How to weigh my sweet potato ?

orhirvi
orhirvi Posts: 5
edited February 11 in Food and Nutrition
Hey,

Sometimes for lunch i like having a sweet potato as a side dish,
I just peel it and cut it into small pieces and put it in the microwave for few minutes to cook,
and after its done i weigh it, and thats how i usually count it into my macros, as ''sweet potato,microwaved,peeled''.
it says that it contains 76 calories per 100 grams.

Anyway, i was wondering if im doing correct, because the sweet potato looses some of its weight in the microwave,
Im supposed to do like i do right now or should i weigh it before i microwave it ?

Thanks ! :wink:

Replies

  • twixlepennie
    twixlepennie Posts: 1,074 Member
    Weigh it on a food scale, after you peel it, before you cook it. That's the most accurate way to do it.
  • orhirvi
    orhirvi Posts: 5
    Weigh it on a food scale, after you peel it, before you cook it. That's the most accurate way to do it.

    I was always thinking that this is the right way to do it,
    but are you sure about that ? because that way sounds more like ''raw,peeled'' and not ''microwaved,peeled''..
  • FredDoyle
    FredDoyle Posts: 2,272 Member
    Weigh it on a food scale, after you peel it, before you cook it. That's the most accurate way to do it.

    I was always thinking that this is the right way to do it,
    but are you sure about that ? because that way sounds more like ''raw,peeled'' and not ''microwaved,peeled''..
    Weigh it raw and log it raw, usda.
    Why peel it? The skins have tonnes of nutrients.
  • orhirvi
    orhirvi Posts: 5
    Weigh it on a food scale, after you peel it, before you cook it. That's the most accurate way to do it.

    I was always thinking that this is the right way to do it,
    but are you sure about that ? because that way sounds more like ''raw,peeled'' and not ''microwaved,peeled''..
    Weigh it raw and log it raw, usda.
    Why peel it? The skins have tonnes of nutrients.

    I might just start eating it with the skin, thanks !

    and another question, which is pretty much the same :
    how do i weigh bread slices? when i take them out from the freezer they weigh a little bit more than they weigh after i defrost them in the microwave, and they lose even more weight after i put them in the toaster for few minutes..
  • orhirvi
    orhirvi Posts: 5
    Bump !
  • HappyStack
    HappyStack Posts: 802 Member
    Weigh everything raw if possible. Cooking draws out moisture in varying degrees, or adds extra moisture in varying degrees and thus alters the weight significantly.

    ETA: you don't really need to weigh bread. Just log it as a slice if you have the NI values for one slice, and don't be too pedantic about it.
  • eldamiano
    eldamiano Posts: 2,667 Member
    What does looses weight mean?

    To be honest, is the difference in weight really going to make a difference at all?
  • togmo
    togmo Posts: 257
    I have been eating stacks of sweet potatoes lately - we grew about 20kg of them! Some of them are massive but they are super delicious!

    I weigh everything raw if possible and count that and while I am someone who encourages you to count more precisely if you are really chasing a goal a few grams probably won't hurt you and it will probably all even out anyway. I often add oil to things and cook them counting both the steak or whatever and the oil but I don't weigh the residual oil left in the pan and subtract that...
  • lynn_glenmont
    lynn_glenmont Posts: 10,149 Member

    and another question, which is pretty much the same :
    how do i weigh bread slices? when i take them out from the freezer they weigh a little bit more than they weigh after i defrost them in the microwave, and they lose even more weight after i put them in the toaster for few minutes..

    Are you microwaving and toasting the same piece of bread? I'd weigh it in between. I just toast it straight from the freezer, and I weigh it before toasting, after knocking off any visible crystals if there are any. If you press the air out of the bag before putting it in the freezer, there should be a minimal amount of ice in the bread. If only microwaving to thaw it, I'd weigh after. You want to weigh it close to room temperature, when the moisture content is "normal" and close to how the bread is sold (and weighed).

    To be honest, is the difference in weight really going to make a difference at all?

    I suppose it depends on the bread, but the varieties I buy as well as those I bake myself can weigh as much as 10% less after toasting than they do straight from the freezer. If I were to use the toasted weight, I'd be counting 10% fewer calories (and the calories don't disappear in the toaster -- that's just water weight). If 10% doesn't matter to your plan and progress -- maybe because you eat so little bread it doesn't matter -- that's fine, but for some people it will matter.
  • orhirvi
    orhirvi Posts: 5
    Thanks everyone !! (:
This discussion has been closed.

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