Ever wonder how your favorite foods stack up against each other in terms of nutrition?
We compared the nutritional contents of
mozzarella cheese
versus
chicken leg
(100g each)
below using 2020 USDA and NIH data[1].
For a quick recap of significant nutrients and differences in mozzarella cheese and chicken leg:
Both mozzarella cheese and chicken leg are high in calories. Mozzarella cheese has 49% more calories than chicken leg - mozzarella cheese has 318 calories per 100 grams and chicken leg has 214 calories.
For macronutrient ratios, mozzarella cheese is lighter in protein and similar to chicken leg for carbs and fat. Mozzarella cheese has a macronutrient ratio of 27:3:70 and for chicken leg, 31:0:69 for protein, carbohydrates and fat from calories.
Macro Ratios from Calories:
| Mozzarella Cheese | Chicken Leg | |
|---|---|---|
| Protein | 27% | 31% |
| Carbohydrates | 3% | ~ |
| Fat | 70% | 69% |
| Alcohol | ~ | ~ |
Both mozzarella cheese and chicken leg are low in carbohydrates - mozzarella cheese has 2.5g of total carbs per 100 grams and chicken leg has 0.17g of carbohydrates.
Chicken leg has less sugar than mozzarella cheese - mozzarella cheese has 1g of sugar per 100 grams and chicken leg does not contain significant amounts.
Both mozzarella cheese and chicken leg are high in protein. Mozzarella cheese has 32% more protein than chicken leg - mozzarella cheese has 21.6g of protein per 100 grams and chicken leg has 16.4g of protein.
Mozzarella cheese is high in saturated fat and chicken leg has 72% less saturated fat than mozzarella cheese - mozzarella cheese has 15.6g of saturated fat per 100 grams and chicken leg has 4.4g of saturated fat.
Both chicken leg and mozzarella cheese are low in trans fat - chicken leg has 0.06g of trans fat per 100 grams and mozzarella cheese does not contain significant amounts.
Mozzarella cheese and chicken leg contain similar amounts of cholesterol - mozzarella cheese has 89mg of cholesterol per 100 grams and chicken leg has 93mg of cholesterol.
Chicken leg and mozzarella cheese contain similar amounts of Vitamin C - chicken leg has 0.2mg of Vitamin C per 100 grams and mozzarella cheese does not contain significant amounts.
Mozzarella cheese is an excellent source of Vitamin A and it has 604% more Vitamin A than chicken leg - mozzarella cheese has 197ug of Vitamin A per 100 grams and chicken leg has 28ug of Vitamin A.
Mozzarella cheese has 800% more Vitamin D than chicken leg - mozzarella cheese has 18iu of Vitamin D per 100 grams and chicken leg has 2iu of Vitamin D.
Mozzarella cheese and chicken leg contain similar amounts of Vitamin E - mozzarella cheese has 0.21mg of Vitamin E per 100 grams and chicken leg has 0.22mg of Vitamin E.
Mozzarella cheese and chicken leg contain similar amounts of Vitamin K - mozzarella cheese has 2.5ug of Vitamin K per 100 grams and chicken leg has 2.3ug of Vitamin K.
Chicken leg has more thiamin, niacin, pantothenic acid and Vitamin B6. Both mozzarella cheese and chicken leg contain significant amounts of riboflavin, folate and Vitamin B12.
| Mozzarella Cheese | Chicken Leg | |
|---|---|---|
| Thiamin | 0.016 MG | 0.073 MG |
| Riboflavin | 0.27 MG | 0.141 MG |
| Niacin | 0.094 MG | 4.733 MG |
| Pantothenic acid | 0.071 MG | 0.994 MG |
| Vitamin B6 | 0.062 MG | 0.318 MG |
| Folate | 8 UG | 4 UG |
| Vitamin B12 | 0.73 UG | 0.56 UG |
Mozzarella cheese is an excellent source of calcium and it has 62 times more calcium than chicken leg - mozzarella cheese has 575mg of calcium per 100 grams and chicken leg has 9mg of calcium.
