Is Dango Healthy? (3 Tips for Weight Loss)

Dango is a sweet Japanese dessert made of two different types of rice flour. Ranking as one of the most aesthetic Instagram desserts, you are sure to have seen Dango on your feed.

With the brilliant pink, white, and green combination, Dango is a cute and sweet treat that is worth trying. However, you may be wondering, is Dango healthy? 

Compared to other desserts, Dango is not a terrible option, but because it contains a lot of sugar this is not the best food to eat when trying to lose weight. Heavy in carbohydrates and barely making you full, Dango is not the healthiest dessert option. Just because Dango is not the best diet food doesn’t mean you can’t eat Dango when you are trying to lose weight!

In this article, we will be discussing three great tips that will help you understand more about the nutrition behind Dango and how to enjoy this dessert while still losing weight:

Tip 1: Understand the Ingredients in Dango

Tip 2: Understand the Nutrition Behind the Different Type of Dangos

Tip 3: How to Fit Dango into Your Diet

Let’s get started!

Tip 1: Understand the Ingredients in Dango

In this first section, we will cover the different ingredients in Dango and what each of these specific ingredients mean.

When trying to lose weight, learning what goes into the food that you eat can make a huge difference in helping you understand why eating certain foods can hinder weight loss.

Japanese Glutinous Rice Flour 

Used to substitute wheat flour, rice flour is made out of rice starch and sifted to make it thinner. 

Although the name has the word “glutinous” it actually does not contain any gluten, but got its name because of the sticky texture.

Japanese Glutinous Rice Flour is not the healthiest ingredient to eat when you are trying to lose weight because it is very dense with calories and carbohydrates.

This doesn’t mean you should avoid all carbohydrates when you are trying to lose weight, but because carbohydrates are an immediate energy source, they do not keep you full for a long time.

When making a recipe that calls for rice flour, try to reduce the amount that you use to make it a lower calorie dish. 

Tofu

This was a very unexpected ingredient that is used to make a dessert.

Made out of solidified soy milk, tofu retains a bouncy yet firm texture.

Though it looks plain, tofu soaks up all the flavor and is what gives Dango that unique and interesting texture. This ingredient is what separates dango from mochi. 

For every serving of tofu, (100 grams) there is a total of 80 calories, with around 5 grams of fat, 2 grams of carbohydrates, and 8 grams of protein.

Although tofu is not the best source of protein because it is relatively higher in fat, tofu is still an excellent low-calorie food filled with calcium and iron. 

If you consume a meatless diet, using tofu as a replacement is one of the best sources of protein for people who are on a vegan or vegetarian diet. 

Sugar

Sugar is another ingredient used to make Dango and is always something to eat in moderation when you are trying to lose weight.

Sugar adds a lot of extra calories into your meals and carbohydrates into your food so it is important not to consume an abundance of sugar when you are trying to lose weight.

The problem with sugar is that this ingredient often does not make you more full and because it triggers your insulin levels, it can make you even hungrier than before.

We don’t want to suppress our cravings for an extended period of time because this makes our diet unbearable and not sustainable, so don’t completely cut out sugar from your diet. 

Instead, try consuming sugar in moderation and eat less fatty and sugary foods to still enjoy sweet treats for less calories.

Good examples are fruits, low-calorie ice cream, or zero-calorie sodas. 

Another way you can reduce your calories from sugar is to replace your regular sugar with artificial zero-calorie sweetener.

Still consume these in moderation, but replacing regular sugar with sweetener can eliminate a ton of calories from your daily consumption. 

Toppings

Finally, depending on the type of dango, there are several different options of flavored toppings that you can put on the dango.

Depending on the type of topping that you put on dango, this can greatly change up the nutritional information behind the dessert.

Different toppings that dango include are red bean filling, peanut powder, soy sauce, or even coconut. 

Some of these toppings are really high in sugar and carbohydrates and can add a lot of extra calories to this dessert.

In the next section, we will talk about the different type of dangos and the nutritional information behind all these varying versions. 

Tip 2: Understand the Nutrition Behind the Different Type of Dangos

From sweet to savory, this rice dough ball has several different flavors that can drastically change the entire taste of the dango.

We will be covering four common and popular dangos and explain which dango is best for you to eat when you are trying to lose weight. 

Goma Dango

Goma Dango is surrounded by sesame seeds and filled with red bean paste. 

It’s a perfect trio.  The rice flour gives it chewiness, read bean paste sweetness, and sesame seeds a slight crunch.

A similar red bean treat that goes by the name jian dui is also popular in China and is a warm treat best eaten fresh from the stand. 

There are around 100 calories with 5 grams of fat for every Goma Dango ball, 12 grams of carbohydrates, and 1 gram of protein.

