Also known as Youtiao, Yu Char Kway, 油条, Chinese Cruller, Fried Dough Stick, Cakoi.
You tiao is the long, airy fried dough stick sold in pairs at Singapore hawker centres and kopitiams, eaten with porridge, dipped in kopi, cut into rojak and tau suan, or on its own with a spread of kaya.
192kcal / 1 pair (2 sticks joined)
A standard pair of you tiao is about 192 calories for a 70g serving, or 96 calories per stick, with around 10g of fat. The dough itself is about 120 of those calories. The rest is oil absorbed during frying, which is why a piece that weighs almost nothing carries a real number.
Nutrition facts
Per 1 pair (2 sticks joined) (70g)
Amount
Per 100g
Calories
192 kcal
274 kcal
Protein
4 g
6 g
Carbs
22 g
31 g
Fat
10 g
14 g
Where the calories come from
Wheat flour dough55g
120 kcal
Oil absorbed in frying8g
70 kcal
Sugar and salt in dough2g
5 kcal
The real talk
You tiao is hollow, which is why it feels like eating air. The catch is that the dough puffs up in hot oil and every bubble inside is coated. A pair weighs about 70g and roughly 8g of that is oil, about 70 calories. The flour and leavening give the other 120. So 192 for a pair. That is comparable to a slice of kaya toast with butter at about 185, and less filling.
It is rarely eaten alone, which is where it adds up. Half a pair cut into a bowl of porridge takes a 293 calorie pork porridge to about 390. A pair on the side of tau suan is already in the 293 figure for that bowl. Two pieces in Chinese rojak are about 130 of that plate. The you tiao is never the headline, and it is always there.
The kopitiam version dipped in kopi is the classic breakfast, and the dipping does not change anything. But the version with a spread of kaya and a slab of butter does. A pair with kaya is about 260, and with kaya and butter about 320. The you tiao and kaya from the same kaya toast stall is the heaviest thing on that menu per bite.
How the portions compare
96 kcal
1 stick
192 kcal
1 pair
320 kcal
1 pair with kaya and butter
You Tiao variants, ranked by calories
Variant
Calories
Notes
Half a stick in porridge
48 kcal
1 stick
96 kcal
1 pair, plain
192 kcal
HPB figure
1 pair with kaya
260 kcal
1 pair with kaya and butter
320 kcal
How to eat it lighter
Eat one stick, not the pair. The stall will sell you a single for half the price at many places.
Skip the kaya and butter spread. Plain you tiao is 192, with kaya and butter it is about 320.
If you are adding it to porridge, break in half a stick, not a whole pair. That is 48 calories against 192.
Choose the smaller, thinner you tiao if the stall has two sizes. The jumbo pair at some stalls is close to 250.
Pair it with a kopi o or teh o at around 60 rather than a kopi c at 87 or a Milo at 250.
Common questions
How many calories in one you tiao?
About 96 calories per stick, or 192 for the joined pair that hawkers usually sell. A pair weighs around 70g and about 8g of that is absorbed frying oil.
Is you tiao unhealthy?
It is fried dough, so it is high in fat for its weight, about 10g per pair, with only 4g of protein. One pair is not a problem. The problem is that it turns up inside porridge, rojak and tau suan without being counted.
Is you tiao the same as cakoi?
Yes. Cakoi is the Malay name for the same fried dough stick. In Singapore the Chinese name you tiao or yu char kway is more common at hawker stalls.
How many calories in you tiao with kaya?
About 260 calories for a pair with a spread of kaya, and around 320 with kaya and butter. The kaya adds about 70 and a slab of butter about 60.
Berapa kalori dalam You Tiao?
You Tiao ada kira-kira 192 kalori untuk satu hidangan biasa (70g), dengan 4g protein, 22g karbohidrat dan 10g lemak. Angka ini anggaran untuk hidangan gerai biasa, jadi ia berbeza ikut kedai dan saiz hidangan.
Calorie and macro figures are estimates for a typical hawker centre or kopitiam serving. Actual numbers vary by stall, recipe and portion size. Use them as a guide, not gospel.
Calorie figure based on HPB iDAT via danielfooddiary.com 2015. Macros estimated from the ingredients.