Healthy Options at Chipotle

Chipotle Burrito

Chipotle has over 1,000 locations across the country, and claims that 100% of their pork and chicken and 50% of their beef is raised humanely, without the use of antibiotics or hormones.  Check out these humanitarian remarks to the Senate by founder Steve Ells; I’m impressed.

They claim you can put together over 65,000 different combinations from their menu, so I’m going to offer just a few thoughts on some specific menu items.  If you have any other ideas or suggestions on how to put together a healthy meal at Chipotle, please post in the comments!

The biggest problem with Chipotle is the portion sizes. A chicken burrito with beans, rice, cheese, corn salsa, and sour cream can hit 1,030 calories!

The single most caloric item in a burrito is the flour tortilla, weighing in at 290 calories (with a surprising 9 grams of fat, too).

Add a side of chips (560 calories) and you’ve eaten nearly a day’s calories.

So, my advice is to get a bowl instead of a burrito, skip the tortilla, and go easy on the rice. Load up that bowl with a little bit of rice, black beans, lots of fajita vegetables, and perhaps some chicken or beef (avoid the barbacoa or carnitas; they’re higher in sodium and fat).  You’ll cut the calories significantly, and have a much more nutrient-dense meal.

Vegans and Vegetarians, take note: Avoid the pinto beans (they’re made with bacon), and vegans may want to skip the chipotle-honey vinaigrette (they don’t say why, but I’m guessing it’s because of the honey). Both their Pinto and Black Beans are now vegan. Chipotle also notes that their cheese is made with a vegetable-based rennet, and the sour cream is 100% cultured cream. Here’s Chipotle’s list for allergens & special diets.

Meat & Veggies – Better Choices

Fajita Vegetables (2.5 ounce serving) OK
20 cal, no sat fat, 0.5g total fat, 170mg sodium, 4g carbs, 1g fiber, 1g protein

Chicken (4 ounce serving)
190 cal, 2g sat fat, 6.5g total fat, 370mg sodium, 32g protein

Steak (4 ounce serving)
190 cal, 2g sat fat, 6.5g total fat, 320mg sodium, 30g protein

Meat – Worst Choices

Barbacoa
170 cal, 2.5g sat fat, 7g total fat, 510mg sodium, 24g protein

Carnitas
190 cal, 2.5g sat fat, 8g total fat, 540mg sodium, 27g protein

Beans – Better Choice

Black Beans OK
120 cal, no sat fat, 1g total fat, 250mg sodium, 23g carbs, 11g fiber, 7g protein

Beans – Worst Choice

Higher in sodium.

Pinto Beans
120 cal, no sat fat, 1g total fat, 330mg sodium, 22g carbs, 10g fiber, 7g protein

Salsa – Better Choices

Green Tomatillo Salsa (2 ounces) OK
15 cal, 0.5g fat, 230mg sodium, 3g carbs, 1g protein

Tomato Salsa (3.5 ounces)
20 cal, no fat, 370mg sodium, 4g carbs, 1g protein

Salsa – Worst Choices

Corn Salsa (3.5 ounces)
80 cal, no sat fat, 1.5g total fat, 410mg sodium, 15g carbs, 3g fiber, 3g protein

Red Tomatillo Salsa (2 ounces)
40 cal, no sat fat, 1g total fat, 510mg sodium, 8g carbs, 4g fiber, 2g protein

Other Condiments and Dressing – Better Choice

Although higher in calories, it’s from unsaturated “good for you” fats.  I’ll take guac over sour cream any day.

Guacamole (3.5 ounces) OK
150 cal, 2g sat fat, 13g total fat, 190mg sodium, 8g carbs, 6g fiber, 2g protein

Other Condiments and Dressing – Worst Choices

If you get a salad, consider getting the green tomatillo salsa as a dressing rather than the vinaigrette.  It’ll save you a ton of calories, fat, and sodium.

