salads in the analysis, there are great differences in the tasting ratings: compared to very good products, others are disappointing,” they explain from the OCU. The worst rated salads are those from La Cocina To Go (Aldi), “with a texture that is not typical of a salad”, and the Chef Select Lidl, “with a very liquid and loose texture, as well as hard potatoes, according to the expert tasters “.
But although other options may be better, the OCU recommends not overconsuming them: “Their high salt content (be careful, hypertensive patients) and the large amount of fat make them a dish that should be consumed only from time to time, and trying to balance it with the rest of the meals of the day, choosing foods and preparations rich in protein and low in fat, such as some fish or lean meat or eggs.
