USDA Survey Foods374 exact records

Pasta, rice & grains: find the record that best matches the food.

Prepared pasta, rice, noodles, cooked cereals, and grain-based dishes. This page shows the shape of the collection before asking you to choose a number: what sits near the middle, how wide the central range is, and which words distinguish one source record from another.

The shortest route to a defensible estimate

Choose in this order: identity, amount, then context.

01
Identity
Match the exact food description—especially preparation, additions, and whether the record is a single food or mixed dish.
02
Amount
Use a household measure tied to that record or enter grams. A familiar serving word without a weight can hide a large difference.
03
Context
Add the brand, recipe, sauce, cooking fat, toppings, or edible portion that the generic source record cannot know.

What the collection actually contains

Central nutrient ranges on one denominator

Each row uses values per 100 grams. The median is the collection midpoint; the central range runs from the 10th to the 90th percentile. That interval describes variation among source records—not uncertainty around a single meal and not a recommended intake range.

Median and central per-100-gram nutrient ranges for records in this category
Nutrient	Median	Central 80%	Records reporting
Energyper 100 g	133 kcal	87–197 kcal	374 of 374
Proteinper 100 g	4.5 g	2.1–8.6 g	374 of 374
Fiberper 100 g	1.2 g	0.5–2.5 g	374 of 374
Sodiumper 100 g	278 mg	161–504 mg	374 of 374

Zeros are retained when reported; missing values are not silently converted to zero. Rounded values are for orientation. Open an exact profile for Feast’s 21-nutrient panel and source citation.

Three coordinates, not winners

Records that make the range easier to understand

These examples sit near the collection’s energy midpoint or upper central protein and fiber boundaries. A high value for one nutrient is not a complete judgment of the food, and the records are not ranked as “best.”

Near the collection midpoint

Macaroni or pasta salad, made with Italian dressing

133 kcal per 100 g—close to the median energy concentration among these records.

Inspect portions, nutrients, and source →

Near the upper central protein boundary

Macaroni or noodles with cheese

8.7 g protein per 100 g in this exact source record.

Inspect portions, nutrients, and source →

Near the upper central fiber boundary

Pasta, whole grain, with tomato-based sauce and meat, restaurant

2.5 g fiber per 100 g in this exact source record.

Inspect portions, nutrients, and source →

What “Pasta, rice & grains” includes here

One Feast category, several USDA source categories

Feast groups related records to make the library navigable. The more specific USDA category and the complete food name remain the better evidence for choosing a match.

Pasta mixed dishes, excludes macaroni and cheese169 records

Rice mixed dishes99 records

Fried rice and lo/chow mein28 records

Rice20 records

Grits and other cooked cereals18 records

Macaroni and cheese16 records

Pasta, noodles, cooked grains14 records

Pasta sauces, tomato-based10 records

Decision support from the exact records on this page

Turn source data into a better next decision

These conclusions and reading paths are computed from 9 exact records behind Pasta, rice & grains category landmarks. Links are chosen by record identity, controlled contrast, formulation input, nutrient spread, or serving context—not by loose keyword similarity.

Equal-weight result

Macaroni or noodles with cheese is higher in calories per 100 g

Macaroni or noodles with cheese reports 223 kcal versus 82 kcal for Cream of wheat, instant, made with water, fat added: a 141 kcal difference when both are normalized to 100 g.

Inspect the underlying evidence

The denominator changes the answer

Macaroni or pasta salad, made with Italian dressing is denser; Biryani with chicken is higher in its source amount

Macaroni or pasta salad, made with Italian dressing reports 133 kcal per 100 g and 181 kcal in USDA source amount (136 g). Biryani with chicken reports a lower 104 kcal per 100 g but a higher 255 kcal in USDA source amount (245 g).

Record identity is part of the estimate

Distinguish “Macaroni or pasta salad, made with Italian dressing” from “Rice, white, cooked with fat, Puerto Rican style”

These are separate USDA records with separate formulations or survey descriptions. Match preparation, additions, and the named household amount before borrowing either record’s nutrients.

Inspect the underlying evidence

Contextual knowledge graph

Follow the relationship that matches your question

For Pasta, rice & grains category landmarks, each path states why the destination belongs here, so you can distinguish a true evidentiary connection from a merely similar label.

Best next guide for this exact record Rice, white

Rice, white, cooked with fat, Puerto Rican style and Rice, white, with carrots and tomatoes and/or tomato-based sauce, no added fat are explicitly linked in this guide, which separates direct name matches from contextual variants.

Follow this evidence path Best next guide for this exact record Biryani

Biryani with chicken is explicitly linked in this guide, which separates direct name matches from contextual variants.

Follow this evidence path Put the observed spread in corpus context Calories: density and serving context

In this page’s records, calories runs from 82 kcal in Cream of wheat, instant, made with water, fat added to 223 kcal in Macaroni or noodles with cheese, all per 100 g.

Follow this evidence path A formulation detail that separates records Salt, table

USDA input 2047 appears in 7 of 9 context records; its summed listed input weight spans 1–12 g across those source formulations. These are source-formulation input weights, not plated or serving weights. Follow the code to inspect every represented occurrence.

Follow this evidence path A formulation detail that separates records Beverages, water, tap, drinking

USDA input 14411 appears in 4 of 9 context records; its summed listed input weight spans 88.9–711 g across those source formulations. These are source-formulation input weights, not plated or serving weights. Follow the code to inspect every represented occurrence.

Follow this evidence path 4 context records in this source topic Pasta mixed dishes, excludes macaroni and cheese

Macaroni or pasta salad, made with Italian dressing and Pasta, whole grain, with tomato-based sauce and meat, restaurant belong to this USDA source-category collection. Its displayed ranges and complete exact-record catalog provide the peer set for a manual comparison; the destination does not preselect this page’s record.

Follow this evidence path Test a nearby record choice Rice, brown, with carrots and tomatoes and/or tomato-based sauce, fat added vs Rice, white, with carrots and tomatoes and/or tomato-based sauce, no added fat

Rice, white, with carrots and tomatoes and/or tomato-based sauce, no added fat is held as one side of the comparison. The explicit record-description contrast is Added-fat wording: added fat versus no added fat; it is a selection cue, not evidence of cause.

Follow this evidence path

Exact-record directory

Browse all 374 profiles in this category

Records are presented as source descriptions, not as universal recipes. Open the closest wording first; compare alternatives only after checking that the denominator and preparation context match.

Pasta, rice & grains

Barley

236 kcal in a 170 g source amount. Open the record to compare that amount with 100 grams and other source measures.

Source amount: 236 kcal · 170 g
Listed measures: 153–1,029 kcal
Protein, same amount: 3.7 g

Choose in this order: identity, amount, then context.

Identity

Amount

Context

Central nutrient ranges on one denominator

Records that make the range easier to understand

One Feast category, several USDA source categories

Turn source data into a better next decision

Macaroni or noodles with cheese is higher in calories per 100 g

Macaroni or pasta salad, made with Italian dressing is denser; Biryani with chicken is higher in its source amount

Distinguish “Macaroni or pasta salad, made with Italian dressing” from “Rice, white, cooked with fat, Puerto Rican style”

Follow the relationship that matches your question

Browse all 374 profiles in this category

Three questions that prevent the most common category mistakes