What's the easiest way to track my food when.....

krystaldickinson
krystaldickinson Posts: 8
in Health and Weight Loss
I know this a dumb question, but what' the easiest way for me to track my food when I'm making a meal with mixed things? Last night I baked tilapia which i seasoned with lemon juice, garlic powder, and butter. For my sides, I had a cup of brown rice, with sauteed green and red bell peppers and onions with soy sauce. Obviously, peppers come in different sizes so I didn't know how to add them to my diary.

For breakfast this morning, I made cinnamon pancakes for my kids using the instant Aunt Jemima pancake mix. I don't usually measure my mix, I usually can eye how much water to add.

What do you do when you're cooking a mixed dinner with mixed things in it. Do you just guesstimate or have you learn to measure everything? Just wondering because I'm a busy mom of 2 kinds under 4 so sometimes it's hard to stop and measure every ingredient as I'm adding it to a dish.

Replies

  • laceybrobie
    laceybrobie Posts: 495 Member
    i measure EVERYTHING. i found that i can guess and get close, but that does me no good. i have a small scale thats just easy for me to get to when im in the kichen. i also will cook enough for 2 days or so so that i dont have to log something different each day.
  • ladyraven68
    ladyraven68 Posts: 2,003 Member
    I know this a dumb question, but what' the easiest way for me to track my food when I'm making a meal with mixed things? Last night I baked tilapia which i seasoned with lemon juice, garlic powder, and butter. For my sides, I had a cup of brown rice, with sauteed green and red bell peppers and onions with soy sauce. Obviously, peppers come in different sizes so I didn't know how to add them to my diary.

    For breakfast this morning, I made cinnamon pancakes for my kids using the instant Aunt Jemima pancake mix. I don't usually measure my mix, I usually can eye how much water to add.

    What do you do when you're cooking a mixed dinner with mixed things in it. Do you just guesstimate or have you learn to measure everything? Just wondering because I'm a busy mom of 2 kinds under 4 so sometimes it's hard to stop and measure every ingredient as I'm adding it to a dish.

    there is a recipe function on MFP - you can add all the ingredients and how many people you are serving, and it will work out the calories per serving :)
  • tequila09
    tequila09 Posts: 764 Member
    do you have a food scale?
  • gagesmom314
    gagesmom314 Posts: 101 Member
    I measure everything and put it in a recipe. It figures it all for me and I can just add it to my food diary whenever I make it.
  • ladyhawkgg
    ladyhawkgg Posts: 26
    Put it in a a recipe and that way when you have it again you can just click on recipe name and the ingredient will all be there for you.
  • krystaldickinson
    krystaldickinson Posts: 8
    Oh wow ladyraven68! I didn't know that at all. I just started MFP so I will definitely look for that! Thanks!
  • krystaldickinson
    krystaldickinson Posts: 8
    do you have a food scale?


    No, I don't. I guess I need to get one though. I never even thought about it.
  • firesoforion
    firesoforion Posts: 1,017 Member
    Guesstimation should be fine, but overestimate rather than under. Sizes of peppers and things like that shouldn't matter because they have so few calories anyway.
  • purplegoboom
    purplegoboom Posts: 400 Member
    Find some time, go to Food > Recipes, and put in the most common recipes that you make for your family. This will make it easier to enter the calories on a day to day basis.

    And start measuring things, and when you get a pretty good idea of what a cup, tablespoon, etc. look like, then you can probably just start eyeballing. It's unrealistic, at least for me, to measure exactly every single piece of food that goes into your mouth.

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