Cream of wheat - Uppma/upma of india - calories fact

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buddhaseeking
buddhaseeking Posts: 15 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I looked up cream of wheat (also called upma or upuma etc) in india. This is consumed as breakfast in india too. I have read other threads here that state that this food is crap and refined. I do not know about the manufacturing process or if this contains gluten, but i did look up nutriondata.com for calories. To my surprise, 1 cup (241g) of cream of wheat (cooked without salt) is listed as only 149 calories - took me by surprise because this way lower than the feeling it creates, filling up the stomach. This is less calories than 2 bread slices alone. I am suspecting the calorie data, given the feeling that i get after consuming it (as opposed to 2 bread slices). Is there any other reliable data source ? I would like to use this thread to collect any data / info relevant to this food item.

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  • buddhaseeking
    buddhaseeking Posts: 15 Member
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    BTW, i also looked up this item in myfitnesspal database. It is listed as 131 calories (USDA data quoted) for 1 cup cooked without salt. But then, nutriondata.com derives a lot of their data from USDA database, so these could be somewhat overlapping government sites based data. It would be nice to get verification of this from a non-government source, but i am not aware of any such databases.
  • RodaRose
    RodaRose Posts: 9,562 Member
    edited February 2015
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    buddhaseeking wrote: »
    I looked up cream of wheat (also called upma or upuma etc) in india. This is consumed as breakfast in india too. I have read other threads here that state that this food is crap and refined. I do not know about the manufacturing process or if this contains gluten, but i did look up nutriondata.com for calories. To my surprise, 1 cup (241g) of cream of wheat (cooked without salt) is listed as only 149 calories - took me by surprise because this way lower than the feeling it creates, filling up the stomach. This is less calories than 2 bread slices alone. I am suspecting the calorie data, given the feeling that i get after consuming it (as opposed to 2 bread slices). Is there any other reliable data source ? I would like to use this thread to collect any data / info relevant to this food item.
    That 149 is probably right but it is hard to be exact when one is looking at at a "cooked" product because the amount of water is a big variable. It is easier to do this when one is measuring raw/before cooking.
    It does contain gluten. Wheat has gluten.
    Is this product similar to what you are eating?
    http://www.amazon.com/Cream-Wheat-Original-Flavor-Instant/dp/B004G7RJF2
  • lynn_glenmont
    lynn_glenmont Posts: 9,981 Member
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    I would use a database entry for the dry (uncooked) weight of cream of wheat, and if you cook it with milk, add that separately. Using a "cooked entry" introduces the variability of how much water you used and how long you cooked it, versus how much water and cooking time was used in the samples that the database entry is based on.

    149 calories actually seems a little high for one cup of cream of wheat cooked with water (salt or no salt doesn't matter for the calories). According to the package of cream of wheat I have in my kitchen, 33 g (3 Tbsp = about 45 ml) should be combined with 1 1/4 cups of water or milk to produce one serving, so presumably a bit more than a cup of cooked cereal (I can't imagine you lose 20% of the liquid in cooking, as this is the 2 1/2 minute version of cream of wheat), and one serving is listed as 110 calories by the manufacturer.

    I also checked on the USDA nutrient database and it shows around 120 calories for various types (different cooking times) for 3 Tbsp of cream of wheat (I don't know if they all use the same amount of dried product to produce one serving).

    As RodaRose said, it is a wheat product, so a large percentage of the protein in cream of wheat will be gluten.

    It is "refined" in the sense that the wheat has been milled and the bran removed, and possibly some of the wheat germ, although the package I have has defatted wheat germ added back in (defatting gives it a longer shelf life, as the fat in wheat germ would be susceptible to going rancid). I don't see how that make it "crap." There's enough space in my refrigerator taken up by whole grain flours, flax seed, nut meals, and other products that are prone to going rancid at room temperature. I don't need to start storing all my breakfast cereal in there as well. Do the people on the those threads consider wheat bran refined "crap" as well, since it has had both the germ and the endosperm removed?
  • buddhaseeking
    buddhaseeking Posts: 15 Member
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    RodaRose wrote: »
    That 149 is probably right but it is hard to be exact when one is looking at at a "cooked" product because the amount of water is a big variable. It is easier to do this when one is measuring raw/before cooking.
    It does contain gluten. Wheat has gluten.
    Is this product similar to what you are eating?
    http://www.amazon.com/Cream-Wheat-Original-Flavor-Instant/dp/B004G7RJF2
    I did a google search just now, and south-indian-breakfast-recipe-made-with-semolina indicates that it is actually semolina. I got it from the local indian grocery store, and it looked like cream of wheat to my eyes. I cook my breakfast with just enough water, because i don't like watery breakfast. There is barely enough water left out after microwaving to make it a bit mushy. So, water content is not an issue in measurement in cups.
  • buddhaseeking
    buddhaseeking Posts: 15 Member
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    lynn_glenmont wrote: »

