Egg rolls are typically a side dish to a main entree.

Image Credit: Stockbyte/Stockbyte/Getty Images The Chinese egg roll is made of chopped vegetables wrapped in a thin sheet of dough. An egg roll may or may not contain meat, depending on who made the roll. The dough is then dipped in an egg mixture to coat the outer portion. The roll is then placed in a deep fryer to be cooked.

  Advertisement
 
Calories

The typical serving size of a Chinese egg roll is one complete roll. There are 200 calories per serving. The number of calories from fat depends on the how long the egg roll is fried. Typically, fat accounts for 50 to 75 calories per serving.

  Video of the Day
  
Considerations

There are 400 mg of sodium per egg roll. This is almost one-third of the American Heart Association’s recommended dietary limit of 1,500 mg of sodium per day. The egg roll is typically a side dish to a Chinese entree. Chinese entrées typically contain a lot of sodium, according to the Center for Science in the Public Interest. Thus, you need to take the egg roll sodium level into account when you calculate the sodium content of the whole meal.

  Advertisement
 
  Advertisement
 
Alternatives

The spring roll is a healthier alternative to the egg roll. It contains 100 fewer calories per serving and 100 mg less sodium per serving. That is because the dough encasing the spring roll is thinner than the dough for the egg roll.

  Advertisement
 
  Advertisement
  
  references
  
      USDA National Nutrient Database: Restaurant, Chinese, Egg Rolls, Assorted
    
      Center for Science in the Public Interest:  Chinese Food - A Wok on the Wild Side
    
      American Heart Association: Sodium Recommendations
       




  references
  
      USDA National Nutrient Database: Restaurant, Chinese, Egg Rolls, Assorted
    
      Center for Science in the Public Interest:  Chinese Food - A Wok on the Wild Side
    
      American Heart Association: Sodium Recommendations
    




Egg rolls are typically a side dish to a main entree.

Image Credit: Stockbyte/Stockbyte/Getty Images

Image Credit: Stockbyte/Stockbyte/Getty Images

      USDA National Nutrient Database: Restaurant, Chinese, Egg Rolls, Assorted
    
      Center for Science in the Public Interest:  Chinese Food - A Wok on the Wild Side
    
      American Heart Association: Sodium Recommendations