Finding it hard to determine what a serving or portion size is? You are not alone. Here are some ways you can picture a serving or portion size using everyday objects. Note: hand and finger sizes vary from person to person! These are GUIDES only.Bread, Cereal, Rice and Pasta Group
1 cup of potatoes, rice, pasta = tennis ball, ice cream scoop
1 pancake = compact disc (CD)
1/2 cup cooked rice = full cupcake wrapper
1 piece of cornbread = bar of soap
1 slice of bread = audiocassette tape
1 cup of pasta, spaghetti, cereal = fist
2 cups of cooked pasta = full outstretched hand
Vegetable Group
1 cup of green salad = baseball, fist
1 baked potato = fist
3/4 cup tomato juice = small Styrofoam cup
1/2 cup cooked broccoli = scoop of ice cream, light bulb
1/2 cup serving = 6 asparagus spears, 7 or 8 baby carrots or carrot sticks, 1 ear of corn on the cob
Fruit Group
1/2 cup grapes (15 grapes) = light bulb
1/2 cup of fresh fruit = 7 cotton balls
1 medium size fruit = tennis ball, fist
1 cup of cut-up fruit = fist
1/4 cup raisins = large egg
Milk, Yogurt and Cheese Group
1 1/2 oz of cheese = 9-volt battery, 3 dominoes, your index and middle fingers
1 ounce of cheese = pair of dice, your thumb
1 cup of ice cream = large scoop the size of a baseball
Meat, Poultry, Fish, Dry Beans, Eggs and Nut Group
2 Tbsp of peanut butter = ping-pong ball
1 tsp of peanut butter = fingertip
1 Tbsp of peanut butter = thumb tip
3 oz cooked meat, fish, poultry = palm, deck of cards, cassette tape
3 oz grilled/baked fish = checkbook
3 oz cooked chicken = chicken leg and thigh or breast
Fats, Oils and Sweets
1 tsp butter, margarine = size of a stamp as thick as your finger or thumb tip
2 Tbsp salad dressing = ping-pong ball
Snack Foods
1 oz of nuts or small candies = one handful
1 oz 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
Serving Dishes/Utensils
1/2 cup = small fruit bowl, custard cup, mashed potato scoop
1 1/2 cups = large cereal / soup bowl
1 1/2 cups of pasta, noodles = dinner plate, not heaped
1/2 cup of pasta, noodles = cafeteria vegetable dish
Extra Measurement Facts
1 cupped hand holds 2 Tbsp of liquid if you don't have measuring spoons
1 slice of bread is one ounce or 1 serving; some rolls or bagels weigh 3 to 5 ounces or more making them equal to 3 to 5 servings of bread.
Want a little cut-out card of this for your purse. Click here.
There's also these goofy plates. Although I bet people will just pile it a little higher.