Is Chef Boyardee Healthy? Is it Safe to Eat?

Chef Boyardee is one of the top fast foods in the world. It is found on almost every table in the USA at least once. But is Chef Boyardee healthy?

Chef Boyardee is not healthy. It has a high glycemic index and it is highly processed. Chef Boyardee is safe to eat in limited portions. It is not even recommended to eat it too often.

There are two sides to the same coin, though. Processed food is not healthy at all. But also, obsessing over healthy foods is not either. If you´re stressing out over eating only organic, low-calorie foods, it can cause you more harm than any can of premade pasta. If you are interested to know some facts about nutritional values and some tricks to pull out the best from it, keep reading.

Is Chef Boyardee Good for You?

Chef Boyardee´s canned pasta is not the best nor the worst thing you could eat. It has low nutritional value whatsoever. It is a classic among processed foods and packed with not-so-healthy additives. 

Processed food isn´t good for anyone if you eat it too often. It is instantly ready and convenient after a long day. 

Every can of Chef Boyardee has a faulty ratio between macronutrients: lipids, carbs, and protein. [1] Lipids and carbs compete for the top spot, depending on the sort of food in question. Proteins are, unfortunately, least represented.

These quick lunch options have low to no vitamins and minerals. If you want to make a meal like this more nutritional, pair it with low-calorie vegetables. Choose vegetables that are rich in vitamins and minerals.

The best option is to make a simple salad with fresh vegetables. Fresh vegetables are low in calories and high in volume. It will make you feel full faster and balance out the glycemic index.

For example, make a salad of iceberg lettuce and cucumber. 100 grams of this salad has no more than 20 calories, as Food Data Central reports. Just sprinkle your salad with some lemon and you have a nice and fresh meal.

Is Chef Boyardee Safe to Eat?

Chef Boyardee is safe to eat. It is pre-cooked and safe to eat straight out of a can. You don´t need to preheat it, but it is tastier heated tough.

It is rare, but it can be a risk factor for developing Botulism. [2] Botulism is a severe illness caused by bacteria (Clostridium botulinum). This bacteria lives in inadequately conserved food.

So, if you come across a tin that is leaking, puffing out, rusting, or something like that, don’t use it at all. Better safe than sorry!

Is Chef Boyardee Good for Weight Loss?

Chef Boyardee is not suitable for weight loss. It is full of empty calories. If you are on a low-carb diet, this canned pasta is not for you. Enriched white flour is the main ingredient of Chef Boyardee´s pasta. It is highly mechanically and chemically processed.

Refined flour is fast absorbing and effortlessly shattered in your digestive system. [3] This kind of flour breaks down the same way as actual sugar. Moreover, blood sugar spikes, triggering the production of insulin. Then, insulin clusters sugar in the cells, which accelerates decreasing blood sugar levels. 

After that, the pancreas discharges glucagon – the hormone responsible for deposited sugar release. Eating this kind of food regularly guides to weight gain. This process causes insulin resistance, too. It means that your body is producing insulin but doesn´t shoot sugar to the cells. 

Your cells solely won´t have any feedback to insulin. Likewise, the result is high blood sugar and easy weight gain. Refined flour has a high glycemic index, and it is overly processed and deficient in fiber. [4]

That doesn´t mean you should never eat it again, but be mindful of your portions. For example, try to pair it with some vegetables.

Another red flag in the ingredient list is artificial sugar – high-fructose corn syrup. Fructose transforms into glucose, glycogen (stockpiled carbs), or fats. So, that aids in hoarding fat, especially visceral fat.

Studies found that fructose increases ghrelin – the hunger hormone. [5] That leads to feeling happy at the moment of eating, but soon you´ll start feeling hungry again.

The liver metabolizes fructose in the same way as alcohol. So, it appears to be analogously addictive. That later leads to craving sugar more and more and feeling an accomplishment after eating it. 

That creates a magic circle that is hard to leave. Just read the labels to avoid these hidden calories, and you´ll be fine. 

Is Chef Boyardee Ravioli Healthy? 

Chef Boyardee ravioli is not healthy. One serving of Chef Boyardee Beef Ravioli in Tomato Sauce has 180 calories. One serving considers 244 grams. A can of Chef Boyardee contains approximately two servings.

A can of Chef Boyardee ravioli has 7 grams of fat. 3 grams of those fats are saturated fats. FDA emphasizes the poor effects of high levels of saturated fats in your diet. [6] Those effects are high blood lipid levels, cholesterol, and blood pressure.

There are 7 grams of protein in a can. It comes from beef, of course. But more important information is if that beef is healthy. Chef Boyardee doesn´t have an organic certificate. 

Beef used in the making is probably boosted with antibiotics. Furthermore, antibiotics in meat aren´t a direct threat to your health, but consuming them often can cause bacteria resistance in people. [7] The best option is to reduce consuming antibiotic-treated flesh, which is present in most ready-to-go foods.

Chef Boyardee´s company most likely uses hormone-processed beef. [8] Even the low amounts of hormones in the meat can cause changes in your well-being. Having said that, research showed that testosterone and estrogen used in animal flesh are causing early puberty in children. 

High fructose corn syrup is probably the worst among those ingredients. [9] It is a menace to type 2 diabetes, obesity, insulin resistance, and fatty liver. It is vital to mention that fructose from whole foods – fruit and vegetables has no damaging effects on your health.

Chef Boyardee´s pasta contains high levels of sodium, too. [10] Yes, the chief source of sodium is regular table salt. However, food can be high in sodium but not salty. 

Sodium has a role in keeping blood pressure and volume balanced. So naturally, by taking a higher dose of sodium than recommended, blood pressure will raise. The next thing is swelling of feet and legs because of fluid retention.

One can of Chef Boyardee pasta contains 800 milligrams of sodium. [11] U.S. Food and Drug Administration recommends a sodium intake of fewer than 2,300 milligrams a day. So, it is 33% of the daily value of sodium in one can of food, which is very high. 

Chef Boyardee doesn´t label its food as “BPA-free.” BPA is a chemical used in making cans and plastic cups intended for microwave. Food that is set aside for a long time, just like cans of food, can be contaminated with BPA. 

Chef Boyardee´s company also produces food stored in plastic containers for microwave use. BPA frees through the heating process, as well. BPA is tied-up with hormonal changes, as it imitates the structure of the hormone estrogen.

A can of Chef Boyardee pasta contains about 20% of the daily needs for selenium. It comes from enriched wheat flour, used for making pasta. 

To give an illustration, a can of Chef Boyardee ravioli contains more synthetic ingredients than whole foods. Chef Boyardee ravioli is obviously not a good lunch alternative.

What Is a Good Alternative to Chef Boyardee?

The best alternative to Chef Boyardee would be homemade ravioli made of organic ingredients. So, visit your local market and gather ingredients from checked sources. Beef from the local butcher, homemade pasta and organic tomatoes will surely have a better taste. In the end, it is worth the effort.