To cook more than 15g pasta or 10g rice?

[WrongWayApricot]

I've been doing an NHS diabetes prevention program because I'm at high risk for diabetes. We've been learning about portion sizes and I knew from news and telly that modern portion sizes are too big, but I didn't know they were 85% bigger than they should be. Apparently 30g cooked rice and pasta is the right portion size. The 200g~ on packets is way off then? I usually do about 75g dry pasta, less than the 90g recommended on the packet. Pasta doubles in weight and rice triples in weight when cooking so, I should be putting only 10g rice in the saucepan and only 15g pasta? I thought this was mad so googled what I could, but British Heart Foundation recommend about the same. I want to ask my health coach about this but wanted to check here first if I really am an absolute glutton for cooking 75g dried pasta/eating 150g pasta?

DH was referred to the NHS dietitian a few years ago, so I dug out the info leaflet that he got then.

The portion size you've got is the same as on that NHS leaflet, but it also suggests that you have between 5 and 14 portions per day. DH was overweight but not under investigation for diabetes, hence he was recommended 12-14 portions per day.

@Twotinydictators oh that makes so much more sense now. Thank you!

Thank you @ohdrearydrearyme and @DangerFrog as well. I'm glad I asked now, instead of serving myself 10 pieces of Penne 😂

[quote WrongWayApricot]@Smartiepants79 maybe but BHF also recommends two tablespoons cooked rice and pasta which would be about 30g? www.bhf.org.uk/informationsupport/support/healthy-living/healthy-eating/healthy-eating-toolkit/food-portions/potatoes-bread-rice-pasta[/quote]
It also says that each day:
Food group: Potatoes, bread, rice, pasta, and other starchy carbohydrates

Women: 7 portions

So that would be substantially more and much more like the serving you're used to.

www.bhf.org.uk/informationsupport/support/healthy-living/healthy-eating/healthy-eating-toolkit/food-portions

@WrongWayApricot

Thank you *@ohdrearydrearyme and @DangerFrog* as well. I'm glad I asked now, instead of serving myself 10 pieces of Penne 😂

Ah, I see others got there before me. Should have read to the end. So glad you've got this sorted. Limiting to 10 pieces of pasta would be grim!

@WeatheringStorms22

Yes but you're supposed to have 4 portions of carbs a day.

So if you've had a piece of toast and 2 eggs for breakfast, chicken salad for lunch then you could have 3 x portions of pasta for your evening meal. Which is probably roughly about the recommended serving size on a pack.

Does that apply if you are following a diabetes prevention programme (which is a low GI diet). You have to be careful with carbs.

@watingroom2

If you cook pasta and then cool it then reheat it - something magical happens - and the - pasta becomes a non carb

It doesn't magically become carb free but studies claim it does halve the carbs as it becomes a resistant starch - I am a type 2 diabetic with a pasta and rice addiction and it works for rice too - in fact it seems to be anything startchy so even potatoes. Theres several studies on it, and Diabetes UK even have it under their carbs & cooking section

www.diabetes.org.uk/guide-to-diabetes/enjoy-food/carbohydrates-and-diabetes/carbs-and-cooking

Oh dear, I usually weigh 50g pp. There isn't usually any left over but it seems from what you say that's a lot I do think portion dozers generally are crazy these days.

Sizes, not dozers.

It doesn't magically become carb free but studies claim it does halve the carbs as it becomes a resistant starch - I am a type 2 diabetic with a pasta and rice addiction and it works for rice too - in fact it seems to be anything startchy so even potatoes. Theres several studies on it, and Diabetes UK even have it under their carbs & cooking section,

I always do this with pasta, potatoes and usually rice. So they don't continue cooking and stay in that state I want them. Had no idea it changes the starch

Not chilling it overnight though

30g of pasta would be tiny. We eat pasta almost every day and I usually cook half a kilo as there are five of us including very hungry teens and preteens. For myself I would eat about 70g of pasta. Dried pasta that is.

