McDonald's
Dodge it: Big Mac
At 492 calories, one Big Mac accounts for a fifth of your daily calorie intake, even without fries and Coke. It's an artery-clogging combo of saturated fat, salt and refined sugar. And it never looks as tasty in reality as it does in the pictures.
Treat yourself: Chicken Salad Deli
Grilled chicken, salad, roll and mayo - it's got a good mix of protein and carbs without too much saturated fat (just 1g). Side-step the Coke as well and your body will thank you later.
Kebab shop
Dodge it: Doner kebab
That rotating elephant leg is dripping with fat and coated with sugar to cover up the poor quality of the meat. Smother it all in sugar-laden chilli sauce and you have a nutrition-free calorie bonanza.
Treat yourself: Chicken shish kebab
Grilled chicken is high in protein and low in fat. Combine it with lots of tomatoes and onions in the salad and you have a genuinely healthy meal (unless you go crazy with the sauces).
Chinese restaurant
Dodge it: Sweet and sour pork balls
Take fatty meat and deep-fry it in more fat, then cover it in a sugary sauce and pour it onto high-GI fried rice. It's a recipe for a massive midriff and narrower arteries.
Treat yourself: Grilled king prawns with garlic and ginger
This meal has about a fifth of the calories of the pork balls, and about a tenth of the saturated fat. Ginger also aids digestion, so you shouldn't feel the strange need for another one an hour later.
Curry house
Dodge it: Korma with naan
Kormas are made with cream and ghee - a clarified butter that is an astonishing 99.9 per cent fat. Add to that a sugar-and fat-filled naan bread and you have a meal that packs a belt-busting 870 calories.
Treat yourself: Tandoori chicken
The dry roasting method of cooking this chicken doesn't add unwanted fat, and extra flavour comes mainly from spices instead of fatty creams.
Pizzeria
Dodge it: Four cheeses pizza
Cheese is packed with fat, so four cheeses will give you... well, you do the maths. A standard eight-inch pizza will serve up a whopping 15g of saturated fat.
Treat yourself: La Reine
The classic toppings of ham, olives and mushrooms will keep the fat to a minimum (less than half the saturated fat of the four cheeses pizza) and give you a reasonably broad range of vitamins and minerals.
Cooking for yourself? Then try some of our easy-to-prepare healthy meals.
