Weighing Pasta

J_makk
J_makk Posts: 3
in Health and Weight Loss
I know this has been posted over and over again, but nobody seems to really answer the question quite clearly and no one seems to ask it the right way either and then it just gets very confusing. A box of a regular pasta says that 2oz of pasta dry =200 calories. So now, my question is... How much does 1 serving of pasta weigh once it is cooked? I have heard many people say that pasta "doubles" in weight when cooked. So does that mean that 4oz is one serving and 200 calories? Please answer me in terms of how much it would weigh on a food scale. Not cups, liters, handfuls, etc. Thank You

Replies

  • chandanista
    chandanista Posts: 986 Member
    It may depend on how long the pasta is cooked, won't it continue to gain water weight as it sits longer in the water?

    To be honest I've always gone with the raw weight when making my recipes.
  • wheird
    wheird Posts: 7,963 Member
    Enter in the dry weight for logging.

    If cooking for multiple people:

    Weigh total dry.
    Boil
    Drain
    Weigh again
    Divide by the ratio you ae eating

    For example, if you are planning to eat 2oz (dry) pasta and are cooking for 4 people, you would take 8oz (dry) pasta, boil it, drain it, then weigh it again and divide it by 4. So if the cooked weight is 16oz, you would serve yourself 4oz. If it is 20oz, then you would take 5oz.


    the actual cooked weight depends on length of time cooked and is irrelevent.
  • stevepax
    stevepax Posts: 86 Member
    http://www.kraftrecipes.com/cooking-tips/foodbasics/pastaguide/pasta-measuring-chart.aspx


    Here's your go-to guide for measuring post-cooked pasta.
  • farway
    farway Posts: 1,251 Member
    Assuming the pasta is just cooked in plain old water & not a sauce, the dry weight calories are the same as the cooked weight, water is zero, nothing, zilch calories, so adding water does not add calories
  • Brige2269
    Brige2269 Posts: 354 Member
    It's 2oz dry. you still eat that amount of calories. Just cos it puffs up from the water, doesn't mean it gains more calories.
  • Momjogger
    Momjogger Posts: 750 Member
    Do an experiment. Weigh two ounces dry, cook it, weigh it wet. Problem solved.
  • DavePFJ
    DavePFJ Posts: 212 Member
    The nutritional facts are for dry pasta. Typically, there will be another column called "cooked" if the facts are for a finished version of the product.

    What I like to do is just cook the whole box, and divide it into how many portions I want out of it. I just get the total calories/macros for the box, and divide by how many portions I made. I usually just eyeball and hand weigh it too. It's good enough for me.
  • J_makk
    J_makk Posts: 3
    a lot of good suggestions on here. thanks guy. a lot more clear answers than on other posts and forums.
  • J_makk
    J_makk Posts: 3
    thought about that. I'm going to do it now and see what I get. I just thought somebody on here has done that already and would tell me. I guess I gotta stop being lazy lol
  • janer4jc
    janer4jc Posts: 238 Member
    It's 2oz dry. you still eat that amount of calories. Just cos it puffs up from the water, doesn't mean it gains more calories.

    Well said.
  • Mokey41
    Mokey41 Posts: 5,769 Member
    You weight items like pasta and rice dry and meat raw because everybody cooks things differently. If I cook my pasta el dente and you cook yours to mush, yours is going to weigh more because it sucked up more water. That's why weighing it cooked is inaccurate unless you know the dry weight you started with and you always cook it exactly the same. Dry it's always the same.
  • Momjogger
    Momjogger Posts: 750 Member
    When you try it, share with us. I'd like to know for curiosity's sake (but I don't have a scale, I eye ball things or use a measuring cup instead).

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