measuring question

tjones7
tjones7 Posts: 306
in Food and Nutrition
Hello all,

I try to measure my food but I'm not sure which way is right for all things. My newest ponder is for lettuce. I eat Romaine lettuce and usally log 2 cups from eye sight. well I put my lettuce in a 1 cup measuring cup and realized that it wouldn't feed a toddler but I also know that a cup equals 8 oz but when I put my lettuce on my food scale the amount that I would eat is only 3 oz so which way is right?


How should I be measuring lettuce, fruit, and other sources of food that take up space in a mesuring cup but not hitting 8 oz on the food scale.?

Thanks for reading.

Replies

  • jerren
    jerren Posts: 196
    Liquid ounces (volume) are different than dry ounces(weight). So you should measure your lettuce on a scale unless you are drinking a lettuce smoothie. ;)

    The ounces on the scale (weight) isn't measuring the same thing as the ounces in a measuring cup (volume).
  • tjones7
    tjones7 Posts: 306
    Thanks Jerren
  • treetop57
    treetop57 Posts: 1,578 Member
    If it says a cup of lettuce, that's volume, not weight. I seriously doubt you'll be able to eat a half a pound of lettuce (8 ounces of weight), but a cup of lettuce is a reasonable portion (8 ounces of volume).

    In any case, lettuce has so few calories, it doesn't matter much if you are off. With more calorie dense foods (nuts, oil, meat, for example), more exact measurement is more important.
  • cadaverousbones
    cadaverousbones Posts: 421 Member
    I usually just measure my lettuce with a measuring cup. If its like a salad mix from a bag you can always look at the weight (usually grams) and weigh it out if you feel more comfortable doing that. 2 cups of lettuce usually equals a nice salad portion.
  • Keladry
    Keladry Posts: 58 Member
    I really wouldn't worry about things like lettuce. Just go by volume because it's easier and even if you underestimate it would only be a difference of a couple of calories. But generally, weighing is more accurate than measuring for solids.
  • dls06
    dls06 Posts: 6,774 Member
    I would use the scale.
  • tjones7
    tjones7 Posts: 306
    Thank you all for your advice. I know Lettuce doesn't count that much but I was trying to be accountable and watch carbs but I did read the bag and did the grams it recommended on my fool scalre in grams instead of ounces and that helped. It was onlly a little more than I was normally eating.

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