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Ground beef: raw to cooked weight
Raw and cooked, both ways
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An estimate from USDA data. Cooking time, heat and the piece itself move the result.
Ground beef: every method
| Method | Yield | 100 g raw | 150 g raw | 200 g raw |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lean, under 12% fat (90/10), crumbles, browned and drained | 69% (67.1–69.5%) | 69 g (67–70) | 103 g (101–104) | 138 g (134–139) |
| Lean, under 12% fat (90/10), patty, grilled or broiled | 73% (72.8–74.7%) | 73 g (73–75) | 110 g (109–112) | 146 g (146–149) |
| Lean, under 12% fat (90/10), patty, pan-broiled without oil | 77% (76.4–78.3%) | 77 g (76–78) | 116 g (115–117) | 154 g (153–157) |
| Medium, 12–22% fat (80/20), crumbles, browned and drained | 67% (63.7–71.6%) | 67 g (64–72) | 101 g (96–107) | 134 g (127–143) |
| Medium, 12–22% fat (80/20), patty, grilled or broiled | 69% (64–72.4%) | 69 g (64–72) | 103 g (96–109) | 138 g (128–145) |
| Medium, 12–22% fat (80/20), patty, pan-broiled without oil | 73% (70.8–76%) | 73 g (71–76) | 110 g (106–114) | 146 g (142–152) |
| Fatty, over 22% fat (70/30), crumbles, browned and drained | 62% (60.3–63.9%) | 62 g (60–64) | 93 g (90–96) | 124 g (121–128) |
| Fatty, over 22% fat (70/30), patty, grilled or broiled | 63% (55.3–69.4%) | 63 g (55–69) | 95 g (83–104) | 126 g (111–139) |
| Fatty, over 22% fat (70/30), patty, pan-broiled without oil | 69% (67.6–72.2%) | 69 g (68–72) | 103 g (101–108) | 138 g (135–144) |
| Method | Raw, per 100 g | Cooked, per 100 g | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lean, under 12% fat (90/10), crumbles, browned and drained | 176 kcal · 20 g protein | 230 kcal · 28.5 g protein | USDA yields table, NDB 23565, 2002, 4 samples · FDC 174030, FDC 171794 |
| Lean, under 12% fat (90/10), patty, grilled or broiled | 176 kcal · 20 g protein | 217 kcal · 26.1 g protein | USDA yields table, NDB 23563, 2002, 4 samples · FDC 174030, FDC 174031 |
| Lean, under 12% fat (90/10), patty, pan-broiled without oil | 176 kcal · 20 g protein | 204 kcal · 25.2 g protein | USDA yields table, NDB 23564, 2002, 4 samples · FDC 174030, FDC 171793 |
| Medium, 12–22% fat (80/20), crumbles, browned and drained | 254 kcal · 17.2 g protein | 272 kcal · 27 g protein | USDA yields table, NDB 23575, 2002, 4 samples · FDC 174036, FDC 171799 |
| Medium, 12–22% fat (80/20), patty, grilled or broiled | 254 kcal · 17.2 g protein | 270 kcal · 25.8 g protein | USDA yields table, NDB 23573, 2002, 4 samples · FDC 174036, FDC 171797 |
| Medium, 12–22% fat (80/20), patty, pan-broiled without oil | 254 kcal · 17.2 g protein | 246 kcal · 24 g protein | USDA yields table, NDB 23574, 2002, 4 samples · FDC 174036, FDC 171798 |
| Fatty, over 22% fat (70/30), crumbles, browned and drained | 332 kcal · 14.4 g protein | 270 kcal · 25.6 g protein | USDA yields table, NDB 13494, 2003, 4 samples · FDC 168652, FDC 169473 |
| Fatty, over 22% fat (70/30), patty, grilled or broiled | 332 kcal · 14.4 g protein | 277 kcal · 25.4 g protein | USDA yields table, NDB 13497, 2003, 4 samples · FDC 168652, FDC 168651 |
| Fatty, over 22% fat (70/30), patty, pan-broiled without oil | 332 kcal · 14.4 g protein | 238 kcal · 22.9 g protein | USDA yields table, NDB 13496, 2003, 4 samples · FDC 168652, FDC 168650 |
Browned and drained, 80/20 ground beef keeps about 67% of its raw weight: a 500 g pack becomes about 335 g. USDA measured this on four samples, from 63.7% to 71.6%, and the fattier the beef, the more it shrinks.
Fat is what makes the difference
Ground beef loses water like any meat, but it also loses fat, and the more fat it starts with, the more ends up in the pan. USDA bought ground beef in three label classes and cooked it three ways, with no fat added: patties to 71 °C, and crumbles browned in a skillet for about five minutes, then drained in a colander.
- Crumbles: 69% for lean beef under 12% fat, 67% for 12–22% fat, 62% over 22% fat.
- Grilled or broiled patties: 73%, 69% and 63%.
- Pan-broiled patties: 77%, 73% and 69%.
For the nutrients, each class is matched to the USDA entry that the table itself points to: 90/10, 80/20 and 70/30. From 100 g of raw 70/30 beef, about 19 g of fat melts out as crumbles; from 80/20, about 8.4 g.
A worked example
Brown 500 g of raw 80/20 beef and drain it. Expect 335 g, anywhere from 319 g to 358 g. The raw entry puts the pack at 1270 kcal and 86 g of protein. The cooked entry, for 335 g, gives 911 kcal and 90 g of protein. The protein agrees within a few grams; the energy gap is the fat you poured off, roughly 42 g of it.
Which figure should I log?
The one that matches what you ate. If you drain the fat, weigh the cooked crumbles and use a cooked entry. If the fat stays in, as in a sauce made in the same pan, the raw weight and the raw entry count all of it. Either way, weigh on one side and log the entry for that side; the guide Should you weigh food raw or cooked? explains why mixing them goes wrong.
My pack says 85/15. Which class is it?
USDA's table has three classes only, by the fat on the label: under 12%, 12–22% and over 22%. 85/15 falls in the middle one, with 80/20; 93/7 and 95/5 fall in the lean one.
Sources
- USDA FoodData Central, SR Legacy: raw ground beef 90/10, 174030, 80/20, 174036 and 70/30, 168652; cooked 90/10 crumbles, 171794, broiled patty, 174031 and pan-broiled patty, 171793; 80/20 crumbles, 171799, broiled, 171797 and pan-broiled, 171798; 70/30 crumbles, 169473, broiled, 168651 and pan-broiled, 168650.
- USDA Table of Cooking Yields for Meat and Poultry (2014), ground beef rows, four samples each: low fat NDB 23565, NDB 23563 and NDB 23564 (2002); medium fat NDB 23575, NDB 23573 and NDB 23574 (2002); high fat NDB 13494, NDB 13497 and NDB 13496 (2003). The cooking method is from the same document.
For other meats, open the raw to cooked weight converter or see beef steak. Cooking a chili or a bolognese? The recipe-portion calculator splits the whole pot by weight.