Do toasted foods have less calories than non-toasted?
autodominio
Posts: 55 Member
Last saturday we were having a BBQ and my sister-in-law asked her hamburger buns toasted well because "really toasted bread has less calories". a few of us made fun of the claim and others supported it. They said that in diets they recommend toasting bread or tortillas to minimize the calories they contain. After I made fun of it as an excuse to overeat because well it has less calories it must be good. I started to think if the argument has any legs to stand.
So a food calorie is defined as "is approximately the amount of energy needed to raise the temperature of one kilogram of water by one degree Celsius" according to wikipedia but I've seen that in many different places as well. And primitive methods of calculating calories was to burn the foods to see how much heat they generated. And that's about all I know about the topic.
So here's the question if you toast something to the point where it almost burns or is heated a lot, is it releasing the energy (calories) it has in the form of heat?
And I'm asking strictly as a technical question. Not interested in following a diet or encouraging anyone to follow a fad.
I just wonder if engineers or chemists out there had anything to add.
So a food calorie is defined as "is approximately the amount of energy needed to raise the temperature of one kilogram of water by one degree Celsius" according to wikipedia but I've seen that in many different places as well. And primitive methods of calculating calories was to burn the foods to see how much heat they generated. And that's about all I know about the topic.
So here's the question if you toast something to the point where it almost burns or is heated a lot, is it releasing the energy (calories) it has in the form of heat?
And I'm asking strictly as a technical question. Not interested in following a diet or encouraging anyone to follow a fad.
I just wonder if engineers or chemists out there had anything to add.
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Replies
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This is complete assumption from my part, but I would expect that a calorimeter measures the pure energy released by the food burning, and not including the energy needed to start the burning process. Assuming the plan is not to ignite the food before eating and then let it burn to charcoal before eating, the process of heating the food would be basically the opposite: adding energy to food, to increase its temperature. Now, whether this triggers some chemical reaction that alters the food consistency and modifies the calories, probably depends on how you heat/cook the food, and the type of food you are heating. In case of hamburger buns, I would bet that unless your sister-in-law eats hers in the form of coal, whether she eats them toasted or not, makes no difference. Now, if she toasts them to the point that half the bun turns black, for sure she is eating less calories, but jsut cutting the bun in half and then eating it woudl have achieved the same goal
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autodominio wrote: »Last saturday we were having a BBQ and my sister-in-law asked her hamburger buns toasted well because "really toasted bread has less calories". a few of us made fun of the claim and others supported it. They said that in diets they recommend toasting bread or tortillas to minimize the calories they contain. After I made fun of it as an excuse to overeat because well it has less calories it must be good. I started to think if the argument has any legs to stand.
So a food calorie is defined as "is approximately the amount of energy needed to raise the temperature of one kilogram of water by one degree Celsius" according to wikipedia but I've seen that in many different places as well. And primitive methods of calculating calories was to burn the foods to see how much heat they generated. And that's about all I know about the topic.
So here's the question if you toast something to the point where it almost burns or is heated a lot, is it releasing the energy (calories) it has in the form of heat?
And I'm asking strictly as a technical question. Not interested in following a diet or encouraging anyone to follow a fad.
I just wonder if engineers or chemists out there had anything to add.
Wat0 -
I chalk this kind of stuff up to "majoring in the minors". Does toasting bread reduce the caloric density of the bread? I have no idea...but if it does I'm going to go out on a limb here given everything else I know about food and nutrition and say that any difference is largely irrelevant and rather minuscule.
Majoring in the minors.0 -
I'd say toasted and non-toasted food has the same caloric content.
