Calculating the nutritional value of foods is an essential part of eating a healthy diet. You must know the nutritive value of the foods you eat in order to determine if you are consuming the right amount of calories, fat and carbohydrates and getting enough of the vitamins and minerals needed each day. Prepackaged foods have nutrition labels, but if you are preparing fresh-food recipes, you must be able to calculate the nutritional values in foods consisting of a variety of ingredients.
Step 1
Select a recipe and determine the amount of each ingredient that you will use. Carefully measure each ingredient needed to prepare the recipe.
Step 2
Read the nutrition labels on prepackaged foods to determine the nutrition values. Adjust the values as needed for the portions of foods used in the recipe. For example, if you use half of the serving size listed on the label, divide the nutrition values in half. Record the nutrition values of all prepackaged foods used in the recipe.
Step 3
Determine the nutrition values for foods that do not have nutrition labels. The United States Department of Agriculture maintains a list of the nutrient values in foods. Weigh foods needed for the recipe and find the nutrition values in the list. Adjust the values as needed for the portions of foods used in the recipe. For example, if you are using one-fourth of the serving size listed, divide the nutrition values by four. Record the nutrition values of all foods without nutrition labels used in the recipe.
Step 4
Add the nutrition values of all foods used in the recipe.
Step 5
Measure the combined ingredients. Determine the volume per cups. Each cup is a serving. Divide the total nutrient values by the number of cups in the recipe. For example, if the recipe makes 5 cups, divide the nutritional values by five. The resulting figures are the nutritional values per serving.
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