    It is "refined" in the sense that the wheat has been milled and the bran removed, and possibly some of the wheat germ, although the package I have has defatted wheat germ added back in (defatting gives it a longer shelf life, as the fat in wheat germ would be susceptible to going rancid). I don't see how that make it "crap." There's enough space in my refrigerator taken up by whole grain flours, flax seed, nut meals, and other products that are prone to going rancid at room temperature. I don't need to start storing all my breakfast cereal in there as well. Do the people on the those threads consider wheat bran refined "crap" as well, since it has had both the germ and the endosperm removed?

    Semolina is not definitely crap, but it does not have the full nutritional value of whole wheat either. Same goes for bran - it has its place in nutrition. I am glad you replied, because i never refrigerate the nuts i buy. I did not realize they go rancid over time, because i consume them usually within couple of months. Should i be refrigerating the brazil nuts, cashews, almonds, peanuts etc ? I do keep my flax meal in fridge.
  • RodaRose
    RodaRose Posts: 9,562 Member
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    How long you keep nuts depends on the conditions. If they are stored at room temperature (70-80 degrees F) , they can last a month.
    http://ucfoodsafety.ucdavis.edu/files/44384.pdf
    The milled products like flax and semolina would last about a month before they lose their properties. They should be stored in the refrigerator as you are already doing. Nuts can also be stored in a freezer.
  • lynn_glenmont
    lynn_glenmont Posts: 9,981 Member
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    buddhaseeking wrote: »
    RodaRose wrote: »
    That 149 is probably right but it is hard to be exact when one is looking at at a "cooked" product because the amount of water is a big variable. It is easier to do this when one is measuring raw/before cooking.
    It does contain gluten. Wheat has gluten.
    Is this product similar to what you are eating?
    http://www.amazon.com/Cream-Wheat-Original-Flavor-Instant/dp/B004G7RJF2
    I did a google search just now, and south-indian-breakfast-recipe-made-with-semolina indicates that it is actually semolina. I got it from the local indian grocery store, and it looked like cream of wheat to my eyes. I cook my breakfast with just enough water, because i don't like watery breakfast. There is barely enough water left out after microwaving to make it a bit mushy. So, water content is not an issue in measurement in cups.

    1) Semolina is ground durum wheat, just not ground as fine as flour. Durum wheat is a high-protein wheat. Cream of Wheat is also ground wheat. Wikipedia says that cream of wheat is specifically made from semolina (durum wheat), but it doesn't have a reference for that fact and I don't see any thing on the Cream of Wheat to substantiate that. In any case, even if Cream of Wheat is made from a different variety of wheat, the difference in nutrients should be fairly minor--probably at most something like the difference between being 10% protein and being 14% protein.

    2) Apparently I didn't explain the reason for weighing the cereal dry clearly. If you're cooking with less water than was used in figuring that a cooked cup of cream of wheat is 149 calories, then your cooked cup of cream of wheat will have more than 149 calories--because your cup of cooked cream of wheat has more cream of wheat in it. Let's say you use a half cup of water. Picture how much cream of wheat you would have to add to bring the water level up to a full cup. Now think about the 149 calorie cup of cooked cream of wheat, that started with something like 7/8 of a cup of water. Picture how much less cream of wheat needs to be added to bring the water level up to a full cup. Or just think how much more water and how much less cream of wheat is in a cup of mushy cooked cereal than in a cup of the thick cereal that you prefer. You need to weigh the cereal dry.


