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Carb counting - Raw or uncooked?

Waterfall 888

Waterfall 888

Well-Known Member
Messages
79
Location
Scotland
Type of diabetes
LADA
Treatment type
Insulin
Do you carb count raw or cooked weights for vegetables, rice, pasta? Are the carb amounts affected by different cooking methods?

Thanks for the advice.
 
Be careful not to misread carb content on rice or pasta packs. Some give values for cooked but others give the values for raw.
 
I always do cooked for rice 1 tablespoon-10 carbs For pasta I use dried weights as I tend to cook an exact amount specifically for me. Rice is usually shared between me and hubby.
 
Waterfall 888 said:
Do you carb count raw or cooked weights for vegetables, rice, pasta? Are the carb amounts affected by different cooking methods?

Thanks for the advice.
Click to expand...
It depends how the carb contents are defined.
Often, this requires careful reading of the packet as it can make a large difference - for example, 100g of raw rice will absorb a lot of water which will mean it will weight much more once cooked so the percentage of carbs will be less (it does not gain any carbs n the process and the amount "leaked" into the cooking water is negligible),
 
I tend to use an app to tell me (either cooked or raw is usually listed) and go from there - favourite at the moment is MyFitnessPal but there are others that do the same thing.

Cooked tends to be easier as cooking for 2, so not exactly sure until it hits the plate :)

The Carb amounts don't change with cooking - speed of absorption can alter (GI) but generally the carbs themselves are fixed in the foodstuff.
 
dancer said:
Be careful not to misread carb content on rice or pasta packs. Some give values for cooked but others give the values for raw.
Click to expand...
Hi,
this is a super helpful thread for me - could you provide a list of different foods that I need to be aware of when it comes to being cooked or uncooked?

Thank you in advance :)
 
Waterfall 888 said:
Do you carb count raw or cooked weights for vegetables, rice, pasta? Are the carb amounts affected by different cooking methods?

Thanks for the advice.
Click to expand...
Well, just to say that I find that vegetables that are cooked rather than as in a salad, eaten raw (peppers, tomatoes, carrots, celery, cucumber etc) tend to make my glucose go up faster. I assume this is because the glucose is already largely broken down in the cooking process -whereas salad stuff, as above, requires one to munch it for the glucose to be released in liquid form in feeding the body's cells, and this slows the whole digestive process down. This, in my interpretation, means that eating salads, which are raw, make life easier to manage glucose levels.
 
Carbs don’t change with cooking - only the carbs per 100g change because of water. Always match your method to the label: if it states “as sold (dry)”, weigh raw; if “as prepared (cooked)”, weigh cooked. For rice/pasta it’s simplest to weigh dry for the whole pot, cook, then portion by ratio. Apps (MyFitnessPal/Cronometer/Carbs & Cals) have both raw/cooked entries - pick one method and stay consistent.
 
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