#3 Meal: calories and sugar by portion and age

Dave's Hot Chicken #3 Meal, a medium-spiced hot chicken tender on white bread and a slider with crinkle-cut fries, Dave's sauce and pickles on white paper, nutrition and calories

Boone’s analysis puts Dave's Hot Chicken #3 Meal at 84% of an adult’s daily calories, 230% of the daily salt limit for a child aged 4 to 6 and 5.5 teaspoons of free sugar.

How many calories are in a Dave's Hot Chicken #3 Meal? It contains 1673 kcal, 84g of fat (8.4g saturated), 22g of sugar and 6.9g of salt.

Build a full meal with our nutrition calculator

Use the Boone meal calculator to build a full meal rather than view this item on its own. Add a main, fries, dips and a drink, then choose your age and sex for a more accurate view of how a #3 Meal fits into a day.

Nutrition information

Nutrition information: Dave's Hot Chicken #3 Meal

Energy	1673 kcal
Fat	84g
of which saturates	8.4g
Carbohydrate	155g
of which sugars	22g
Salt	6.9g
Protein	68g

Nutrition figures are Dave's Hot Chicken UK published data from its April 2026 nutritional guide, per item as sold and excluding substitutions or extras. Boone converts them to the portion and age comparisons on this page.

Dave's Hot Chicken #3 Meal contains 1673 kcal, which is 84% of the 2,000 kcal adult daily reference intake. It provides 84g of total fat, of which 8.4g is saturated, 22g of sugar, 6.9g of salt and 68g of protein.

The saturated fat content of 8.4g represents 42% of the adult daily guideline of 20g.

Dave's Hot Chicken publishes figures both per portion and per 100g, which puts the portion at about 680g and 246 kcal per 100g.

These figures are for the Mild to Reaper heat levels. At Not Hot or Lite Mild, a Dave's Hot Chicken #3 Meal contains 1604 kcal, 76g of fat, 21g of sugar and 6.6g of salt.

Sugar in Dave's Hot Chicken #3 Meal

Dave's Hot Chicken #3 Meal contains 22g of free sugar per standard serving (5.5 teaspoons). Dave's Hot Chicken publishes a total sugar figure of 22g and none of it is naturally occurring. High sugar

The NHS free sugar limit is 30g per day for adults, 24g for children aged 7 to 10, and 19g for children aged 4 to 6. Free sugar excludes the sugars naturally present in milk and whole fruit.

Free sugar by portion: Dave's Hot Chicken #3 Meal

Portion	Adult (female) 30g	Adult (male) 30g	Age 11 to 17 30g	Age 7 to 10 24g	Age 4 to 6 19g
Per portion	22g 73%	22g 73%	22g 73%	22g 92%	22g 116%

Teaspoons: 5.5 tsp

Boone calculates these percentages from Dave's Hot Chicken UK published nutrition data against UK Dietary Reference Values and NHS free sugar and salt limits. Free sugar, salt, calories and saturated fat are limits to stay under. For guidance only.

Salt in Dave's Hot Chicken #3 Meal

Dave's Hot Chicken #3 Meal contains 6.9g of salt per standard serving. High salt

Children have lower salt limits: 3g per day for ages 4 to 6, 5g for ages 7 to 10.

Salt by portion: Dave's Hot Chicken #3 Meal

Portion	Adult (female) 6g	Adult (male) 6g	Age 11 to 17 6g	Age 7 to 10 5g	Age 4 to 6 3g
Per portion	6.9g 115%	6.9g 115%	6.9g 115%	6.9g 138%	6.9g 230%

Calories in Dave's Hot Chicken #3 Meal

Dave's Hot Chicken #3 Meal contains 1673 kcal per standard serving. High calorie share

Daily calorie needs vary by age and sex.

Calories by portion: Dave's Hot Chicken #3 Meal

Portion	Adult (female) 2000 kcal	Adult (male) 2500 kcal	Age 11 to 17 1936 kcal	Age 7 to 10 1553 kcal	Age 4 to 6 1291 kcal
Per portion	1673 kcal 84%	1673 kcal 67%	1673 kcal 86%	1673 kcal 108%	1673 kcal 130%

Saturated fat in Dave's Hot Chicken #3 Meal

Dave's Hot Chicken #3 Meal contains 8.4g of saturated fat per standard serving. Moderate saturated fat

The saturated fat guideline is 20g a day for women and 30g for men, and lower for children.

