It’s no secret that fast food joints aren’t the best place to go in search of low sodium food. Packaged and prepared foods make up the majority of sodium in the American diet, and sodium levels tend to be especially high when it comes to meat.
So if you’re a fan of KFC – which we all know dishes out that delicious, crispy fried chicken – you may have a hard time finding a low-sodium meal.
What can you eat on the KFC menu if you’re trying to keep your sodium intake low? Here’s the complete list of food and drinks you can grab on the go.
Low sodium food choices on the KFC menu
As far as what’s considered to be a low sodium food, the FDA defines this nutritional guideline as 140 mg or below per serving. So what menu items at KFC fall under that threshold?
Unfortunately any main meal at KFC is too high in sodium to make this list, so things like fried chicken drumsticks, chicken sandwiches, and chicken pot pie are no-gos. For context, one piece of fried chicken breast contains over 1,100 mg of sodium, and even the grilled chicken contains more than half that amount.
But it’s not all bad news – there are a few small things you can order from the KFC menu that will qualify as a low sodium snack. If you’re after the fried chicken, one Kentucky Fried Nugget will do the trick (but just one). Otherwise, you’ve got some choices of sides, like corn on the cob and sweet kernel corn, which are both sodium-free, as well as some low-sodium side salads. And if you’re craving something sweet, the Apple Turnover and Apple Pie Poppers both make the cut.
We’ve gathered every food item on the menu below that falls at or under 140 mg per serving, and have indicated how much that serving size represents. Here’s everything on the current menu that’s considered a low sodium choice.
| Food Items | Sodium Amount | Serving Size |
| Kentucky Fried Nuggets | 140 mg | 1 Nugget |
| Corn on the Cob | 0 mg | 1 Side Portion |
| Sweet Kernel Corn | 0 mg | 1 Side Portion |
| House Side Salad(Does not include dressing or croutons) | 10 mg | 1 Side Portion |
| Caesar Side Salad(Does not include dressing or croutons) | 90 mg | 1 Side Portion |
| Parmesan Garlic Croutons | 135 mg | 1 Side Portion |
| Musselman’s Applesauce | 0 mg | 1 Kids Meal Portion |
| Apple Turnover | 140 mg | 1 Piece |
| Apple Pie Poppers* | 55 mg | 1 Piece |
| Dips + Sauces | ||
| Honey Sauce Packet | 0 mg | 1 Packet |
| Strawberry Jam Packet | 0 mg | 1 Packet |
| Grape Jelly Packet | 10 mg | 1 Packet |
| Lemon Juice Packet | 20 mg | 1 Packet |
| Colonel’s Buttery Spread | 35 mg | 1 Packet |
| Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce Cup | 120 mg | 1 Cup |
KFC beverages that are low in sodium
KFC mainly offers an array of sodas, juices, and lemonades on their long list of available beverages – but the good news is that many of those drinks are naturally fairly low in sodium.
You can enjoy almost any soda at KFC in a 12-ounce size, and in many cases you can go up to a 16-ounce or 20-ounce cup while staying below that 140 mg limit.
The best choices in terms of sodium will be the Capri Sun (which is listed on the Kids Meal Menu), followed by Pepsi or Wild Cherry Pepsi; all of these beverages contain 30 mg or less of sodium.
If you need to quench your thirst with a low-sodium beverage at KFC, below are the drink options on the menu that keep the sodium levels at a lower amount. Cheers!
| Drink Items | Sodium Amount | Serving Size |
| Capri Sun | 25 mg | 6 oz |
| Pepsi | 30 mg | 12 oz |
| Wild Cherry Pepsi | 30 mg | 12 oz |
| Diet Wild Cherry Pepsi | 35 mg | 12 oz |
| Mazanita Sol | 35 mg | 12 oz |
| Pepsi Zero Sugar | 35 mg | 12 oz |
| Starry | 35 mg | 12 oz |
| Tropicana Fruit Punch | 35 mg | 12 oz |
| Tropicana Twister Orange | 35 mg | 12 oz |
| Lipton Brisk Lemon Tea | 40 mg | 12 oz |
| Lipton Brisk Raspberry Tea | 45 mg | 12 oz |
| Lipton Brisk Unsweetened No Lemon Iced Tea | 45 mg | 12 oz |
| Lipton Brisk Sweet Iced Tea | 45 mg | 12 oz |
| Mug Root Beer | 45 mg | 12 oz |
| Sobe Lifewater Yumberry Pomegranate | 45 mg | 12 oz |
| Dr. Pepper | 45 mg | 12 oz |
| 7UP | 50 mg | 12 oz |
| Code Red Mountain Dew | 50 mg | 12 oz |
| Mountain Dew | 50 mg | 12 oz |
| Diet Mountain Dew | 55 mg | 12 oz |
| Diet Pepsi | 55 mg | 12 oz |
| Diet Dr. Pepper | 70 mg | 12 oz |
| Miranda Strawberry | 70 mg | 12 oz |
| Lipton Brisk No Calorie Peach Iced Tea | 105 mg | 12 oz |
| Milk (1%) | 105 mg | 7 oz |
| Tropicana Light Lemonade | 140 mg | 12 oz |
The lowest-sodium choice in terms of chicken items at KFC will be grilled chicken, rather than fried. The Kentucky Grilled Chicken contains 180 mg of sodium for a whole wing, 220 mg of sodium for a drumstick, 420 mg of sodium for a thigh, and 710 mg of sodium for a breast. Aside from the grilled chicken options, the Kentucky Fried Nuggets contain 140 mg of sodium per nugget.
For the Original Recipe Fried Chicken at KFC, the sodium amount for each individual piece is as follows: 380 mg for a fried chicken wing, 430 mg for a fried chicken drumstick, 910 mg for a fried chicken thigh, and 1,190 mg for a fried chicken breast.
Yes, KFC does offer two side items that are completely free of sodium: the Sweet Kernel Corn and Corn on the Cob. Both of these dishes contain 0 mg of sodium for the individual side portion, and just 10 mg and 15 mg of sodium (respectively) for the family size portion.
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