I’ve gotten a tremendous number of hits the last few days from people doing a Google search about the calories in a Doritos Locos taco from Taco Bell, all because when I heard the fast-food-meets-junk-food object of desire was being test marketed in areas with relatively low overall incomes and high overall health problems, it set me off on what qualifies as a rant for me. You don’t have to dig around any more. Here is the answer to the question you seek, straight from Taco Bell: Doritos Locos Taco:
- serving size: 78 grams
- calories: 170
- calories from fat: 80
- saturated fat: 3.5 grams
- total fat: 9 grams
- trans fat: 0 grams
- cholesterol: 25 mg
- sodium: 340 mg
- carbohydrates: 13 grams
- dietary fiber: 2 grams
- sugars: 1 gram
- protein: 8 grams
Doritos Locos Supreme Taco:
- serving size: 113 grams
- calories: 200
- calories from fat: 100
- saturated fat: 4.5 grams
- total fat: 11 grams
- trans fat: 0 grams
- cholesterol: 35 mg
- sodium: 370 mg
- carbohydrates: 15 grams
- dietary fiber: 2 grams
- sugars: 2 grams
- protein: 9 grams
Taco Bell managed to keep the Doritos Locos taco calories exactly the same as its crunchy taco counterpart. The sodium in the Doritos Locos taco is 50 mg higher than the crunchy taco. What does it all mean? I like this, from a great analysis by Johanna Weiss of the Boston Globe:
In truth, when you examine nutrition data on the company website, the Doritos Locos Taco is no worse for you than the rest of the menu. It just sounds more disgusting, which is part of its appeal: A taco to eat out of spite.
A taco to eat out of spite – what a concept! Over 100 million of the things were soldin the first 3 months or so of their existence; I presume not too many of those were consumed just to be contrary. But I do wonder – how does that nutrition information compare to something similar people make at home? We make tacos, assembled with two tablespoons of Rosarita vegetarian-style refried beans, an Old El Paso crunchy taco shell and 1/4 ounce of Monterey jack cheese; all regular stuff from the grocery store, nothing super healthy or organic. I did some math and figured each of those tacos weighs in at about:
- serving size: 62 grams
- calories: 113
- calories from fat: 43.2
- saturated fat: 2.35
- fat: 4.8 grams
- carbohydrate: 12.6 grams
- sodium: 256 mg
- dietary fiber: 2.6 grams
- protein: 4.75 grams
Sour cream and salsa are extra, on my homemade as well as on the standard Doritos Locos taco. So there you go. Click here to find out how many calories there are in a Domino’s Bacon Cheeseburger Feast pizza. What’s for dinner tonight? If you’re cooking, check out this great recipe for potato-filled tacos and my homemade taco seasoning recipe.
Does not sound too bad but can you east just one? Or two? Or?
Love you Mom
calories are not bad,, but everythine else,,omgzzz, they are still to die for. I eat 2 w /a limeade sparkler. Thanks for the info..
This isn’t really that bad. I expected much higher sodium content. Really, you could eat one of these for all 3 meals and still stay within bounds of a 2000 calorie diet. Not saying you should however.
I agree there are much better things to eat, but this doesn’t compare to how horrible McDonalds food is for you.
I enjoyed reading this, you answered my questions way beyond expected. I appreciate the comparison to cooking a taco at home. Nice. Thanks.
Thank you, Dawnena! I was interested in the at-home comparison since that’s a staple around here. Cheers, Maggie
The taco she posted as a comparison had no meat in it. That’s like saying you should go ahead and have a celery stick instead because it’s better for you. At 170 calories, one of these tacos for lunch is better than literally any other option I have available to me. Not even my snack sized granola bar is close to that low cal and it doesn’t fill me up near as much. I’m going to straight up say that eating one of these for lunch per day will help you lose weight! Not bad at all. Not sure what they author was smoking, but I’m willing to bet once she’s done she’ll be headed to Taco Bell with the munchies…
Also, I would like to add that the recent study showing calories from fat take more work for your body to break down and actually cause your body to burn more calories shows that perhaps even with higher calories then the “healthy” at home choice, the Doritos Locos Taco might actually be heathier and more beneficial to those seeking weight loss! How about them apples?
To Really?,
The “she” you refer to is me. People – myself included – seemed to be really curious as to how many calories there are in this taco, and I wrote this to answer that question. My initial guess – along with many others – is that the calorie count would be huge. Obviously it is not.
I’m leaving your responses up since they don’t seem like spam, but your responses confuse me, and I don’t know how I offended your sensibilities. If you had used a real email address, I would have contacted you directly so we could have a discussion. As it is, please know that I would never presume to tell anyone what or how to eat; that is a personal decision.
I think you mean milligrams for cholesterol. Nonetheless, thanks for the information!
Good call, Neal, thank you for catching that error! I’ll fix that now.
Cheers,
Maggie
I am a health-food enthusiast, age 53, and a longtime fan of Taco Bell. Cheap, delicious and fast, and not as bad as most of the other fast-food choices, especially if you skip the sour cream.
I came here looking for the nutritional info on the Loco Supreme, as I just scarfed two at lunch, with the sour cream included, along with hot sauce. I’m fine with the 400 calories, and I’m feeling full and satisfied. It’s way too much fat and salt for a regular thing, but you need to cheat and treat yourself once in awhile, or the terrorists have won. Don’t let the terrorists win!
Dan, your comment made me laugh. I’m with you – all for moderation and not letting the terrorists win!
Thanks for commenting; I love your point of view.
Cheers,
Maggie
Thanks for the info. I scarfed 2 Supreme’s down at lunch and I must say they are disgustingly delicious. Thanks for the info. However, I would like to point out that in your comparison to the home made taco is a little skewed as you aren’t comparing apples to apples. The biggest contributor that is missing is the lettuce, tomatoes and ground beef (which I would guestimate takes up approximately 1/3 of tacos caloric makeup). And if you were comparing it to a supreme taco you would also need to add in the sour cream. It was a great article but it seems misleading towards the end.
Alan, thank you for letting me know my initial comparison of the Doritos Locos taco to a home made taco seemed misleading. I did an edit to try and make clear I was interested in the comparison to something similar that I make at home. I think it is better now – I do appreciate the thoughtful input. Cheers!
This was probably the most comprehensive explanation of weight loss that I have ever read.Everyone’s calorie needs are different, and if they’re not attempting to alter their eating habits, a healthy person tends to eat just the amount of calories they need for the work they put out.
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