Shrimp egg foo young is a reasonably healthy Chinese-American dish, especially compared to heavier takeout options like fried rice or lo mein. A single patty contains roughly 97 calories, 6.7 grams of protein, and under 5 grams of fat. The catch is that restaurant versions often come deep-fried and drenched in a starchy brown gravy, which can push the calorie, fat, and sodium counts significantly higher.
What’s Actually in It
At its core, egg foo young is a Chinese-style omelet. Beaten eggs are mixed with vegetables like bean sprouts, mushrooms, and onions, then combined with shrimp and cooked into small patties. It’s a protein-forward dish: eggs and shrimp together deliver a solid amount of protein with relatively few carbohydrates. Without the gravy, a single patty from a university dining hall clocks in at just 97 calories with 5.6 grams of carbohydrates.
The gravy changes the picture. Most restaurant versions use a brown sauce thickened with wheat flour or cornstarch, which bumps the carbohydrate content up to around 10 to 12 grams per serving. A full restaurant plate typically includes two or three patties with generous sauce, so a complete meal can land between 300 and 500 calories depending on portion size and preparation.
The Shrimp Factor
Shrimp is one of the leanest protein sources available, roughly 19 grams of protein per 100 grams with very little saturated fat. It was once flagged as a concern because of its dietary cholesterol content, but research has shifted that picture considerably. Studies in the Saudi Journal of Biological Sciences found that dietary shrimp intake actually lowered blood cholesterol, triglycerides, and LDL (the “bad” cholesterol) in both human subjects and animals fed high-cholesterol diets.
There’s one important caveat: cooking method matters. The same research found that frying shrimp in oil destroyed its beneficial omega-3 fatty acids (EPA and DHA), essentially wiping out the heart-health benefits. Grilled and boiled shrimp retained those protective properties, while fried shrimp showed no measurable benefit. This is directly relevant to egg foo young, since the traditional preparation involves deep frying the patties.
Where It Gets Less Healthy
Three things separate a healthy egg foo young from a less healthy one: the cooking oil, the gravy, and the sodium.
- Deep frying vs. pan frying. Traditional restaurant preparation calls for deep frying each patty, which adds significant fat and calories. The eggs act like sponges, absorbing oil during cooking. Pan frying in a small amount of oil produces a similar result with far less added fat.
- The gravy. The brown sauce served over egg foo young is typically made with soy sauce, flour or cornstarch, and sometimes oyster sauce. It contributes most of the dish’s sodium and a meaningful share of its carbohydrates. Ordering the sauce on the side, or skipping it entirely, is the single easiest way to make this dish healthier.
- Sodium. Between the soy sauce in the egg mixture and the gravy on top, a restaurant serving can contain well over 1,000 milligrams of sodium. That’s roughly half the daily recommended limit in one dish.
How It Fits Low-Carb and Keto Diets
Egg foo young is one of the more keto-friendly options on a Chinese takeout menu. A typical serving contains around 10 to 11 grams of total carbohydrates, mostly from the vegetables and gravy. Virta Health notes that it can fit into a ketogenic diet as long as your total daily carbs stay at or below 30 grams. Skipping the gravy drops the carb count further, closer to 5 or 6 grams per patty. For comparison, a serving of fried rice typically contains 40 to 50 grams of carbs.
The fiber content is modest. The vegetables in the dish, primarily bean sprouts and onions, contribute about 1 gram of fiber per serving according to a recipe from the American Diabetes Association. It’s not a significant source of fiber, but the low carbohydrate count and high protein make it a reasonable choice for blood sugar management.
Making a Healthier Version at Home
Homemade egg foo young is straightforward and gives you control over the ingredients that matter most. Pan frying the patties in a small amount of oil instead of deep frying them cuts fat considerably while producing a similar crispy exterior. Draining the cooked patties on a paper towel absorbs excess oil and keeps them from getting soggy.
For the gravy, using low-sodium soy sauce and reducing the amount of flour or cornstarch brings the sodium and carbohydrate counts down. You can also thin the sauce and use less of it. Some recipes skip the gravy entirely and serve the patties with a light drizzle of sesame oil or a squeeze of lime, which keeps the dish under 100 calories per patty.
Loading the egg mixture with extra vegetables, such as shredded cabbage, scallions, or water chestnuts, adds volume and fiber without meaningfully increasing calories. Using a mix of whole eggs and egg whites is another common swap that reduces cholesterol and fat while keeping the protein high.