How do you measure/log bacon?
socalprincess1
Posts: 52 Member
Curious and looking to get some input on this. We weigh and log everything when raw, in an effort to get as accurate a count as possible since a lot of water/weight is rendered out when cooking... especially veggies. But we've been wondering about bacon lately.
We weigh the bacon when raw and log it based on the packaging nutritional breakdown, always do the math so that it is by grams. But since what is rendered out in weight is FAT and not water, is it really accurate to use this method? Do you think that the packaging takes this loss of fat into account, or are they legit going off of it based on the raw counts? It's a BIG difference...starting off with nearly 200g raw bacon will yield 44g cooked bacon, and that is leaving A LOT of fat in the pan! Obviously, we end up using that when cooking later and we do log it as such, but does that mean those fat grams are inadvertently being double logged? And if so, how do you log/account for it?
We weigh the bacon when raw and log it based on the packaging nutritional breakdown, always do the math so that it is by grams. But since what is rendered out in weight is FAT and not water, is it really accurate to use this method? Do you think that the packaging takes this loss of fat into account, or are they legit going off of it based on the raw counts? It's a BIG difference...starting off with nearly 200g raw bacon will yield 44g cooked bacon, and that is leaving A LOT of fat in the pan! Obviously, we end up using that when cooking later and we do log it as such, but does that mean those fat grams are inadvertently being double logged? And if so, how do you log/account for it?
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Replies
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Weigh after cooking and use a cooked and drained entry. Or log it per slice.0
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I weigh and log it raw, as I eat the drained fat (at the same time as the bacon). I pour it over the meal.0
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I would never rely on logging something "by the slice" as that is way too variable and subjective of a measurement to be accurate. We measure everything by weight unless it is specifically measured by volume...both of which are unquestionable measurements.
We ended up taking the macro calculations for 100g bacon (raw) that we buy, and then separated all of the rendered bacon grease and weighing that, and creating our own entry for cooked bacon to account for the loss in fat by subtracting the macros for the bacon grease. That way we can weigh it raw which is in my opinion the easiest thing to do so that you know how much you are getting before you cook it, but the counts are now accurate to reflect the cooked meat, and then we can add and log in any of the rendered bacon grease we actually use.
Btw...for 100g of bacon, it's a loss of 369 calories (62%!) and 41g of fat. A huge difference!0 -
it says the nutrients per slice grilled on the pack of mine so i use that. it is accurate enough for me.0
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I too just go with the label. I have hopes it will even out in the end. Roughly.0
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I weight it cooked by grams.. maybe that's cheating.. but I really like it crisp. plus I do it in batches.. too much weighing..0
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I only eat it once a week, I don't much care for it, BUT I do like food cooked with the bacon fat.
So I use the label info for the bacon, and count the fat for cooking later.0 -
I'm really not all that technical about it...never thought of it! I just go by the label which is usually 1-2 pan fried slices. If I cook something else in the bacon grease I just estimate extra calories and log the bacon fat separate. I think if I didn't have so much weight to lose and had to be super accurate it would be different.0
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I'm with you @Goooosfraba333. I bought some weird "irregular" bacon from Walmart this weekend and just logged it by the slice more to remember what I ate than to be concerned with macros. I had to dump most of the bacon grease because I was cooking at my son's and he did not want it saved and I did not want to transport it
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My package says "2 pan fried slices (18 grams)"
When I'm not being lazy I weigh the cooked slices. When I'm being lazy I use 11 grams per slice because that's what it seems to consistently be when raw. So quite the difference.0 -
Consistency is more important than accuracy. Pick a metric you use, whether it's logging the full amount, logging based on 50% fat left in the pan, whatever. After a period of time of being consistent, if you are gaining or losing weight, you will know which direction to adjust your overall calories.0
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