Ever wonder how your favorite foods stack up against each other in terms of nutrition?
We compared the nutritional contents of
cooked
quinoa
versus
chicken leg
(100g each)
below using 2020 USDA and NIH data[1].
For a quick recap of significant nutrients and differences in quinoa and chicken leg:
Both quinoa and chicken leg are high in calories. Chicken leg has 78% more calories than quinoa - quinoa has 120 calories per 100 grams and chicken leg has 214 calories.
For macronutrient ratios, quinoa is lighter in protein, much heavier in carbs and much lighter in fat compared to chicken leg per calorie. Quinoa has a macronutrient ratio of 15:71:15 and for chicken leg, 31:0:69 for protein, carbohydrates and fat from calories.
Macro Ratios from Calories:
| Quinoa | Chicken Leg | |
|---|---|---|
| Protein | 15% | 31% |
| Carbohydrates | 71% | ~ |
| Fat | 15% | 69% |
| Alcohol | ~ | ~ |
Chicken leg has signficantly less carbohydrates than quinoa - quinoa has 21.3g of total carbs per 100 grams and chicken leg has 0.17g of carbohydrates.
Quinoa is a great source of dietary fiber and it has more dietary fiber than chicken leg - quinoa has 2.8g of dietary fiber per 100 grams and chicken leg does not contain significant amounts.
Quinoa and chicken leg contain similar amounts of sugar - quinoa has 0.87g of sugar per 100 grams and chicken leg does not contain significant amounts.
Chicken leg is an excellent source of protein and it has 272% more protein than quinoa - quinoa has 4.4g of protein per 100 grams and chicken leg has 16.4g of protein.
Quinoa has signficantly less saturated fat than chicken leg - quinoa has 0.23g of saturated fat per 100 grams and chicken leg has 4.4g of saturated fat.
Both chicken leg and quinoa are low in trans fat - chicken leg has 0.06g of trans fat per 100 grams and quinoa does not contain significant amounts.
Quinoa has less cholesterol than chicken leg - chicken leg has 93mg of cholesterol per 100 grams and quinoa does not contain significant amounts.
Chicken leg and quinoa contain similar amounts of Vitamin C - chicken leg has 0.2mg of Vitamin C per 100 grams and quinoa does not contain significant amounts.
Chicken leg has more Vitamin A than quinoa - chicken leg has 28ug of Vitamin A per 100 grams and quinoa does not contain significant amounts.
Chicken leg and quinoa contain similar amounts of Vitamin D - chicken leg has 2iu of Vitamin D per 100 grams and quinoa does not contain significant amounts.
Quinoa and chicken leg contain similar amounts of Vitamin E - quinoa has 0.63mg of Vitamin E per 100 grams and chicken leg has 0.22mg of Vitamin E.
Chicken leg and quinoa contain similar amounts of Vitamin K - chicken leg has 2.3ug of Vitamin K per 100 grams and quinoa does not contain significant amounts.
Chicken leg has more niacin, pantothenic acid, Vitamin B6 and Vitamin B12, however, quinoa contains more folate. Both quinoa and chicken leg contain significant amounts of thiamin and riboflavin.
| Quinoa | Chicken Leg | |
|---|---|---|
| Thiamin | 0.107 MG | 0.073 MG |
| Riboflavin | 0.11 MG | 0.141 MG |
| Niacin | 0.412 MG | 4.733 MG |
| Pantothenic acid | ~ | 0.994 MG |
| Vitamin B6 | 0.123 MG | 0.318 MG |
| Folate | 42 UG | 4 UG |
| Vitamin B12 | ~ | 0.56 UG |
Quinoa and chicken leg contain similar amounts of calcium - quinoa has 17mg of calcium per 100 grams and chicken leg has 9mg of calcium.
Quinoa has 116% more iron than chicken leg - quinoa has 1.5mg of iron per 100 grams and chicken leg has 0.69mg of iron.
Quinoa and chicken leg contain similar amounts of potassium - quinoa has 172mg 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, both quinoa and chicken leg contain significant amounts of lutein + zeaxanthin.
| Quinoa | Chicken Leg | |
|---|---|---|
| beta-carotene | 3 UG | ~ |
| lutein + zeaxanthin | 53 UG | 91 UG |
For omega-3 fatty acids, chicken leg has more DPA than quinoa per 100 grams. Both quinoa and chicken leg contain significant amounts of alpha linoleic acid (ALA) and DHA.
| Quinoa | Chicken Leg | |
|---|---|---|
| alpha linoleic acid | 0.085 G | 0.155 G |
| DHA | 0.015 G | 0.01 G |
| EPA | ~ | 0.004 G |
| DPA | ~ | 0.012 G |
| Total | 0.1 G | 0.181 G |
Comparing omega-6 fatty acids, chicken leg has more linoleic acid than quinoa per 100 grams.
| Quinoa | Chicken Leg | |
|---|---|---|
| linoleic acid | 0.974 G | 2.987 G |
| other omega 6 | ~ | 0.016 G |
| Total | 0.974 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: Quinoa (Quinoa, cooked) and Chicken Leg (Chicken, broilers or fryers, leg, meat and skin, raw) .
Cooked Quinoa 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 | |||