I do know that some foods change their nutrient make-up (is that the right term?) when cooked, like cassava.0 -
@aggelikik "unless your sister-in-law eats hers in the form of coal" ha ha this made me chuckle.
and yes @cwolfman13 the difference, if there is any, must be negligible if not we would've heard more about it by now.0 -
I do think Toasted food generally has more flavor (like nuts especially) and therefore you are satisfied with less...calories is highly doubtful to me!0
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I've never heard of a case being made for toast, but there has been some research about how cooling and reheating pasta and rice reduces the glycemic index and increases resistant starch content, thereby lowering the amount of calories absorbed in the gut.
http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-29629761
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/science/science-news/11489675/Simple-rice-cooking-hack-could-reduce-calories-by-60-per-cent.html0 -
Well, it does seem like a strange question. However, I have noticed something about toasted bread. It weighs less in grams than untoasted bread, but that's true with a lot of things once you heat them up. Frozen foods and meat are the same in terms of weighing less after they're cooked. But if you weight the bread before toasting it and then after, the difference is usually several grams, which would mean if I am figuring calories by the gram weight of the bread AFTER toasting, it would have less calories...sometimes up to 10 or 20. Now the difference in weight could just be the moisture burning off, but it's still something I've wondered about...whether or not I should go by the gram weight of the bread before or after toasting when I figure calories. Same goes with meat and some other foods.1
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Sometimes a raisin falls out of my fruit-loaf into the toaster, so it has a few fewer calories.
But I think the case for eating burnt food in a bid to cut calories is clutching at straws. Unless you're eating charcoal, the differences will be small.0 -
I don't know why I even opened up this thread. I sure as heck don't know why I'm commenting in it. That's the most redonkilous thing I've heard in a while.
But sigh. In.0 -
While there may be minutely less material, the calorie count would be hardly affected at all.
This really would be a dumb way to justify eating more calories.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
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Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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While there may be minutely less material, the calorie count would be hardly affected at all.
This really would be a dumb way to justify eating more calories.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
Wait, so if I toast my bread, I can't have 6 tablespoons on my sammich, because it won't "even out"?0 -
Well....maybe they mean the more burnt it is the less you eat because it's just not palatable.0
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Well, it does seem like a strange question. However, I have noticed something about toasted bread. It weighs less in grams than untoasted bread, but that's true with a lot of things once you heat them up. Frozen foods and meat are the same in terms of weighing less after they're cooked. But if you weight the bread before toasting it and then after, the difference is usually several grams, which would mean if I am figuring calories by the gram weight of the bread AFTER toasting, it would have less calories...sometimes up to 10 or 20. Now the difference in weight could just be the moisture burning off, but it's still something I've wondered about...whether or not I should go by the gram weight of the bread before or after toasting when I figure calories. Same goes with meat and some other foods.
The weight reduction is water evaporating off during cooking/toasting. The amount of calorie-containing matter is the same, except for the few crumbs that dropped in the toaster.0 -
PeachyPlum wrote: »Well, it does seem like a strange question. However, I have noticed something about toasted bread. It weighs less in grams than untoasted bread, but that's true with a lot of things once you heat them up. Frozen foods and meat are the same in terms of weighing less after they're cooked. But if you weight the bread before toasting it and then after, the difference is usually several grams, which would mean if I am figuring calories by the gram weight of the bread AFTER toasting, it would have less calories...sometimes up to 10 or 20. Now the difference in weight could just be the moisture burning off, but it's still something I've wondered about...whether or not I should go by the gram weight of the bread before or after toasting when I figure calories. Same goes with meat and some other foods.
The weight reduction is water evaporating off during cooking/toasting. The amount of calorie-containing matter is the same, except for the few crumbs that dropped in the toaster.
Yes, and that means that same piece of bread would add up to fewer calories toasted because it weighs less when measured. Say I don't weigh my bread until after toasting, it could come up to 10 or so calories less (going by the weight) than if I weighed it and ate it untoasted. That's why I always wonder if food should be weighed before or after toasting/cooking. Regardless if it's water or not, the weight changes even if only by a few grams, so when I log it by weight, I would be logging less calories.
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Oh my God, no.
If you weigh it after toasting, you find the correct entry for toasted bread, which accounts for the weight difference. If you weigh it before toasting, you use the correct entry for the untoasted bread. Yes, if you logged a piece of toasted bread as a piece of untoasted bread, your calorie count would be off. That's not because the calorie content magically changes when you heat it; it's because you would be using the wrong entry.0 -
Oh my. This is why so many people have such a problem losing weight. No. You didn't toast out half the calories.0
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Oh my God, no.