  • lynn_glenmont
    lynn_glenmont Posts: 9,981 Member
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    buddhaseeking wrote: »
    lynn_glenmont wrote: »

    It is "refined" in the sense that the wheat has been milled and the bran removed, and possibly some of the wheat germ, although the package I have has defatted wheat germ added back in (defatting gives it a longer shelf life, as the fat in wheat germ would be susceptible to going rancid). I don't see how that make it "crap." There's enough space in my refrigerator taken up by whole grain flours, flax seed, nut meals, and other products that are prone to going rancid at room temperature. I don't need to start storing all my breakfast cereal in there as well. Do the people on the those threads consider wheat bran refined "crap" as well, since it has had both the germ and the endosperm removed?

    Semolina is not definitely crap, but it does not have the full nutritional value of whole wheat either. Same goes for bran - it has its place in nutrition. I am glad you replied, because i never refrigerate the nuts i buy. I did not realize they go rancid over time, because i consume them usually within couple of months. Should i be refrigerating the brazil nuts, cashews, almonds, peanuts etc ? I do keep my flax meal in fridge.

    I don't bother with whole or even chopped or sliced nuts that I consume within a couple of months. Like you, I keep flax meal, as well as nut meals (ground almonds, pecans, hazelnuts), in the fridge.
  • AshleyClark122
    AshleyClark122 Posts: 23 Member
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    I alternate between cream of wheat and grits every morning. Cream of wheat has 235mg calcium, 11mg iron, 3.83g protein, 24.15g carbohydrate, and B1 and B2 totaling 60 micro grams.

    Here is the source it came from.

    http://healthyeating.sfgate.com/health-benefits-cream-wheat-4399.html
  • buddhaseeking
    buddhaseeking Posts: 15 Member
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    Thanks for the responses. Semolina & cream of wheat are both made from wheat. Wiki says "Boiled semolina turns into a porridge, known in some areas as Cream of Wheat.". The difference maybe only in the size of particles (inner part of wheat endosperm breaks into smaller pieces than outer endosperm area). I also found out that durum wheat contains less gluten than other types (and maybe desirable for GI health). From experience, i can see that semolina/cream-of-wheat digests fast and well, and is a good breakfast so that it digests fully before lunchtime.
  • mhabi133
    mhabi133 Posts: 1 Member
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    Semolina upma is a great dish indeed!
  • kristen8000
    kristen8000 Posts: 747 Member
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    AshleyClark122 wrote: »
    I alternate between cream of wheat and grits every morning. Cream of wheat has 235mg calcium, 11mg iron, 3.83g protein, 24.15g carbohydrate, and B1 and B2 totaling 60 micro grams.

    Here is the source it came from.

    http://healthyeating.sfgate.com/health-benefits-cream-wheat-4399.html

    Ha. I do this with a night time snack. I find hot cereal to be more filling and last longer so I don't wake up hungry. Last night I had cold cereal and woke up ready to eat a horse...LOL

    OP, I love both Cream of Wheat and Grits. I get the plain stuff (no in packets, not flavored). Usually add a tsp of real sugar...

    If you don't have Celiac or a gluten allergy, you'll be fine.
  • jgnatca
    jgnatca Posts: 14,464 Member
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    I learned something new today. Hubby loves his Cream of Wheat. Gluten is a protein. If you don't have a reaction to gluten, it's good.
  • maggibailey
    maggibailey Posts: 289 Member
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    I hadn’t decided on what I want for dinner tonight, but cream of wheat sounds delicious! That and a baked apple. Thanks for the inspiration.
  • lynn_glenmont
    lynn_glenmont Posts: 9,981 Member
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    maggibailey wrote: »
    I hadn’t decided on what I want for dinner tonight, but cream of wheat sounds delicious! That and a baked apple. Thanks for the inspiration.

    It must be Halloween. You've been inspired by a zombie thread!
  • maggibailey
    maggibailey Posts: 289 Member
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    I never read the dates at the first of the thread. If I find the topic interesting when it pops in my feed I read it :). Glad I did in this case my cream of wheat was delicious last night.
  • Lean59man
    Lean59man Posts: 714 Member
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    Cream of Wheat has very little fiber.

    Other than that I like it.

    Oatmeal has a lot of fiber. Also Shredded Wheat has high fiber.

    Sometimes I will mix Cream of Wheat and oatmeal together.

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