Raw or cooked weight in a food log: keep the basis consistent
By Juste Tools · Published
When a food entry says raw, dry or cooked, use a quantity measured on that same basis. Do not pair a cooked quantity with a dry-food entry just because the food name matches. This is about keeping records consistent, not deciding how much to eat.
Read the entry description
A dry pasta entry and a cooked pasta entry describe different quantities of the same ingredient. Water added or lost during preparation changes the weight. Check whether the data refers to a raw ingredient, prepared food or a complete recipe.
- Keep the preparation word in the entry name.
- Check the unit: grams, pieces, servings or another measure.
- Use the packet or source description when you have it.
Use one arithmetic basis
Suppose a data source describes 100 grams of a dry product. A quantity entered in grams should refer to that dry product, unless you deliberately choose a different cooked-food record. Do not use a fixed conversion for every food: preparation methods and water changes differ.
For a mixed dish, keep ingredient information and the served portion clearly separated. If you do not know the original ingredient quantity, record an estimate rather than disguising a conversion as an exact value.
Catch mismatches before saving
Review the selected food, preparation and amount together. Search results can have similar names with different units. If you later correct an entry, check that you did not leave the original duplicate in the day. Consistent labels make a diary easier to interpret even when not every quantity is precise.