This dango ball is not super high in calories and is one of the better dango options to eat. Although it will not make you full, this small hundred-calorie snack can help satisfy a sugar craving.  (3 g s)

Sanshoku Dango

This is probably the dango you are thinking of when you hear the word dango.  Sanshoku Dango, or Hanami Dango, is the three colored simple, yet iconic skewered dango balls. 

I’d totally throw on a fit that matches this aesthetically pleasing combo of pink, white, and green.

For every Hanami skewer (3 balls), there are around 110 calories with 1 gram of fat, 24 grams of carbohydrates, and 2 grams of protein.

The Hanami skewer is one of the best dango options and you can eat this whole dessert for just a little over a hundred calories.

If you are really craving dango, a hanami skewer is easily incorporated into your diet and I would recommend this option if you are craving a sweet treat. (10 g s)

Mitarashi Dango

The classic white dango glazed with sweet soy sauce.  Interestingly, it is named after pure white bubbles of water placed before shrines.

Mitarashi Dango is simple and tasty, showcasing its best qualities with each bite.

Dango may be simple, but it just has this unparalleled texture that is unique to rice.

For every Mitarashi skewer (3 balls), there are around 215 calories with 0 grams of fat, 49 grams of carbohydrates, and 3 grams of protein.

A Mitarashi skewer is very high in sugar, with around 28 grams per serving, and thus is better to consume in moderation. 

Kinako Dango

If you don’t like sticky coatings, kinako dango might be for you. Kinako Dango reminds me of a ball of golden warmth.

It is coated with sweet soy flour giving it a powdery exterior. This is definitely another brilliant form of dango! 

For every Kinako skewer (3 balls), there are around 265 calories with 7 grams of fat, 40 grams of carbohydrates, and 13 grams of protein.

Kinako dango is similar to the other dangos, but is higher in fat and a bit of protein. The Kinako dango is great for an occasional treat, but eating more than one skewer can easily put you at almost 600 calories. 

Overall, Dango tends to be higher in carbohydrates due to their main ingredient being rice flour and added sugar.

Rice flour alone is not sweet, so sugars, glazes, or pastes are added to give it flavor. 

However, this results in more carbohydrates being added to the already existing amount!

This isn’t necessarily bad, but just remember that this seemingly deceptive small snack may be a little more than you think. 

Tip 3: How to Fit Dango into Your Diet

At the end of the day, remember that the only way to lose weight is to be in a calorie deficit or to burn more calories than your Total Daily Energy Expenditure, or TDEE.

That means that eating “healthy” or “clean” food while remaining in a calorie surplus will ultimately lead to weight gain.

The reason why we should avoid unhealthy and junk food is they tend to be higher in calories and often don’t make you extremely full or energized.

You may now be wondering, how do you figure out your TDEE?

This is actually very simple! All you have to do is go onto any credible fitness website, like Bodybuilding.com or NASM, and find their calorie calculator.

By putting in your sex, height, weight, and activity level, this calculator can help you generate an approximate number that is your TDEE. 

Once you know your TDEE, to be in a calorie deficit, aim to eat around 300-500 calories less than your TDEE every single day.

Although you may not see results in the first couple of days, or maybe even the first week, it’s important to trust the process and to stay consistent.

Weigh yourself every single day, at the same exact time to get the most accurate results. 

My favorite way to track how many calories I am eating every day is by using MyFitnessPal, which allows you to easily input your food into a journal and help you calculate how many calories you are eating throughout the day. 

Remember that everyone’s body is unique and the TDEE calculator is simply an estimate.

If you still do not see any results within around two weeks, try lowering your calorie intake by around 100-200 calories and observe the results.

Drink plenty of water throughout the process, and fill your diet with low-calorie options and high protein foods!

Conclusion 

Remember, although nutrition is a huge factor that influences weight loss, it is important to pair this journey with exercise as well. Especially strength training.

Several years of research on the benefits of weight training have shown that individuals that do some sort of consistent resistance training at least 3-5 times a week have shown not only a great amount of weight loss but are also able to keep the weight off! 

The secret to this phenomena is that strength training leads to a build-up of muscle.

Not only does your body recomposition into a more fitting and athletic-looking aesthetic, but having more muscle also increases your resting metabolic rate which essentially means you burn more calories at rest! 

Now that we know the importance of muscle we need to make sure we stay on track with our workouts.

Consistency and longevity are the two key factors when building muscle so there will be some commitment involved.

We understand that not everyone has access to a gym membership or feels comfortable starting off in such an intimidating environment.

Although I would strongly recommend that everyone should get a gym membership, don’t worry we got your back!

You can either go to the gym or build one for yourself. It really just comes down to 3 pieces of equipment that you need to do most workouts.

These three are the workout bench, dumbbells, and gym flooring.

Check out our recommended gear page to see our best picks for these pieces of equipment here. 

https://www.aspirefitnesswalnut.com/home-workout-equipment

If a home gym is not for you then getting a membership somewhere works too. As long as you are starting your muscle-building journey, we’re happy!

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