Select a plate that is eight to 10 inches (20 to 25 cm) in diameter and arrange your favourite healthy foods on it to look like this:
• Half-filled with vegetables and salad
• Quarter-filled with starch (rice or pasta)
• Quarter-filled with protein (such as fish, chicken breast or beans)
• One serving of fruit on the side
Food court options, such as plates of piled-high rice with chicken souvlaki or chow mein, provide enough food for two dinners. When preparing dinners at home, you have more control over the size of the plate and the amount of food you serve, so you can control the portion you consume.
Let your hands guide you
For a quick guide to proper portion sizes, look no farther than your own two hands.
Here's how to estimate the amount you should eat.
• The palm of your hand: one serving (75 g/2.5 oz) of chicken, meat, fishor seafood
• A closed fist: one serving (1 cup/250 mL) of salad
• A cupped hand: one serving (1/2 cup/125 mL) of vegetables or grains, such as pasta or rice
• A thumb tip: 1 tsp (5 mL) of added fat, such as oil, butter or margarine
• An entire thumb: 1 tbsp (15 mL) of salad dressing