If you weigh it after toasting, you find the correct entry for toasted bread, which accounts for the weight difference. If you weigh it before toasting, you use the correct entry for the untoasted bread. Yes, if you logged a piece of toasted bread as a piece of untoasted bread, your calorie count would be off. That's not because the calorie content magically changes when you heat it; it's because you would be using the wrong entry.
Well, for the record. I typically weigh the bread before toasting, but I have weighed it after before just to see the difference. I was basically bringing this up as a general wondering as people have posted questions about this before...in regards to weighing food before or after cooking. I don't really use "toasted" or "untoasted" entries, lol. I usually weigh all my food raw. Still makes one wonder though, not with just bread. Just like the other night, I had some frozen chicken strips. They weighed quite a bit more frozen when I measured them out before baking than they did after I cooked them and put them on my salad. Obviously that was due to water evaporating. I just used the after cooking weight personally, but because I weighed them before cooking, after cooking the weight didn't come up to a full serving. The weight difference was pretty significant.
By the way, I've lost 85 pounds, so I must be doing something right, lol. Not sure what the "oh my god no" comment was for. Toasted bread DOES weigh differently than untoasted, which is why there are different entries in the database as you mentioned. I think you're actually missing the point of what I'm saying to be honest.
ETA...looks like your comment may not have been directed at me like I thought it was. If it wasn't my apologies for getting defensive.
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BURN THE CALORIES!!!
Wat?? Lol0 -
jennifershoo wrote: »BURN THE CALORIES!!!
Wat?? Lol
In fairness, I burned 75%* of the calories out of our bread while making toast for Sunday breakfast over the weekend.
The fire department came because the alarm company dispatched them automatically. It was embarrassing.
*It was really effectively 100% of the calories, because we threw the toast away. So if you toast it real good, you can make bread calorie-free by toasting it.0 -
PeachyPlum wrote: »jennifershoo wrote: »BURN THE CALORIES!!!
Wat?? Lol
In fairness, I burned 75%* of the calories out of our bread while making toast for Sunday breakfast over the weekend.
The fire department came because the alarm company dispatched them automatically. It was embarrassing.
*It was really effectively 100% of the calories, because we threw the toast away. So if you toast it real good, you can make bread calorie-free by toasting it.
Lol.
But yeah, this would fit right in the broscience thread.0 -
Oh my God, no.
If you weigh it after toasting, you find the correct entry for toasted bread, which accounts for the weight difference. If you weigh it before toasting, you use the correct entry for the untoasted bread. Yes, if you logged a piece of toasted bread as a piece of untoasted bread, your calorie count would be off. That's not because the calorie content magically changes when you heat it; it's because you would be using the wrong entry.
Well, for the record. I typically weigh the bread before toasting, but I have weighed it after before just to see the difference. I was basically bringing this up as a general wondering as people have posted questions about this before...in regards to weighing food before or after cooking. I don't really use "toasted" or "untoasted" entries, lol. I usually weigh all my food raw. Still makes one wonder though, not with just bread. Just like the other night, I had some frozen chicken strips. They weighed quite a bit more frozen when I measured them out before baking than they did after I cooked them and put them on my salad. Obviously that was due to water evaporating. I just used the after cooking weight personally, but because I weighed them before cooking, after cooking the weight didn't come up to a full serving. The weight difference was pretty significant.
By the way, I've lost 85 pounds, so I must be doing something right, lol. Not sure what the "oh my god no" comment was for. Toasted bread DOES weigh differently than untoasted, which is why there are different entries in the database as you mentioned. I think you're actually missing the point of what I'm saying to be honest.
ETA...looks like your comment may not have been directed at me like I thought it was. If it wasn't my apologies for getting defensive.
So, are you saying that water has calories? I'm not quite following the logic here of how if a food weighs less because of evaporation that means it has fewer calories than it did before the water evaporated...
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autodominio wrote: »
So here's the question if you toast something to the point where it almost burns or is heated a lot, is it releasing the energy (calories) it has in the form of heat?
And I'm asking strictly as a technical question. Not interested in following a diet or encouraging anyone to follow a fad.
