Perfect Portion Size Guide

Reader's Digest CanadaJanuary 18, 2011

Most of us underestimate portions and, therefore, calories by at least 25 per cent—meaning that you could eat hundreds of extra calories every day and not even know it. Here’s how to estimate the perfect portion size every time. We give you two comparisons: one compares the portion size to everyday objects and the other to parts of your hand, for a take-anywhere system.

The Perfect Portion	Looks like This	Or This
90 g meat	a mini-pack of tissues	your outstretched palm
90 g fish	a chequebook	your outstretched palm
3–4 tablespoons beans	a tennis ball	a cupped handful
40 g cheese	3 dice	your thumb
2 heaping tablespoons rice or pasta	a full cupcake wrapper	a rounded handful
1 portion of mashed potatoes	a drink coaster	your palm
25 g roll	a bar of soap	half of your palm
1 small bun	the round part of a light bulb	half of your fist
8 cm piece of cake	a pack of cards	about 3⁄4 of your palm
1 teaspoon butter or margarine	a postage stamp	the tip of your thumb
1 tablespoon oil or dressing	the base of a teacup	the centre of your cupped hand
potato chips	tennis ball	a cupped handful
nuts or dried fruit	a golf ball	a small cupped handful