Weighing out rice

ksel6655
ksel6655 Posts: 1 Member
in Food and Nutrition
so I have been tracking my macros meticulously for a couple years. Love it. One thing I have had a hard time measuring out is rice. I cook for a family of four. Its easier to make a pot of rice and just scoop out. I know the weight cooked is not the same as uncooked. And there are way too many options in the search for cooked rice. I dont know which one is the most accurate. Any tips? Anyone have a accurate measurement you can share or tips on how to weigh out just my portion and log it? TIA!

Replies

  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,416 Member
    edited May 2020
    I find cooked rice to be between 118-125 grams per serving, so I can use the uncooked portion on the label to calculate the calories like quemalosuerte said above, then just weigh out the cooked portion. Close enough, if you forget to weigh the whole batch.

    Or you could just weigh a batch one time and use those numbers. It's really close enough.
  • deannalfisher
    deannalfisher Posts: 5,600 Member
    I have a bulk rice recipe I use - I update it with amount of rice cooked and final cooked weight
  • Jelly_Belly_Jim
    Jelly_Belly_Jim Posts: 24 Member
    What’s your personal normal serving? For arguments sake let’s just say you normally would have weighed out 1/2 cup uncooked Rice for yourself. Do it one time and see what the weight is cooked. Then, going forward when you make a big pot of rice you will know what 1 serving is for yourself.
  • wilson10102018
    wilson10102018 Posts: 1,306 Member
    edited May 2020
    Rice is most accurately weighed dry. So, if a dry cup of rice goes in you know the total calories of the entire pot. If your scoop is one-fifth or the total, divide by 5. If you want to be completely correct, weigh the cooked result in total then weigh your portion of the cooled.

    Probably not necessary because you can eyeball the difference between say a fifth and a third and you will only be off 30, 40 or 50 calories depending on how much you are eating.

    Whatever you do, don''t rely on cooked weight at calories per gram cooked. You can be off by half because of the amount of water left in the rice depending on how you like it.
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,416 Member
    I don't who the heck is disagreeing with me.

    I have rice three times a week. If I cook the same type rice for the same amount of time, it has always come out cooked at nearly the same weight, 118-125 grams. Not sure what the disagreement is...
  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 9,943 Member
    deannalfisher wrote: »
    cmriverside wrote: »
    I don't who the heck is disagreeing with me.

    I have rice three times a week. If I cook the same type rice for the same amount of time, it has always come out cooked at nearly the same weight, 118-125 grams. Not sure what the disagreement is...

    Someone who is anti-rice apparentky

    Blasphemie!
  • Melampus
    Melampus Posts: 95 Member
    Dried pasta is another food with a very different cooked to dry weight. With both of these you need to make sure you know whether the database entry is cooked or dry.
  • Melampus
    Melampus Posts: 95 Member
    cmriverside wrote: »
    I have rice three times a week. If I cook the same type rice for the same amount of time, it has always come out cooked at nearly the same weight, 118-125 grams. Not sure what the disagreement is...

    It wasn't me disagreeing but "for the same amount of time" maybe the key. Many people probably don't cook their rice until it can't possibly absorb any more water so differences in cooking time may cause differences in cooked weight.

    I'd second the approach of knowing the dried weight that went in and then working out the proportion of the total eaten. That can even be done by counting spoonfuls - a serving spoon that is - I'm not advocating serving it with a desert spoon.

  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,416 Member
    Melampus wrote: »
    cmriverside wrote: »
    I have rice three times a week. If I cook the same type rice for the same amount of time, it has always come out cooked at nearly the same weight, 118-125 grams. Not sure what the disagreement is...

    It wasn't me disagreeing but "for the same amount of time" maybe the key. Many people probably don't cook their rice until it can't possibly absorb any more water so differences in cooking time may cause differences in cooked weight.

    I'd second the approach of knowing the dried weight that went in and then working out the proportion of the total eaten. That can even be done by counting spoonfuls - a serving spoon that is - I'm not advocating serving it with a desert spoon.

    Okay, well then here's how I cook my rice.

    Bring a large pot of water to rolling boil.

    Add 180 grams of uncooked wild rice (that's four servings, yo)

    Boil for 30 minutes.


    Drain.

    Leave drained rice in the pot (not over the heat) for 10 minutes.


    Perfect rice, every time, four servings cooked is always between 470 and 500 grams. Always the same.
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,416 Member
    ^^ Oops, Brown rice. No one eats just wild rice, do they? Well, I don't.

    Whoever disagreed must be disagreeing with that. ::nods::

  • freda666
    freda666 Posts: 338 Member
    I always use dry weights and the simple answer if you are cooking and serving more than just yourself is to weigh dry so you know how many calories are in the pot and then weigh it all again when cooked and log your portion of calories.