I haven’t read everything so apologies if it’s been said already but the BHF diet is a bit over complicated in that they have portion sizes but then allow more than one portion per meal - whereas must people
Think of a portion of carbs as all you are going to have that meal.

So they recommend that a portion of rice is 2 heaped tablespoons (not pudding spoons) or 80g cooked and for pasta it’s 3 heaped tablespoons or 80g cooked.

They say you would be eating 7 or 8 portions or carbs per day. So you could have 160g cooked rice in one meal and 160g cooked pasta for another and still be within the plan.

It’s too complicated!

@ThatOtherPoster

You greedy pig. I just walk down the rice aisle, sets me up for months

You fat cow. I just write the word “pasta” on paper and that’s enough for me for a year. If I’m really hungry, I use capitals.

I've put on half a stone just reading this thread...

Yeah IMHO the BHF guide is good and is flexible as it allows for different numbers of portions of carbohydrate at different meals depending on your preference

I cook about 30g of dried rice or 40 or 50g of dried pasta for myself. Anymore and I would put on weight.

We used to cook 1/3 of a pack of pasta (166gr) between the two of us, but it was way too much. We now divide the 500gr pack in 4 and eat 125gr.
Of those, I probably get 50gr and my DH gets 75gr.

Admittedly, even if Italians and used to pasta, we are not hungry people.

@user1471523870

We used to cook 1/3 of a pack of pasta (166gr) between the two of us, but it was way too much. We now divide the 500gr pack in 4 and eat 125gr. Of those, I probably get 50gr and my DH gets 75gr.

Admittedly, even if Italians and used to pasta, we are not hungry people.

The correct portion is 90g dry per person (turns into 180g cooked) if all you’re doing is eating pasta. If you’re making a side dish italian style then the amount of meat and veg will be higher and the pasta ridiculously low - growing up I knew a lot of Italian origin people and their families never put more than 3 lasagna sheets in a lasagna for 6 people, and minestrone soup probably only had a handful of pasta bits across the whole pot. Even things like spaghetti the portion of sauce was higher than pasta (and you would mop it up with a single slice of bread). They never really did breakfast or lunch (coffee for breakfast and occasionally tomatoes or egg on toast for lunch) - so dinner was the main event.

Could the oh-so-funny posters give it a rest now? It's always the same posters too, you must be keeping a keen look out for food threads. Very odd.

This isn't an undereating thread, it's about diabetes prevention. I'm really interested in reading about portion sizes of carbs if you aren't.

@LyingWitchInTheWardrobe

Could the oh-so-funny posters give it a rest now? It's always the same posters too, you must be keeping a keen look out for food threads. Very odd.

This isn't an undereating thread, it's about diabetes prevention. I'm really interested in reading about portion sizes of carbs if you aren't.

Just ignore them. There are always some 🤷🏻

My understanding of this is that its such a small amount because its the diabetes prevention programme – it's not necessarily relevant for everyone. Assuming you've been identified as pre-diabetic OP?

It's bad its so unclear though! If they want people to follow it they need to make it easier.

I normal measure pasta and rice 1/4 cup ( about a handful dried) for two portions , two meals.
Tho depending on company I’d eat extra, post menopausal, so tend to go lower carb

I meant rice and pasta

I would really do some reading on the Diabetes websites - most of them do not agree with the NHS diabetes eating advice its far too high in carbs and too low in good fats. I reversed my type 2 diabetes by restricting my carbs 5 days a week to under 50g and having higher carbs on weekend 140 -150g and even thats lower than what the NHS diabetes diet suggests which is around 250g carbs a day! NHS is still fixated on calories and eating low carb high fat is considered unhealthy because it can be higher in calories. I lost 4 stone and reversed my diabetes by dropping my carbs but alllowing myself up1650 calories a day whereas the NHS dietician was fixated on me only having 800 -1200 calories a day and 50g carbs per meal!

I am not low carbing and even I don't reach 250g a day😳 That must be a typo on the website surely!