How much bacon deliciousness am I really dealing with here?
April 16, 2011 6:34 PM Subscribe
Am I misunderstanding how to read basic nutrition labels? Please help me figure out how much of what is in my package of bacon.
Yesterday I was trying to figure out the nutritional breakdown of an delicious bacon, mozzarella and kale quiche that I had made. When I started trying to figure out the bacon portion I ran into a problem.
I used half of a package of Trader Joe's Uncured Apple Smoked Bacon. Package says it's 12oz or 340g. Looking at the nutrition facts, serving size is 1 slice which they say is 15g. Estimated servings is 11 per package. But basic math says 11 servings times 15g per serving equals only 165g. 165g is a long ways away from 340g.
Curiously, I looked for the nutrition facts of another bacon I've used in the past -- Niman Ranch bacon, which also contains 12oz or 340g per package. The nutrition facts are pretty similar, but this one is 1 slice at 15g with approximately 10 servings per package. So 10 servings at 15g per serving, 150g total?
Are the nutrition facts on my bacon completely wrong or is there a component that I'm missing? How much of what is really in each package?
Yesterday I was trying to figure out the nutritional breakdown of an delicious bacon, mozzarella and kale quiche that I had made. When I started trying to figure out the bacon portion I ran into a problem.
I used half of a package of Trader Joe's Uncured Apple Smoked Bacon. Package says it's 12oz or 340g. Looking at the nutrition facts, serving size is 1 slice which they say is 15g. Estimated servings is 11 per package. But basic math says 11 servings times 15g per serving equals only 165g. 165g is a long ways away from 340g.
Curiously, I looked for the nutrition facts of another bacon I've used in the past -- Niman Ranch bacon, which also contains 12oz or 340g per package. The nutrition facts are pretty similar, but this one is 1 slice at 15g with approximately 10 servings per package. So 10 servings at 15g per serving, 150g total?
Are the nutrition facts on my bacon completely wrong or is there a component that I'm missing? How much of what is really in each package?
The mass of the package differs from the mass of the total mass of all servings because when you cook bacon, the fat turns to grease, most of which isn't consumed.
posted by zippy at 6:38 PM on April 16, 2011
posted by zippy at 6:38 PM on April 16, 2011
With something like bacon, everything is an estimate, because the product varies. It's like asking how much a stalk of broccoli weighs.
(Does it say "serving size: 1 slice (cooked)"?)
So, what you can mostly depend on is that if the package says it is 12oz of bacon, you indeed have 12oz of uncooked bacon. If the package contains 12 slices, each one is an ounce, and each one contains more or less what the package says it does.
posted by gjc at 6:55 PM on April 16, 2011
(Does it say "serving size: 1 slice (cooked)"?)
So, what you can mostly depend on is that if the package says it is 12oz of bacon, you indeed have 12oz of uncooked bacon. If the package contains 12 slices, each one is an ounce, and each one contains more or less what the package says it does.
posted by gjc at 6:55 PM on April 16, 2011
As said above, the nutritional info refers to "one pan-fried slice" or cooked slices. It's not going to add up to the total grams you started with.
If you're looking for how much the bacon is adding nutritionally to your meal - it says 7g of fat, 5 g of protein and no carbs in 1 pan-fried slice for 90 calories.
And yeah. . . Yum - bacon!
posted by garnetgirl at 7:02 PM on April 16, 2011
If you're looking for how much the bacon is adding nutritionally to your meal - it says 7g of fat, 5 g of protein and no carbs in 1 pan-fried slice for 90 calories.
And yeah. . . Yum - bacon!
posted by garnetgirl at 7:02 PM on April 16, 2011
Not completely related, but food labeling is a notoriously sneaky bit of business. Yes, there are very strict guidelines about fonts and colors, but the actual label doesn't need to meet any kind of FDA review. The only time a review takes place is when/if there's a recall or a competitor complains or there's a large number of public complaints.
I could basically print a label that was like GILLODS MAGIC BACON, 0 CALORIES and not have to sweat it unless someone called me on. Something as obvious as 0 cal bacon would probably not last long, but. Something to, uh, 'chew' on.
It's worth noting that if someone finds fault with your label in can end in a devastating recall. It just doesn't happen very often
posted by GilloD at 12:16 AM on April 17, 2011
I could basically print a label that was like GILLODS MAGIC BACON, 0 CALORIES and not have to sweat it unless someone called me on. Something as obvious as 0 cal bacon would probably not last long, but. Something to, uh, 'chew' on.
It's worth noting that if someone finds fault with your label in can end in a devastating recall. It just doesn't happen very often
posted by GilloD at 12:16 AM on April 17, 2011
Response by poster: I knew there was something simple I was missing!
As far as figuring out the nutrition of my quiche, I cooked the kale in the bacon fat, so not too much was left out. ;) But figuring the loss of fat/water during the cooking process will help me guesstimate the rest of the way.
Thanks AskMe!
posted by Nerro at 11:18 PM on April 17, 2011
As far as figuring out the nutrition of my quiche, I cooked the kale in the bacon fat, so not too much was left out. ;) But figuring the loss of fat/water during the cooking process will help me guesstimate the rest of the way.
Thanks AskMe!
posted by Nerro at 11:18 PM on April 17, 2011
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posted by Jairus at 6:36 PM on April 16, 2011