Resources > Tips for Estimating Serving Sizes
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The Bread, Cereal, Rice, and Pasta Group |
| 1 pancake |
a compact disc (CD) |
| 1/2 cooked cup rice |
a cupcake wrapper full |
| 1 piece of cornbread |
a bar of soap |
| 1 cup of pasta, spaghetti, cereal |
a fist |
| 2 cups of cooked pasta |
a full outstretched hand |
| 1 cup of potatoes, rice, pasta |
a tennis ball, ice cream scoop |
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The Vegetable Group |
| 1 cup green salad |
a baseball or a fist |
| 1 baked potato |
a fist |
| 3/4 cup tomato juice |
a small styrofoam cup |
| 1/2 cup cooked broccoli |
a scoop of ice cream or a light bulb |
| 1/2 cup serving |
6 asparagus spears; 7 or 8 baby carrots or carrot sticks or 1 ear of corn on the cob |
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The Fruit Group |
| 1/2 cup of grapes (15 grapes) |
a light bulb |
| 1/2 cup of fresh fruit |
7 cotton balls |
| 1 medium size fruit |
a tennis ball or a fist |
| 1 cup of cut-up fruit |
a fist |
| 1/4 cup raisins |
a large egg |
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The Milk, Yogurt, and Cheese Group
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| 1 ounce of cheese |
a pair of dice or your thumb |
| 1 1/2 ounces cheese |
3 dominoes or your index and middle fingers |
| 1 cup of ice cream |
a large scoop the size of a baseball |
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The Meat, Poultry, Fish, Dry Bean, Egg, and Nut Group |
| 2 tablespoons peanut butter |
a ping-pong ball |
| 1 teaspoon peanut butter |
a fingertip |
| 1 tablespoon peanut butter |
a thumb tip |
3 ounces cooked meat, fish,
poultry |
a palm, a deck or cards or a cassette tape |
| 3 ounces grilled/baked fish |
a checkbook |
| 3 ounces cooked chicken |
a chicken leg and thigh or breast |
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Fats, Oils and Sweets |
| 2 tablespoons salad dressing |
a ping-pong ball |
| 1 teaspoon butter, margarine |
size of a stamp the thickness of your finger or a thumb tip |
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Snack Foods |
| 1 ounce of nuts or small candies |
one handful |
| 1 ounce of chips or pretzels |
two handfuls |
1/2 cup of potato chips, crackers
or popcorn |
one man's handful |
1/3 cup of potato chips, crackers
or popcorn |
one woman's handful |
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Serving Dishes/Utensils |
| 1/2 cup |
a small fruit bowl, a custard cup or mashed potato scoop |
| 1 1/2 cups |
a large cereal/soup bowl |
| 1 1/2 cups of pasta, noodles |
a dinner plate, not heaped |
| 1/2 cup of pasta, noodles |
a cafeteria vegetable dish |
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Measuring Tip: You might want to know that... a cupped hand holds 2 tablespoons of liquid if you don't have measuring spoons.
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| Source: Oregon State University Extension Family & Community Development |
