A handful of mixed dry fruits (30g) is 150 calories. Two handfuls: 300. A small festive box (200g): 1,000 calories. Dry fruits are the ultimate calorie-dense snack disguised as a health food. Almonds (575 cal/100g), cashews (553 cal/100g), raisins (299 cal/100g), dates (282 cal/100g). Combined in a mix, they average 500 cal/100g. Healthy? Yes. Low … Read more
Amla has 20x the vitamin C of an orange. At 44 calories per 100g, it is one of the lightest and most nutrient-dense fruits in existence. Two amla (50g): 22 calories with more vitamin C than 3 oranges. The catch: raw amla is aggressively sour. So Indians invented amla murabba (sugar-soaked), amla candy (sugar-coated), and … Read more
Fresh coconut meat is 354 calories per 100g. That is more calorie-dense than rice (130 cal/100g), more than roti (240 cal/100g), more than most foods people consider heavy. A 50g portion (roughly half a small coconut’s meat): 177 calories. Coconut water is light (19 cal/100ml). Coconut meat is not. Coconut Fresh is one of those … Read more
Jamun is 60 calories per 100g. Not the lightest fruit, not the heaviest. But jamun’s real value is not in calories. It is one of the few fruits clinically studied for blood sugar management. The low glycemic index, jamboline compound in seeds, and moderate sugar make it the go-to fruit for diabetic Indians. Taste aside, … Read more
Fresh anjeer: 74 cal per 100g. Dried anjeer: 249 cal per 100g. That is a 3.4x calorie increase from the same fruit. Most Indians eat dried figs (soaked overnight) as a health food. Three dried figs soaked in water: 75 calories. Six: 150 calories. The ‘health food’ label makes people eat unlimited dried figs without … Read more
Sitaphal is one of the sweetest fruits in India. At 94 cal per 100g of flesh, it is heavier than most fruits. One medium sitaphal (120g flesh) is 113 calories. The natural sugar content (20g/100g) is higher than mango (14g). But it comes with 3.5g fibre and excellent iron content. Sweet, calorie-dense, but genuinely nutritious. … Read more
One glass of mosambi juice is what most people order when they think they are being healthy. The fruit itself: 43 cal per 100g. A glass of fresh mosambi juice (200ml): 90 cal without sugar, 150 cal with sugar. The juice stall adds 2-3 spoons of sugar to every glass. That is 60 extra calories … Read more
One medium pear is 100 calories. That is slightly more than an apple (95 cal) for a similar-sized fruit. But pear has 30% more fibre than apple (3.1g vs 2.4g per 100g). More fibre means more satiety per calorie. The pear fills you up more than the apple does, which makes it a better snack … Read more
Jackfruit is two completely different foods depending on ripeness. Raw kathal sabzi: 95 cal/100g, used as a meat substitute. Ripe jackfruit: 95 cal/100g, intensely sweet. Jackfruit chips: 550 cal/100g, basically fried sugar. The same fruit at three calorie levels depending on what you do with it. This is the complete calorie breakdown for jackfruit. Every … Read more
One litchi is 7 calories. Ten litchis: 66 calories. The problem with litchi is not calories per piece. It is that nobody eats 10. Most people eat 20-30 in a sitting because they are addictively sweet and easy to peel. 30 litchis: 200 calories. That is a full meal’s worth of sugar consumed as a … Read more