Ever wonder how your favorite foods stack up against each other in terms of nutrition?
We compared the nutritional contents of
egg yolk
versus
chicken leg
(100g each)
below using 2020 USDA and NIH data[1].
For a quick recap of significant nutrients and differences in egg yolk and chicken leg:
Both egg yolk and chicken leg are high in calories. Egg yolk has 50% more calories than chicken leg - egg yolk has 322 calories per 100 grams and chicken leg has 214 calories.
For macronutrient ratios, egg yolk is lighter in protein, heavier in carbs and heavier in fat compared to chicken leg per calorie. Egg yolk has a macronutrient ratio of 20:5:75 and for chicken leg, 31:0:69 for protein, carbohydrates and fat from calories.
Macro Ratios from Calories:
| Egg Yolk | Chicken Leg | |
|---|---|---|
| Protein | 20% | 31% |
| Carbohydrates | 5% | ~ |
| Fat | 75% | 69% |
| Alcohol | ~ | ~ |
Both egg yolk and chicken leg are low in carbohydrates - egg yolk has 3.6g of total carbs per 100 grams and chicken leg has 0.17g of carbohydrates.
Egg yolk and chicken leg contain similar amounts of sugar - egg yolk has 0.56g of sugar per 100 grams and chicken leg does not contain significant amounts.
Both egg yolk and chicken leg are high in protein. Egg yolk is very similar to egg yolk for protein - egg yolk has 15.9g of protein per 100 grams and chicken leg has 16.4g of protein.
Egg yolk is high in saturated fat and chicken leg has 54% less saturated fat than egg yolk - egg yolk has 9.6g of saturated fat per 100 grams and chicken leg has 4.4g of saturated fat.
Both chicken leg and egg yolk are low in trans fat - chicken leg has 0.06g of trans fat per 100 grams and egg yolk does not contain significant amounts.
Egg yolk is high in cholesterol and chicken leg has 91% less cholesterol than egg yolk - egg yolk has 1085mg of cholesterol per 100 grams and chicken leg has 93mg of cholesterol.
Chicken leg and egg yolk contain similar amounts of Vitamin C - chicken leg has 0.2mg of Vitamin C per 100 grams and egg yolk does not contain significant amounts.
Egg yolk is an excellent source of Vitamin A and it has 12 times more Vitamin A than chicken leg - egg yolk has 381ug of Vitamin A per 100 grams and chicken leg has 28ug of Vitamin A.
Egg yolk is an excellent source of Vitamin D and it has 108 times more Vitamin D than chicken leg - egg yolk has 218iu of Vitamin D per 100 grams and chicken leg has 2iu of Vitamin D.
Egg yolk has 10 times more Vitamin E than chicken leg - egg yolk has 2.6mg of Vitamin E per 100 grams and chicken leg has 0.22mg of Vitamin E.
Egg yolk and chicken leg contain similar amounts of Vitamin K - egg yolk has 0.7ug of Vitamin K per 100 grams and chicken leg has 2.3ug of Vitamin K.
Egg yolk has more thiamin, riboflavin, pantothenic acid, folate and Vitamin B12, however, chicken leg contains more niacin. Both egg yolk and chicken leg contain significant amounts of Vitamin B6.
| Egg Yolk | Chicken Leg | |
|---|---|---|
| Thiamin | 0.176 MG | 0.073 MG |
| Riboflavin | 0.528 MG | 0.141 MG |
| Niacin | 0.024 MG | 4.733 MG |
| Pantothenic acid | 2.99 MG | 0.994 MG |
| Vitamin B6 | 0.35 MG | 0.318 MG |
| Folate | 146 UG | 4 UG |
| Vitamin B12 | 1.95 UG | 0.56 UG |
Egg yolk is an excellent source of calcium and it has 13 times more calcium than chicken leg - egg yolk has 129mg of calcium per 100 grams and chicken leg has 9mg of calcium.
Egg yolk is a great source of iron and it has 296% more iron than chicken leg - egg yolk has 2.7mg of iron per 100 grams and chicken leg has 0.69mg of iron.
Chicken leg is a great source of potassium and it has 86% more potassium than egg yolk - egg yolk has 109mg of potassium per 100 grams and chicken leg has 203mg of potassium.
Carotenoids are micronutrients commonly found in plants and some animal products. An example is beta-carotene, the notable carotenoid which is a popular source of Vitamin A.[4][5]
For specific types of carotenoids,
| Egg Yolk | Chicken Leg | |
|---|---|---|
| beta-carotene | 88 UG | ~ |
| alpha-carotene | 38 UG | ~ |
| lutein + zeaxanthin | 1094 UG | 91 UG |
For omega-3 fatty acids, egg yolk has more dha and epa than chicken leg per 100 grams, however, chicken leg contains more dpa than egg yolk per 100 grams. Both egg yolk and chicken leg contain significant amounts of alpha linoleic acid (ALA).
| Egg Yolk | Chicken Leg | |
|---|---|---|
| alpha linoleic acid | 0.103 G | 0.155 G |
| DHA | 0.114 G | 0.01 G |
| EPA | 0.011 G | 0.004 G |
| DPA | ~ | 0.012 G |
| Total | 0.228 G | 0.181 G |
Comparing omega-6 fatty acids, both egg yolk and chicken leg contain significant amounts of linoleic acid.
| Egg Yolk | Chicken Leg | |
|---|---|---|
| other omega 6 | ~ | 0.016 G |
| linoleic acid | 3.538 G | 2.987 G |
| Total | 3.538 G | 3.003 G |
The comparison below is by common portions, e.g. cups, packages. You can also see a more concrete comparison by weight at equal weight (by grams) comparison.
Note: The specific food items compared are: Egg Yolk (Egg, yolk, raw, fresh) and Chicken Leg (Chicken, broilers or fryers, leg, meat and skin, raw) .
Egg Yolk g
()
|
Daily Values (%) |
Chicken Leg g
()
|
|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| KCAL % |
|
5% | calories | 5% |
|
KCAL % | |
| G % |
|
5% | carbohydrates | 5% |
|
G % | |
| G % |
|
5% | dietary fiber | 5% |
|
G % | |
| G | 5% | sugar | 5% | G | |||
| G % |
|
5% | total fat | 5% |
|
G % | |
| G % |
|
5% | saturated fat | 5% |
|
G % | |
| G | 5% | monounsaturated fat | 5% | G | |||
| G | 5% | polyunsaturated fat | 5% | G | |||
| G | 5% | trans fat | 5% | G | |||
| MG | 5% | cholesterol | 5% | MG | |||
| MG % |
|
5% | sodium | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| 5% | Vitamins and Minerals | 5% | |||||
| UG % |
|
5% | Vitamin A | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | Vitamin C | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| IU % |
|
5% | Vitamin D | 5% |
|
IU % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | calcium | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | iron | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | magnesium | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | potassium | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | thiamin (Vit B1) | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | riboflavin (Vit B2) | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | niacin (Vit B3) | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | Vitamin B6 | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | pantothenic acid (Vit B5) | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | folate (Vit B9) | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | Vitamin B12 | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | Vitamin E | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | Vitamin K | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| G % |
|
5% | protein | 5% |
|
G % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | biotin (Vit B7) | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | choline | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | chlorine | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | chromium | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | copper | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | fluoride | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | iodine | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | manganese | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | molybdenum | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | phosphorus | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | selenium | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | zinc | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| G | 5% | Water | 5% | G | |||
| G | 5% | Starch | 5% | G | |||
| G | 5% | Alcohol | 5% | G | |||