I just wonder if engineers or chemists out there had anything to add.
Technically yes, but the practical change is not significant. Toasting does two things, drive out some of the water content in the bread (which will have no net effect on your calories) and modify some of the starches and proteins in the bread yielding new compounds. Since the modified bread is mostly on the heated surface, and the interior of the bread is chemically the same (less some water), the net change in calories would be very slight.
Let's assume a particular bun has 160 calories, and toasting reduces that by 5% (let's be very generous here). That bun still has 152 calories. Pair that with 1/4 lb ground beef patty (4 oz, raw weight) @ 319 calories. With no other condiments, you're looking at a burger that is 471 calories vs 479 calories. That's about a 1.7% total reduction. Once you add the rest of the meal in, you're quickly < 1%.
There's a lot of good reasons to toast your buns: flavor, texture, holds up better juices in the meat. If I'm that worried about calories, grab some big lettuce slices and make it a wrap.
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Oh my God, no.
If you weigh it after toasting, you find the correct entry for toasted bread, which accounts for the weight difference. If you weigh it before toasting, you use the correct entry for the untoasted bread. Yes, if you logged a piece of toasted bread as a piece of untoasted bread, your calorie count would be off. That's not because the calorie content magically changes when you heat it; it's because you would be using the wrong entry.
Well, for the record. I typically weigh the bread before toasting, but I have weighed it after before just to see the difference. I was basically bringing this up as a general wondering as people have posted questions about this before...in regards to weighing food before or after cooking. I don't really use "toasted" or "untoasted" entries, lol. I usually weigh all my food raw. Still makes one wonder though, not with just bread. Just like the other night, I had some frozen chicken strips. They weighed quite a bit more frozen when I measured them out before baking than they did after I cooked them and put them on my salad. Obviously that was due to water evaporating. I just used the after cooking weight personally, but because I weighed them before cooking, after cooking the weight didn't come up to a full serving. The weight difference was pretty significant.
By the way, I've lost 85 pounds, so I must be doing something right, lol. Not sure what the "oh my god no" comment was for. Toasted bread DOES weigh differently than untoasted, which is why there are different entries in the database as you mentioned. I think you're actually missing the point of what I'm saying to be honest.
ETA...looks like your comment may not have been directed at me like I thought it was. If it wasn't my apologies for getting defensive.
So, are you saying that water has calories? I'm not quite following the logic here of how if a food weighs less because of evaporation that means it has fewer calories than it did before the water evaporated...
No that's not what I'm saying, lol...nevermind.
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If you burn your toast, then scrape off the burnt bits, you'll save.... um.... 4 calories.
So burnt toast totally has less calories.
If you spread butter on regular toast, some crumbs will stick to the knife, and you'll lose .0034 calories.
TRUFAX.
I did NOT pull these numbers out of my posterior.0 -
Why are there so many negative responces? It's just a fun science question.
Charred food would result in fewer calories. That stands to reason just based on how calories are determined. The difference in typical cooking would be trivial. If you have burnt the food to the point where it is half ash, then it should have about half the calories, but then it isnt really food at that point. For a standard piece of toast we are talking about a rounding error.
As the op said, this is pointless for some kind of crazy diet. The calorie difference is negligible. Plus, heavily charred foods have potentially negative health consequences.0 -
Thanks @bpetrosky and @z1ng for your input. You guys understood the question.
It is merely a science question. I'm not one on a high horse to look down on someone who has a seemingly bogus argument and blatantly deny it without trying with an open mind to see if the argument holds any merit.
There's of course the psychological side to those believes. They seem to carry a little bit of a placebo effect. My sister-in-law does not have a weight problem. And we all know people who think doing something we consider crazy is having a positive effect on their effort and because they believe it they can carry on and succeed perhaps better than those of us who 'know better'. Unless they are flat out unhealthy, I don't condone those practices.0 -
Less water.0
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The difference would be so minimal that it isn't even worth worrying about.0
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When bread, or anything else for that matter, is toasted water is removed so of course it will weigh less. Whether that has any significant difference in the calorie content is debatable.0
This discussion has been closed.
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