Confused about calories in rice??

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eatpraylove449
eatpraylove449 Posts: 2 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Hi guys!!
I've a few questions about rice to ask you guys! i hope someone would be able to help me out here!
1. the nutritional info on the rice pack i have at home (thai hom mali rice) states 180calories for 1/4 cup. Im confused at to whether the cup refers to the measuring cup (US-240ml) or the rice cup?
Also, whats the difference between the rice cup and the measuring cup in terms of their ratio?
2. What are the choices of rice/grains that are relatively lower in calories? Ive read that basmati brown rice is pretty low in calories compared to the others... Is that right?
I hope to have a response soon! :) Thank you!!

Replies

  • nancy1465
    nancy1465 Posts: 25 Member
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    I have joined many weight loss groups and most of them say that the brown basmati rice is one of the best. I find it has a really nice taste over long grain brown rice as well. RIce is not so bad for you on its own. Its the flavored rice with chicken bouillon etc in it which ends up hiking your sodium.
  • flaminica
    flaminica Posts: 304 Member
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    There's no meaningful difference in the calorie count of white versus brown basmati rice. Brown is higher in fibre and may therefore have a higher satiety profile, but honestly it's not going to make much difference to most people and will probably cost more.

    The nutritional info on the rice cup will refer to an objective measurement in grams or ounces, not the cup container itself. Read the label carefully--one rice cup may well contain more than one serving.
  • Nikion901
    Nikion901 Posts: 2,467 Member
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    When you say rice cup vs. the measuring cup, are you meaning a plastic cup that comes with a rice cooker? If so, there is a difference as to how much each holds. The measuring cups provided with the cooker are about 180 ml while a standard US measuring cup is 240 ml (180 ml is about 3/4 of the 240 ml measure) ... But that is for measuring the rice to cook in the cooker so you will know how much water to add, etc. That has nothing to do with the amount of calories you eat unless you use that rice cup as your measure for the cooked rice you put on your plate.

    I'm thinking that 1/4 cup and 180 calories is most likely the Asian rice cup (same as rice cooker cup mentioned above) measurement of dry rice and what the calories would be once it's cooked up. I say this because the rice is actually a Jasmine rice, and that comes in at 240 calories per standard US measuring cup.

    If the package directions give you a weight in grams for the serving size, then a scale would be your best bet on the measurement.

    As for your second question, there are thousands or different types of rice and they all vary slightly in the preparation, texture, and taste of the cooked result. The reason brown rice is a better bet is not because of the calories but because it is a whole grain and thus has a bit more nutrition and more fiber, however how the rice is grown is as an important factor as whether it's been polished to remove the bran or not. Calorie wise, there isn't much difference from one rice to another.

    You can get a great deal of information by using a search engine (Google) on your browser and reading up on it for more information if what I have shared needs more clarification, as that's where I go for all my data.
  • Queenmunchy
    Queenmunchy Posts: 3,380 Member
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    Just go by the grams and you don't have to worry about which cup to use.
  • spasovskaina2014
    spasovskaina2014 Posts: 3 Member
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    What about calories?! Are they measured before cooking or after? :)
  • cerise_noir
    cerise_noir Posts: 5,468 Member
    edited July 2016
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    spasovskaina2014 wrote: »
    What about calories?! Are they measured before cooking or after? :)
    Usually before. That makes sense if the serving size is 1/4 cup as that 1/4 cup end up being closer to 3/4 cups after the rice has absorbed the water. However, If there is a grams serving size listed, use that instead for the raw rice. It's much more accurate.
    flaminica wrote: »
    There's no meaningful difference in the calorie count of white versus brown basmati rice. Brown is higher in fibre and may therefore have a higher satiety profile, but honestly it's not going to make much difference to most people and will probably cost more.

    The nutritional info on the rice cup will refer to an objective measurement in grams or ounces, not the cup container itself. Read the label carefully--one rice cup may well contain more than one serving.
    This.

  • eatpraylove449
    eatpraylove449 Posts: 2 Member
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    Thanks for your replies guys! Does anyone have a rough estimation for calories in 1 bowl of white rice. :)
  • enterdanger
    enterdanger Posts: 2,447 Member
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    1 cup of cooked white rice is usually around 200 calories if nothing is added.

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