Frozen Meat & Food Scale Question

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Label says "4 oz serving" but is that raw or cooked? Also, ounces is so ambiguous, how do I convert to grams?

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  • EccentricDad
    EccentricDad Posts: 875 Member
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    BUMP!
  • doitforabby
    doitforabby Posts: 137 Member
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    Good question. I don't have an answer, but would love to bump it up again!
  • kmath521
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    all measurements are before being cooked unless specified otherwise.
    1 oz = 28.3495 grams

    If you do not have a digital food scale i would buy one. you should be able to find out that can TARE and measure in OZ or Grams for around $20.
  • DianeG213
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    I always figure the meat after its cooked - because much of the liquid cooks off - but I'm very interested in what others do. As for the conversion - I just google how many ounces in 6 grams for example and I get 0.211644. Also a digital scale should also have a grams setting.
  • TwistedSassette
    TwistedSassette Posts: 8,728 Member
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    If you're talking about the label on the meat packaging itself, and the meat is raw in the package, then the 4oz would be a raw measurement (they can't tell you a cooked weight because that would vary depending on your cooking method - like DianeG213 said, much of the liquid cooks off, and more will cook off if grilling than frying for instance).
  • rockerbabyy
    rockerbabyy Posts: 2,258 Member
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    all measurements are before being cooked unless specified otherwise.
    1 oz = 28.3495 grams

    If you do not have a digital food scale i would buy one. you should be able to find out that can TARE and measure in OZ or Grams for around $20.
    this. if it came frozen, i weigh it frozen. if not then i just weigh it raw and log it as such, making sure to also log any cooking liquids/seasonings/etc
  • DebbieLyn63
    DebbieLyn63 Posts: 2,650 Member
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    I use a postal scale. It has grams and ounces, and tare weight. It is very accurate and conveniently stays on my kitchen counter. Not sure what the difference is between cooked and raw as far as weight goes. It can vary depending on how it is cooked. I usually measure after cooked for dinners I cook for the family, and count that weight. I figure a 3-4 oz serving wont make a huge difference either way.
  • 2hobbit1
    2hobbit1 Posts: 820 Member
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    Depends on the product - just be sure to use the raw vs cooked listing in the food database.

    A good scale will have the option of gms vs oz or if yours doesn't go on line for a converter. just google gm to oz, or oz to gm, or tbs to oz or etc, etc
  • kmath521
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    Here is an example that you can see. Cook your meat in a George Foreman type grill with the drip tray, you see all the liquid and fat that drips off... so your 5oz peice of meat at the beginning comes out to be more like 4oz of meat(+ or - depending on doneness of meat). If you measure it after it has cooked, you are really eating more than you think you are.

    When you pick up fresh meat from a deli or grocery store, they weight the meat on a scale in the back and label it as such.

    Potatoes for instance, 148gram potato after being baked becomes like 110( + or - some).
  • My suggestion is don't eat anything frozen. Its normally packed with preservatives that are very unhealthy. But 1 oz is equal to 28.3495 grams. One is volume, and one is weight. But seriously. Don't eat frozen food if you can help it. Buy fresh. You get so much more out of it. And less of bad stuff.
  • jazee11
    jazee11 Posts: 321
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    I always weigh the serving after cooking. I want to consume the whole 4 oz.
  • kmath521
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    I always weigh the serving after cooking. I want to consume the whole 4 oz.

    simple put. You are weighing your food inaccurately.

    I understand if you don't believe me. However, i think you should believe http://ndb.nal.usda.gov/
    This is taken from the USDA website

    Beef, flank, steak, separable lean and fat, trimmed to 0" fat, choice, raw
    100g serving --- 165 calories
    Beef, flank, steak, separable lean and fat, trimmed to 0" fat, choice, cooked, broiled
    100g serving --- 202 calories
    Potatoes, russet, flesh and skin, raw
    100g serving --- 79 calories
    Potatoes, Russet, flesh and skin, baked
    100g serving --- 97 calories


    if you weigh all of your food this weigh you could be overeating a few hundred calories by the end of the day.
  • victoria4321
    victoria4321 Posts: 1,719 Member
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    The weight for ounces and grams is usually when the meat is raw, unless its stated otherwise. So general rule of thumb I go by is 4oz raw and 3oz cooked would be the same calories.
  • Gramps251
    Gramps251 Posts: 738 Member
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    all measurements are before being cooked unless specified otherwise.
    1 oz = 28.3495 grams

    If you do not have a digital food scale i would buy one. you should be able to find out that can TARE and measure in OZ or Grams for around $20.

    I think this ^ is correct but I weigh cooked for simplicity. I don't think the differece is too great and it's easy to cook ahead of time and just carve 4 oz off and save the rest for next meal.
  • EccentricDad
    EccentricDad Posts: 875 Member
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    So what was the verdict? Measure it in it's pre-cooked state if it is not cooked when sold to me? I don't want to over-eat calories and I don't want to under eat protein. Also, I have a great digital scale, I just don't know the grams of meat serving sizes since everything is in that arbitrary ounces/pounds (I hate my local measuring system - adopt metric USA!).
  • RetiredAndLovingIt
    RetiredAndLovingIt Posts: 1,394 Member
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    If I eat something raw, I weigh it raw. If its cooked, I weigh it cooked. Just make sure you are using the calorie count for whatever way it is cooked. (broiled, pan fried, steamed, baked, etc)
  • EccentricDad
    EccentricDad Posts: 875 Member
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    But what if I am buying a meat that doesn't have a cooked/raw value? Example: Meijer Certified Angus Beef cut for Stew. Serving size is 4 oz (raw or cooked?!?) and the database doesn't have anything. Since I'm a meat idiot (I just read nutrition labels) I don't know what to put it as since A) ounces are ambiguous, B) doesn't specify raw or cooked, C) there seems to be no standardizing other than a serving of meat is 4 oz.