What Constitutes a Serving?

  • Bread, Cereal, Rice and Pasta
    • 1 slice bread
    • 1 ounce of ready-to-eat cereal
    • 1/2 cup of cooked cereal, rice, or pasta
    • 1/2 bun, bagel, or English muffin
    • 1/2 cup cooked cereal
  • Vegetable
    • 1 cup of raw leafy vegetables
    • 1/2 cup other vegetables, cooked or chopped raw
    • 3/4 cup of vegetable juice
  • Fruit
    • 1 medium apple, banana, orange
    • 1/2 cup of chopped, cooked, or canned fruit
    • 3/4 cup of fruit juice
  • Milk, Yogurt, and Cheese
    • 1 cup of milk or yogurt
    • 1-1/2 ounces of natural cheese
    • 2 ounces of process cheese
  • Meat, Poultry, Fish, Dry Beans, Eggs, and Nuts
    • 2-3 ounces of cooked lean meat, poultry, or fish
    • 1/2 cup cooked dry beans or one egg counts as 1 ounce of lean meat
    • 2 tablespoons of peanut butter or 1/3 cup of nuts count as 1 ounce of meat
  • Vegetarian Protein sources (serving sizes)
    • 4 oz. tofu
    • 8 oz. soy milk
    • 2 tablespoons nuts or seeds
    • 3 ounce veggie burger
    • 2 tablespoons of peanut butter
    • 1/2 cup cooked dry beans or 1 egg (if lacto-ovo vegetarian)

These are the guidelines from the USDA (with the exception of the vegetarian info).

www.usda.gov