Chicken leg has 245% more iron than mozzarella cheese - mozzarella cheese has 0.2mg of iron per 100 grams and chicken leg has 0.69mg of iron.
Chicken leg is a great source of potassium and it has 171% more potassium than mozzarella cheese - mozzarella cheese has 75mg of potassium per 100 grams and chicken leg has 203mg of potassium.
Carotenoids are micronutrients commonly found in plants and some animal products. An example is beta-carotene, the notable carotenoid which is a popular source of Vitamin A.[4][5]
For specific types of carotenoids, mozzarella cheese has more beta-carotene than chicken leg per 100 grams, however, chicken leg contains more lutein + zeaxanthin than mozzarella cheese per 100 grams.
| Mozzarella Cheese | Chicken Leg | |
|---|---|---|
| beta-carotene | 63 UG | ~ |
| lutein + zeaxanthin | ~ | 91 UG |
For omega-3 fatty acids, chicken leg has more DPA than mozzarella cheese per 100 grams. Both mozzarella cheese and chicken leg contain significant amounts of alpha linoleic acid (ALA).
| Mozzarella Cheese | Chicken Leg | |
|---|---|---|
| alpha linoleic acid | 0.212 G | 0.155 G |
| DHA | ~ | 0.01 G |
| EPA | ~ | 0.004 G |
| DPA | ~ | 0.012 G |
| Total | 0.212 G | 0.181 G |
Comparing omega-6 fatty acids, chicken leg has more linoleic acid than mozzarella cheese per 100 grams.
| Mozzarella Cheese | Chicken Leg | |
|---|---|---|
| linoleic acid | 0.566 G | 2.987 G |
| other omega 6 | ~ | 0.016 G |
| Total | 0.566 G | 3.003 G |
The comparison below is by common portions, e.g. cups, packages. You can also see a more concrete comparison by weight at equal weight (by grams) comparison.
Note: The specific food items compared are: Mozzarella Cheese (Cheese, mozzarella, whole milk, low moisture) and Chicken Leg (Chicken, broilers or fryers, leg, meat and skin, raw) .
Mozzarella Cheese g
()
|
Daily Values (%) |
Chicken Leg g
()
|
|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| KCAL % |
|
5% | calories | 5% |
|
KCAL % | |
| G % |
|
5% | carbohydrates | 5% |
|
G % | |
| G % |
|
5% | dietary fiber | 5% |
|
G % | |
| G | 5% | sugar | 5% | G | |||
| G % |
|
5% | total fat | 5% |
|
G % | |
| G % |
|
5% | saturated fat | 5% |
|
G % | |
| G | 5% | monounsaturated fat | 5% | G | |||
| G | 5% | polyunsaturated fat | 5% | G | |||
| G | 5% | trans fat | 5% | G | |||
| MG | 5% | cholesterol | 5% | MG | |||
| MG % |
|
5% | sodium | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| 5% | Vitamins and Minerals | 5% | |||||
| UG % |
|
5% | Vitamin A | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | Vitamin C | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| IU % |
|
5% | Vitamin D | 5% |
|
IU % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | calcium | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | iron | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | magnesium | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | potassium | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | thiamin (Vit B1) | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | riboflavin (Vit B2) | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | niacin (Vit B3) | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | Vitamin B6 | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | pantothenic acid (Vit B5) | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | folate (Vit B9) | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | Vitamin B12 | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | Vitamin E | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | Vitamin K | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| G % |
|
5% | protein | 5% |
|
G % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | biotin (Vit B7) | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | choline | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | chlorine | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | chromium | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | copper | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | fluoride | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | iodine | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | manganese | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | molybdenum | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | phosphorus | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | selenium | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | zinc | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| G | 5% | Water | 5% | G | |||
| G | 5% | Starch | 5% | G | |||
| G | 5% | Alcohol | 5% | G | |||