I eat rice almost everday at dinner. I'm making small changes and one I want to do is eat what is usually recommended as a portion of rice on.

Last night I took a measuring cup and measured 3/4 of Goya chicken rice and I didn't go back for more. Trust me it's a big thing.

What portion size do you eat?

Next I'll measure pasta.

I cook a 1/2 cup of dry white rice which, after cooking, seems to be more than enough for me!

I usually cook between 1/4-1/2 cup of jasmine rice in some chicken broth. A serving is 1/4 and it is 150 cals per, so that is 150-300 cals depending on how much I eat of it.

The Goya chicken rice is really good, but has a lot of sodium. I used to eat a lot of it, and Rice-A-Roni, but I've cut it out.

We live on Goya rice. I just looked at the site Caloriecout.com and I was surprised it actually had all the different goya rices listed. I just clicked in the amout and it calculated it.

Boy I'm really going to have to cut down on that rice. LOL

You seem to have a good attitude with it though. Cut down on it, but if you enjoy it, don't cut it out completely. We can only be miserable for so long when we start cutting things out of our diet that we enjoy.
It looks like you're doing very well already with your weightloss! Keep it up!!

With cooked rice, I always measure 1/2 cup. I like to have it in a little cup shape on my plate, so I invert it.

make sure to measure after it's cooked!

If I'm using rice to go with a stir-fry, curry or similar then I have 1/3 cup (dry), usually brown jasmine rice. If I'm putting rice in miso soup, I have 1/4 cup (dry) of Thai red rice. I am slightly confused as to why people are measuring after they cook. Surely that way it's harder to cook the correct amount?

As for pasta, I have 3oz (dry) if it's the main meal, and when I'm putting pasta in soup it's around 1oz, or 2-4 tablespoons.

I don't have any trouble staying within my calorie limit (around 1050) with these quantities. It often amazes me how little pasta or rice people eat as a portion!

I eat about 1/2 cup to 1 cup (cooked) depending on the meal and how hungry I am.

A cup is usually pushing it for me, and more than a cup is a mountain!

Martini - I still don't get how it's easier than way than it is to measure the dry rice when you are putting it in to the rice cooker?

I do the same thing. I love the way it looks on the plate. Very fancy. To me a half cup of cooked basmati is a serving and I typically eat 2 servings (One cup) if I have enough calories for the day.

I always admire those cute little domes of rice you get in Thai restaurants too.

Martini - all is explained! Thank you for going to the trouble. I also now know never to buy a rice cooker, if I happen to be tempted! (Not that I am, I find it perfectly easy and effective to use a pan.) I'm rarely cooking more than one portion, and because of my health problems I've been advised not to keep and reheat rice. It sounds like they're fantastic for larger portions and not so good for a single serving, am I right?

Of course, I'm now amazed at how many people presumably have rice cookers. Is it considered a must-have gadget in America, then? The only person I've known who had one was my ex-flatmate, and she was Sri Lankan, consumed a huge amount of rice, and the rice cooker was a way of life for her.

The other part of measuring after cooking is, for me, cooking enough for my family. I also like to meal plan and I can use the leftover rice with the stocked frozen dishes I have (spicy beans and curry are usually things that I have portioned and frozen).