Sizing up portions

Enid Donaldson-Mignotte

IT WOULD not be easy even to imagine the difference of each kitchen in Jamaica cooking for a family of six persons.

Cooking utensils, recipes and the different ingredients used in them, style of serving, manner of eating and each menu is as different as the portions served, and one could go on.

The greatest difference however could be in the portions of food served.

A while back CFNI in a Gleaner cooking feature, gave some answers to what is a portion, and how much is a portion. I will here quote from two paragraphs.

What is a portion?

The only solution is to learn about portion sizes and portion control. What does this mean?

Portions are measured quantities of food to give caloric and nutrient values specified for a food group category. This makes it easy to determine the required amount of food, if you know how many portions from each food group you need daily. You can also substitute one food for another in the same food group and be assured that for the quantity stated, you are receiving the same nutritional value.

How much is a portion?

The portion sizes are relative to the food groups in which they are classified. The usual sizes are as follows:

Staple foods

1 ounce dry cereal or 1/2 cup cooked. e.g., rice pasta. The provisions e.g., green bananas, yam, and potato, would be 2 ounces per portion.

Legumes

1/4 cup cooked dried peas and beans, approximately 1/2 ounce of nuts or seeds.

Vegetables

1/2 cup cooked (e.g., pumpkin, callaloo, cabbage) vegetables eaten raw can usually be taken as much as you want.

Fruits

(Usually 1 small to medium size serves for a portion (e.g., 1 orange). For some of the larger fruits (e.g., ripe bananas and paw pay (solo) 1/2 is a portion. (e.g., 1 slice pineapple)

Food from animals

1-2 ounces of meat, poultry or fish, 1/2 cup whole milk; 1 cup skim milk, 1 slice cheese; 1 medium egg.

Fats and oils

1 teaspoon cooking oil, margarine mayonnaise, 1 tablespoon gravy, salad dressing.

If these quantities seem small, remember that you are not limited to only one portion. For instance, most persons will eat two slices of bread for breakfast. This means only that you have had two portions of staples. Your total allotment for the day could be as low as 5 portions of staple, or as much as 20 portions of staples, depending on your total caloric needs. This represents only one of the food groups.

You still have to make selections from the other fine food groups.

The following paragraph "Counting portions and making substitution" states you will need help from a professional nutritionist or dietician to determine your total portion needs from each food group. Once this is done, you can make your selections according to the quantities specified alone by substituting one food for another in the same food group, you will be able to achieve variety from day to day.

The last paragraph who needs to learn position control? says "If you are having difficulty maintaining your desirable weight or if overweight, you will definitely benefit from learning portion control. You will find it helpful to be able to qualify the foods you eat in a practical way, rather than trying to count calories that you cannot see.

Persons on modified diets, such as diabetes and hypertensives, will find it easier to stick to a prescribed eating plan if they understand portion control and substitution.

Even if you do not have a dietary problem you may still find this useful as a way of making sure that your food selection covers all the food groups and increases your chance of selecting a well balanced diet.

Henry Fielding says "Love: a word properly applied to our delight in particular kinds of food: sometimes metaphorically spoken of the favourite objects of all our appetites."

Portion control reminds us not to dig our graves with our teeth.

Happy decisions on how much to eat.

Mince and cabbage

(l450g) 1 lb ground beef

(325g ) 1 1/2 cups finely shredded cabbage

2 teaspoons soy sauce

1/2 teaspoons salt

2 tablespoons butter or margarine

2 tablespoons tomato sauce or ketchup

Mix ground beef with seasonings. Brown well. Add hot water a little at a time and let mince simmer until meat is almost cooked.

Add shredded cabbage, cover and steam. For added flavours a tablespoon of sherry makes all the difference. Serve with hot rice.

A variation on this recipe is to simmer in cabbage leaves. For this, prepare the mince as above.

Quale cabbage leaves in hot water to make them flexible. Fill each leaf with helpings of the mince and fasten with toothpicks. Prepare sauce as follows:

3 tablespoons tomato sauce

2 tablespoons soy sauce

(100ml) 1/2 cup water

Let sauce come to the boil. Place cabbage rolls or turn down flame to simmer until cooked. Serve hot. Serves 4 to 6.

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