Saturated fat by portion: Dave's Hot Chicken #3 Meal

Portion	Adult (female) 20g	Adult (male) 30g	Age 11 to 17 20g	Age 7 to 10 18g	Age 4 to 6 16g
Per portion	8.4g 42%	8.4g 28%	8.4g 42%	8.4g 47%	8.4g 52%

Free sugar vs total sugar

Where the sugar comes from: Dave's Hot Chicken #3 Meal

All 22g counts as free sugar. There is no milk or whole fruit in this item, so nothing is deducted. That is 5.5 teaspoons.

NHS daily free sugar limits: 30g for adults and children 11+, 24g age 7 to 10, 19g age 4 to 6.

Ultra-processed food: what is really in it

Processing: Dave's Hot Chicken #3 Meal

Boone cannot classify this item, because Dave's Hot Chicken does not publish an ingredient list for it.

NOVA classification is read from an ingredient list. Without one there is no way to count additives, separate raw ingredients from manufactured ones, or say whether an item is ultra-processed. Boone does not estimate a NOVA group, because a guess presented as a classification would be worse than saying nothing.

Classification is based on published ingredient lists only. If Dave's Hot Chicken publishes one, this section will be updated.

Ingredients

Dave's Hot Chicken does not publish an ingredient list in its nutritional guide

Ingredients: Dave's Hot Chicken #3 Meal

The Dave's Hot Chicken UK nutritional guide gives nutrition figures for a Dave's Hot Chicken #3 Meal but no ingredients, and the chain is under no legal obligation to publish them.

Food made to order in a restaurant counts as non-prepacked under UK food law. The legal requirement is to declare the 14 major allergens, and for large businesses in England to show calories at the point of choice. A full ingredient list is voluntary. Some chains publish one anyway.

Without an ingredient list, no page on this site can tell you how many ingredients are in this item, how many of them are manufactured substances, or whether it is ultra-processed. Boone will not estimate any of it.

Allergen information for this item is published by Dave's Hot Chicken and is shown below. Recipes change, so always check in restaurant before ordering if you have an allergy.

Allergens at a glance

Dave's Hot Chicken #3 Meal contains milk, eggs, soya, wheat, barley, mustard, sesame, celery, sulphites and gluten.

Allergen information: Dave's Hot Chicken #3 Meal

Allergen	Status
Wheat	Contains
Rye	Not declared
Barley	Contains
Oats	Not declared
Sesame	Contains
Soya	Contains
Milk	Contains
Eggs	Contains
Fish	Not declared
Crustaceans	Not declared
Celery	Contains
Mustard	Contains
Molluscs	Not declared
Lupin	Not declared
Peanuts	Not declared
Tree nuts	Not declared
Sulphites	Contains

Contains = declared as an ingredient in the Dave's Hot Chicken UK allergen matrix (July 2026). Not declared = not listed in that matrix, which is not the same as allergen free. Dave's Hot Chicken does not pass on suppliers' may contain warnings, shares all kitchen equipment and fryers, cannot prepare any item separately, and states that none of its dishes are gluten free. It advises anyone who needs food free of an allergen not to order.

Frequently asked questions

How many calories are in a Dave's Hot Chicken #3 Meal?+

Boone calculates that a Dave's Hot Chicken #3 Meal contains 1673 kcal, which is 84% of an adult’s 2,000 kcal daily reference intake and 130% of the daily intake for a child aged 4 to 6.

How much sugar is in a Dave's Hot Chicken #3 Meal?+

A Dave's Hot Chicken #3 Meal contains 22g of sugar, all of which counts as free sugar, or about 5.5 teaspoons. That is 73% of an adult’s 30g daily limit and 116% of the 19g limit for a child aged 4 to 6.

How much saturated fat is in a Dave's Hot Chicken #3 Meal?+

A Dave's Hot Chicken #3 Meal contains 8.4g of saturated fat. Boone calculates this as 42% of the daily guideline for an adult woman and 28% for an adult man, because the guideline differs by sex: 20g and 30g.

How much salt is in a Dave's Hot Chicken #3 Meal?+

A Dave's Hot Chicken #3 Meal contains 6.9g of salt. Boone calculates that as 230% of the daily limit for a child aged 4 to 6 and 115% of an adult’s 6g limit.

Is a Dave's Hot Chicken #3 Meal ultra-processed?+

Dave's Hot Chicken does not include ingredient lists in its UK nutritional guide, and UK law does not require them for food made to order, so Boone cannot assign a NOVA group to this item.

Is a Dave's Hot Chicken #3 Meal classed as less healthy?+

Under the government’s 2018 nutrient profiling model a Dave's Hot Chicken #3 Meal scores 9. The model classes a food scoring 4 or more as less healthy, so this item would be. The 2018 model is published but not yet used for advertising rules. Dave's Hot Chicken does not publish fibre or vegetable content, so Boone estimates both from the item's components.