Trying to understand proper weight/calories of a sweet potato

gr3e3n

do you weigh it when its cooked and without the skin or before its cooked.

shadowfax_c11

All depends. I always weigh them raw. If I am not using the skin I peel them then weigh them. If I bake them I always eat the skin so I weigh them raw skin on. If you want to bake one and not eat the skin just weigh it raw bake and eat and weigh what is left and subtract that from the pre-cook weight.

diannethegeek

gr3e3n wrote: »

do you weigh it when its cooked and without the skin or before its cooked.

Weigh the parts you eat, so if you don't eat the skin then don't include it. Whether you weigh before or after cooking is mostly about which entry you're using to log it. I always weigh mine raw and use the "official" sweet potato - raw entry, but you can weigh it after cooking as long as you use an entry that matches up to your cooking method (baked, roasted, grilled, etc).

lemurcat12

There are different entries depending on when you weigh it. Since the final weight will depend on how long you cook it, I think it's more reliable to weigh raw (and use the "sweet potato, raw" entry, without the asterisk). But if for some reason it's easier to weigh cooked, just get the entry (no asterisk) that specifies cooked and the closed cooking method: for example, "sweet potato, cooked, baked, with skin."

gr3e3n

im still confused since the water weight lost during the cooking makes a 7oz sweet potato into half that. so lets say its 4oz. is that 100 calories or the original weight of 175 before it was cooked

lemurcat12

That's why you have to pick an entry based on the state it is in when you weigh it.

If you weigh it raw (ideal), use the raw entry. It will have fewer calories per gram (or oz if you must).

If you weigh it after cooking, use the cooked entry (based on how it was cooked). It will have more calories per gram/oz.

What is important with any food is to always find an entry (ideally the no asterisk ones) that refers to the state the food is in when you weigh it. If you weigh a cooked food and use the raw entry you will be understating calories.

shadow2soul

gr3e3n wrote: »

im still confused since the water weight lost during the cooking makes a 7oz sweet potato into half that. so lets say its 4oz. is that 100 calories or the original weight of 175 before it was cooked

example:

raw/unprepared = 86 cal per 100g

baked with skin = 90 cal per 100g


Your over thinking this.


edit: Oh and those are screenshots from the USDA database.

gr3e3n

i was overthinking it. ty