How do you calculate servings?

hmhill17

When I create a recipe, I usually base the serving size on the protein. Generally I call 4oz a serving, maybe a little more for chicken breast. Then if it's something like pot roast where it's all dumped in the pot, I don't put the potatoes/carrots/onions in the recipe, I weigh them separately and put them in as boiled. Seemed like the best way to make sure I'm logging properly. Can anyone see a problem with doing it that way?

LyndaBSS

I would probably do something similar. I think you should be good.

Luke_rabbit

I'm a little confused. I base the number of servings on how many servings I will split it into or how many individual servings it makes. If I just split the meal in half, it is two servings. If I put 2 away for later and we eat two, it is 4. If it makes, say, 15 pancakes, than I say 15 and then say I had 3 servings.

OldHobo

I take a different approach. Most of my recipes are named, "WhateverItIs, per ounce." Then I weigh the finished dish, subtracting the tare weight, and set the servings to equal net weight in ounces. This way I can eat as much or as little as I eat and still log it accurately.

deannalfisher

why don't you use the potatoes etc in the recipe? if yo uare the only one eating - then the differences in amount of potatoes or carrots (for example) per serving would balance out in the end

hmhill17

deannalfisher wrote: »

why don't you use the potatoes etc in the recipe? if yo uare the only one eating - then the differences in amount of potatoes or carrots (for example) per serving would balance out in the end

I'm not usually the only one eating. When it's something only I will eat, then yes I put everything in the recipe.

BarbaraHelen2013

OldHobo wrote: »

I take a different approach. Most of my recipes are named, "WhateverItIs, per ounce." Then I weigh the finished dish, subtracting the tare weight, and set the servings to equal net weight in ounces. This way I can eat as much or as little as I eat and still log it accurately.

This. Except I use grams. Everything gets weighed as it goes into the recipe and logged in the recipe builder as I go along. Final cooked product is weighed. I then edit that number - let’s say it’s 952g - as if it’s the number of servings.

So when I eat a portion I weigh what I’m eating and log however many grams - say 95g as 95 servings.

I format the recipe name as ‘Food 1g=1serving’ to remind me its how I created it.

paperpudding

I do a mixture of both.

I have saved recipes where total is weighed and servings were worked out like that - eg whole thing weighs 2500 gms, so I say it made 25 servings and call it Vegetable soup 100g serves - and then weigh my portion and log it as how ever many serves

this is good for things like soup that I might then have leftovers later or take to work in small thermos or suchlike and my amount is not always the same

Other things like spaghetti bolognaise I know from expereience it makes 3 serves -so I just weighed total once, divided by 3 to get 1 serve - and then just log mine as 1 serve each time thereafter without weighing it.

SERmom3

OldHobo wrote: »

I take a different approach. Most of my recipes are named, "WhateverItIs, per ounce." Then I weigh the finished dish, subtracting the tare weight, and set the servings to equal net weight in ounces. This way I can eat as much or as little as I eat and still log it accurately.

This is what I do. I weigh the entire dish and make the serving size 1 oz. So if I scoop 6oz onto my plate I will have 6 servings.

A few things that help:
1 - As OldHobo and BarbaraHelen2013 said, add your serving size to the name of the recipe. That way it’s immediately available.
2 - Know the weight of your cooking dishes in advance. That way you can throw the entire dish on the scale and subtract the weight of the dish itself. I have a paper taped inside one of my cabinets with the weight of my frequently used bowls and trays.
3 - If you’re like me, every time I make a dish it’s a little different. To be completely accurate you should adjust the recipe each time, but if that’s too time consuming you should at least review it on occasion to make sure you’re not too far off on cals.

lemurcat2

hmhill17 wrote: »

When I create a recipe, I usually base the serving size on the protein. Generally I call 4oz a serving, maybe a little more for chicken breast. Then if it's something like pot roast where it's all dumped in the pot, I don't put the potatoes/carrots/onions in the recipe, I weigh them separately and put them in as boiled. Seemed like the best way to make sure I'm logging properly. Can anyone see a problem with doing it that way?

It seems confusing, and like it wouldn't necessarily be accurate, depending on what it is.

For me, if it's something like meat alone, I don't do recipes, I log the amount of meal plus any added fat or other caloric additions.

If it's a meal of inseparable ingredients, I create a recipe, but include all in the recipe. But if I do, say, a lamb stew, I don't avoid any portions of it -- like the veg or potatoes -- so perhaps that's the disconnect. If you are basically eating just the pot roast and not any other stuff in the pot, I'd ignore recipes and log what you are choosing to eat.

BelleRequin

I too weigh the whole recipe and then portion out. I’ve got ten 291g servings of bison veggie soup in my freezer. When I make buns or pretzels, the weight of the raw dough is the same for every one.

kshama2001

BarbaraHelen2013 wrote: »

OldHobo wrote: »

I take a different approach. Most of my recipes are named, "WhateverItIs, per ounce." Then I weigh the finished dish, subtracting the tare weight, and set the servings to equal net weight in ounces. This way I can eat as much or as little as I eat and still log it accurately.

This. Except I use grams. Everything gets weighed as it goes into the recipe and logged in the recipe builder as I go along. Final cooked product is weighed. I then edit that number - let’s say it’s 952g - as if it’s the number of servings.

So when I eat a portion I weigh what I’m eating and log however many grams - say 95g as 95 servings.

I format the recipe name as ‘Food 1g=1serving’ to remind me its how I created it.

Yes, this is how I do it as well. I learned that from the forums and find it more convenient than traditional "4 servings" (or whatever) because except for single serve foods like muffins, my OH and I never eat traditional serving sizes of meals I cook.

And I tend to have bigger serving sizes for dinner than for lunch. So it's just easier to use the actual grams rather than having to do fractions of serving sizes.