Sweet Potato Cooked vs. Raw

hopingforhealthy

So, I've taken to making sweet potato fries, I use an olive oil spray and straight sweet potato chopped in fry shapes.

I weigh it out beforehand to be 100 grams, but by the time it gets cooked it weighs 30-40 grams.

The nutrition content for 100 grams of sweet potatoes is 90 calories, but when I type in 40 grams cooked it comes out to 45 calories.

Is the latter correct? Or is it just water lost, and the nutritional content remains 90 calories?

Thanks, it's been driving me nutty!

Grokette

You should find another fat (oil) to cook your sweet potato fries. Olive oil is not a good cooking oil because it does not have a high smoke point and you cause it to oxidize when you cook with it at higher heat.

Grokette

So, I've taken to making sweet potato fries, I use an olive oil spray and straight sweet potato chopped in fry shapes.

I weigh it out beforehand to be 100 grams, but by the time it gets cooked it weighs 30-40 grams.

The nutrition content for 100 grams of sweet potatoes is 90 calories, but when I type in 40 grams cooked it comes out to 45 calories.

Is the latter correct? Or is it just water lost, and the nutritional content remains 90 calories?

Thanks, it's been driving me nutty!

After cooking sweet potatoes have a higher sugar (starch) level. I would go with the cooked calorie count.

hopingforhealthy

The oil isn't an issue. It's a spray so it doesn't stick, but I don't want the calories or fat of actual oil.

I'm not really concerned with the starches, just the calories, and it's a huge difference cooked versus raw. I don't want to deceive myself into thinking i'm fine when i'm really eating 100 extra calories.

kr3851

I use pre-made sweet potato fries so use the calorie count provided on the packet. If I was making my own, I would weigh the raw product and then use the entry for sweet potato in the database. I'd think the first one you weighed out would be more correct as most produce is in the database in it's raw state (unless the entry states cooked).

Grokette

The oil isn't an issue. It's a spray so it doesn't stick, but I don't want the calories or fat of actual oil.

I'm not really concerned with the starches, just the calories, and it's a huge difference cooked versus raw. I don't want to deceive myself into thinking i'm fine when i'm really eating 100 extra calories.

I was only mentioning that the carb count goes up after a sweet potato is cooked, therefore calories will go up also.

And I was mentioning the olive oil because when your cooking with (even the spray) it is oxidizing which causes inflammation.

My apologies for trying to help you go the healthier route when you are only concerned with calories.

Go with the higher calorie count..............

Whether we are talking about plants or meat, eating cooked food provides more calories than eating the same food raw. And that means that the calorie counts we’ve grown so used to consulting are routinely wrong.

rockerbabyy

i always measure raw and go with that.