Sour Cream (2 ounces)
120 cal, 7g sat fat, 10g total fat, 30mg sodium, 2g carbs, no fiber, 2g protein

Vinaigrette Dressing (2 ounces)
260 cal, 4g sat fat, 24.5g total fat, 700mg sodium, 12g carbs, 1g fiber, no protein

Cheese (1 ounce)
100 cal, 5g sat fat, 8.5g total fat, 180mg sodium, no carbs, no fiber, 8g protein
Yeah, I love the cheese too.  If you do get some, promise me you’ll go easy on it, okay?

Menu Mondays are my recommendations for the most healthful options at chain restaurants. Although it may be tough to find “perfect” options when eating out, it’s important to choose “better” whenever possible, and I hope these guides will help make that easier for you.

indicates the “best-of-the-best,” and X indicates the “worst-of-the-worst,” more or less.

Chipotle Nutrition Info

Photo by chilcott.

A photo of Andrew Wilder leaning into the frame and smiling, hovering over mixing bowls in the kitchen.

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Hi! My name is Andrew Wilder, and I think healthy eating doesn’t have to suck. With just three simple eating rules, we'll kickstart your journey into the delicious and vibrant world of unprocessed food.

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37 Comments
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Jen
February 8, 2014 1:41 pm

Or, if you get everything you want on your burrito/bowl, just eat HALF!! Nobody said you have to eat the whole thing!

Dennis
February 7, 2014 7:25 pm

I love Chipotle! One thing I would like to see is for you guys to have a more accurate measuring technique when it comes to the servings. You have the nutrition facts per serving on your web site but how do I know if I’m actually getting the correct serving size? Will this make Chipotle a healthier place to eat? I believe it will because food doesn’t make people fat, over eating does.

Jeanie
January 9, 2014 8:28 am

Sofritas is their new Tofu “meat” topping that is completely vegan. They have also reformulated their pinto beans to make them vegan as well. Would be interested to see how those two items stack up now.

November 7, 2013 9:57 am

I love eating at Chipolte, but had no idea of how many calories their burritos had.

Also, last time I was there they had a sign that said their Pinto beans were now cooked without Bacon.

Regards,
Brian

Camille
October 18, 2013 12:48 pm

Just recently Chipotle added “sofritas” to there menu as a vegan option. What’s the deal? I am guessing its highly processed.

Melanie
Reply to  Camille
November 9, 2013 6:06 am

Sofritas is Spanish for stir fry. I think it’s just a new name for their veggies. If so it’s not processed at all beyond cutting and cooking. 🙂

Adriane
Reply to  Melanie
November 23, 2013 10:15 am

i almost tried their sofritas when i was at the Dulles airport, but skipped because i saw that it was super high in sodium! It’s tofu based, they make the tofu look like ground meat. I’m sure it’s delicious though 🙂

Rohit
July 25, 2013 7:30 am

Thank you so much for this – going to Chipotle with group at work today and it helped me figure out what to order!

Carolina
June 11, 2013 9:45 am

Thanks for this !

Murph
March 26, 2013 7:01 am

I eat at Chipotle or Freebirds 4-5 days a week. I’ll get the salad with chicken, fajita veggies, black beans, Green Tomatillo and Tomato Salsa. Plus, I also get fresh pico. My local Chipotle has that.. It’s a great meal.. pretty healthy and fills me up.

Paula
December 12, 2012 10:57 am

What I typically do and I don’t know if this is okay or now but I do get a burrito with chicken, rice, black beans and split it in half right away and bring the other half home and warm it up for lunch the next day. I don’t know if this is okay or not but it is what I have always done, and if fills me up. SOmetimes I do have a bowel instead. Moderation is my key that and using less processed foods.

Kendra
July 8, 2012 12:14 pm

The salad dressing is easy to make at home using red wine vinegar, honey, cajun or chipotle spices, salt, pepper, and extra virgin olive oil. You can control the amount of salt and fat (from the evoo) this way. When I know I’m having Chipotle for lunch, I take a serving of my homemade dressing, some fat free cheese, and fat free sour cream to work. I order the salad relatively plain (to-go), then top it off with my own guilt free condiments.

Megan
Reply to  Kendra
January 3, 2013 6:48 am

Love this! Thank you for the tip… the dressing is my absolute favorite and I never thought about making my own.