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Checked July 2026Chain guide

Low-FODMAP at Panda Express

This is a tough stop, and worth being honest about: wheat-based soy sauce, garlic, and onion are in almost every sauce. Steamed rice plus a grilled protein with the sauce on the side is the safest plate you can build — and this is exactly the menu to scan before you commit.

You’re allowed to ask questions at a counter. A short, specific request — “is there onion or garlic in that?” — is normal, reasonable, and needs no medical backstory. The scripts below give you the exact words.
Pocket-sized: order, ask-for, and skip on one page.

Panda Express order card

phasediet.com/eating-out/panda-express

✓ Order

  • Steamed white rice

~ Ask for a change

  • Rice vs fried rice / chow mein
  • The entrée

✗ Skip

  • Chow mein
  • Fried rice
  • Orange chicken, Beijing beef and other battered dishes
  • String bean chicken and mushroom chicken

Say this

  • “Steamed white rice, and can I get the grilled teriyaki chicken with the sauce on the side?”
  • “Which dishes are cooked without garlic and onion?”

Checked July 2026 — menus and recipes change, so confirm with staff. From phasediet.com/eating-out/panda-express

What to order

These are the dependable low-FODMAP picks — and why each one is a safe bet.

Steamed white rice

Plain rice is the one dependable low-FODMAP base here.

What to ask the kitchen to change

These can work — with one question or one small adjustment. Here’s exactly what to ask.

Rice vs fried rice / chow mein

Get steamed white rice — fried rice has onion and soy sauce, and chow mein is wheat noodles with onion and celery.

The entrée

Nearly every entrée sauce has garlic, onion, and wheat-based soy sauce. Grilled teriyaki chicken with the sauce on the side is the least-bad; ask what's cooked plain, without the sauce.

What to skip

Not forever — most of these come back during reintroduction. During elimination, they’re the reliable triggers to leave off.

Chow mein

Wheat noodles, onion, and celery.

Fried rice

Onion and soy sauce.

Orange chicken, Beijing beef and other battered dishes

Wheat breading plus garlic, onion, and HFCS sauces.

String bean chicken and mushroom chicken

Visible onion and polyols.

The exact words to say

Specific beats vague every time. Most staff won’t know what “low FODMAP” means, but they can absolutely answer “is there onion or garlic in that?”

“Steamed white rice, and can I get the grilled teriyaki chicken with the sauce on the side?”
“Which dishes are cooked without garlic and onion?”

Good to know

  • →Wheat-based soy sauce, garlic, and onion are in almost every sauce — steamed rice plus a grilled protein, sauce on the side, is the safest build.
  • →Fried rice and chow mein are both out; steamed white rice is the safe base.
  • →When in doubt, this is exactly the menu to point Phase at before you order.

More chain guides

Chipotle→Starbucks→McDonald's→Subway→Chick-fil-A→Panera→

Or browse all eating-out guides.

Flared anyway?Sometimes you do everything right and your gut still reacts — that’s IBS being unpredictable, not a personal failure. Here’s why restaurants flare IBS and how to recover.

This guide is for general information only and is not medical advice. Menus, recipes, and kitchen practices change and vary by location, and FODMAP tolerances differ from person to person — always confirm with staff and go by your own experience. New to the diet? Start with our guide to the low-FODMAP diet.