    I do this too when I cook for more than one meal.
  • darreneatschicken
    darreneatschicken Posts: 669 Member
    edited May 2020
    Just go on USDA database and type in "cooked rice."
  • VeryKatie
    VeryKatie Posts: 5,961 Member
    have you checked the package? Mine says 45 g of rice (~1/4 cup) is however many calories. I make 1 cup dry (weighed) for my family and divide by 4 when its cooked (i approximate it but you could weigh it as you transfer to a serving bowl and then weigh out how ever much you want).
  • Unknown
    Unknown
    edited May 2020
    This content has been removed.
  • paperpudding
    paperpudding Posts: 9,282 Member
    I know weighing dry uncooked is more accurate

    But I always weigh cooked - I never cook rice just for myself, so faffing about working out my portion from the cooked weight of the total - Nah.

    Just find a reliable entry for cooked rice and use that - so if I eat 100g of cooked rice that's what I log.

    Accurate enough for me.
  • ClimbingWolf
    ClimbingWolf Posts: 298 Member
    What I do is make 140 grams of uncooked rice, eat twice out of it in two days and log 70gr both days.
  • paperpudding
    paperpudding Posts: 9,282 Member
    Yes the reason I don't weigh raw is that this wouldn't tell how much I ate.

    As the cooked total is never eaten entirely by me.

    So I just weigh my portion and log as cooked rice, x grams.
  • wilson10102018
    wilson10102018 Posts: 1,306 Member
    paperpudding wrote: »
    Yes the reason I don't weigh raw is that this wouldn't tell how much I ate.

    As the cooked total is never eaten entirely by me.

    So I just weigh my portion and log as cooked rice, x grams.

    Of course, you only have to do it once. That is, weigh both the dry and cooked rice you make. So, for example, you do it and its 100g dry and 330g cooked you know that the way you like rice is cooked/3.3 = dry. Then any time you weigh cooked you have your dry weight also. That way you avoid the fact that you can be off as much as 50% by weighing the cooked rice.
  • paperpudding
    paperpudding Posts: 9,282 Member
    well, yes that may be so wilson - but for me, weighing the cooked rice the way do with the way I cook it at home, or eyeballing similar amounts if I am eating cooked rice elsewhere, works fine for me


    Like I said before, that is close enough for me.
  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 34,416 Member
    edited May 2020
    @paperpudding, we're going to make a case for that close enough is good enough theory of ours! I mean, truly - I do use a food scale but I'm not married to it. When I make batch food, my portion is either one, two or three serving ladles. They are half cup ladles. I know the approximate calories, but not exactly. With rice what's the worst that can happen? 50 calories? I mean it's easy enough to give myself a cup of rice by eye.

    If I was trying to seriously under-eat I would be emotionally attached to every gram. Since I'm not, I'm not.
  • Mazintrov13
    Mazintrov13 Posts: 135 Member
    cmriverside wrote: »
    @paperpudding, we're going to make a case for that close enough is good enough theory of ours! I mean, truly - I do use a food scale but I'm not married to it. When I make batch food, my portion is either one, two or three serving ladles. They are half cup ladles. I know the approximate calories, but not exactly. With rice what's the worst that can happen? 50 calories? I mean it's easy enough to give myself a cup of rice by eye.

    If I was trying to seriously under-eat I would be emotionally attached to every gram. Since I'm not, I'm not.

    I totally agree, calorie counting is not an exact science anyway! In my opinion it should be about portion control, whether it’s measured exactly or a ball park estimate that depends on the individual.

    I prefer to weigh everything to the gram as I like the data and am a perfectionist, but to be honest most people I know in real life would be put off by that and just eyeballing portions would work better. If your weight is not tracking where it’s meant to then look at tightening up logging but I don’t see why everyone needs to weigh everything to the gram it definitely not necessary
  • ExistingFish
    ExistingFish Posts: 1,259 Member
    I'm sooooo lazy.

    I weigh the total dry rice, it says 4 servings weighs so many grams...so I do. I cook, THEN I eyeball the servings. I mean if it's 4 servings, and I get 8 scoops, then two scoops is a serving.

    We eat rice once in a blue moon though, if it were something we ate more often I might be more picky.

    Pasta I just estimate using the same method - then overestimate a little bit for good measure. Pasta is a rough meal.
  • paperpudding
    paperpudding Posts: 9,282 Member
    Yes, last few posts - if one is not losing/maintaining/gaining to plan - then time to adjust the system, usually by tightening logging.

    But my aim has never been to log as accurately as possible - it has been to log in an easy lazy way that is close enough to work for me and that I am happy to continue long term.

    I appreciate some people are data geeks and love accurate logging, that's fine for them

    But I always think it is good in these threads to present the other side of the coin - you dont have to faff around with messy maths calculations and before and after weighing and such like if you don't want to - there is usually an easier simpler good enough way that is good enough for many of us.
  • pantrap
    pantrap Posts: 2 Member
    Never tried this myself but you could buy a small (cup)cake ring. Cook your rice, put the ring on your plate, stuff rice in there and then weigh how much is in there. Easy/cleanable way to do portion control for just yourself when eating with others.
  • paperpudding
    paperpudding Posts: 9,282 Member
    bit lost as to how it is easier to stuff rice in a cup cake ring on your plate and weigh it vs just putting an amount of rice on your plate and weighing it.

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