Calories in
quinoa, cooked
120 kcal per 100 g Quinoa, cooked contains 120 calories per 100 grams, or about 222 calories per cup. Per 100 g it provides 4.4 g protein, 21.3 g carbohydrate and 1.9 g fat.
By calories that splits 71% carbohydrate, 15% protein, 14% fat — dissected below.
SOURCE·USDA SR Legacy·FDC 168917·REVIEWED JUL 2026
The 4·4·9 shorthand adds to 120 kcal and USDA publishes 120 kcal. The arithmetic closes, so the axis above is simply that figure divided by the shares.
Source—USDA FoodData Central, SR Legacy—FDC 168917—retrieved 2026-07
How this is worked out
- USDA measures every nutrient per 100 g of edible portion. That row is published here unchanged — nothing is rounded up, smoothed or "adjusted".
- The energy figure is USDA's own, derived with food-specific factors. This site never computes the calorie count it publishes.
- The Atwater shorthand 4 · 4 · 9 is applied to the protein, carbohydrate and fat grams only to split that energy into shares — and where the shorthand disagrees with the published figure, the gap is printed rather than hidden.
- A serving is a straight proportional conversion of the per-100 g row, using USDA's own household measures for the grams.
- The walking figure uses MET 4.0 at 70 kg, the same equation the sister site publishes.
per serving = per 100 g × serving grams ÷ 100 energy shares = 4·P + 4·C + 9·F (P, C, F in grams) walk minutes = kcal ÷ (4.0 × 3.5 × 70 ÷ 200)
Calories in a typical serving
Per-100 g figures are useful for comparison but nobody eats 100 g of anything on purpose. These are the USDA's own household measures.
| Serving | Grams | Calories | Protein | Carbs | Fat |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 cup | 185.0 g | 222 | 8.1 g | 39.4 g | 3.6 g |
SOURCE·USDA SR Legacy·REVIEWED JUL 2026
Full nutrition, per 100 g and per cup
| Nutrient | Per 100 g | Per cup |
|---|---|---|
| Energy | 120 kcal | 222 kcal |
| Protein | 4.4 g | 8.1 g |
| Total fat | 1.9 g | 3.6 g |
| Saturated fat | 0.2 g | 0.4 g |
| Carbohydrate | 21.3 g | 39.4 g |
| Fibre | 2.8 g | 5.2 g |
| Sugars | 0.9 g | 1.6 g |
| Sodium | 7.0 mg | 13.0 mg |
| Potassium | 172.0 mg | 318.2 mg |
| Calcium | 17.0 mg | 31.5 mg |
| Iron | 1.5 mg | 2.8 mg |
| Vitamin C | 0.0 mg | 0.0 mg |
| Vitamin A | 0.0 µg | 0.0 µg |
| Cholesterol | 0.0 mg | 0.0 mg |
| Water | 71.6 g | 132.5 g |
A dash means the nutrient was not measured for this item, which is not the same as zero.
SOURCE·USDA SR Legacy·FDC 168917·REVIEWED JUL 2026
How quinoa, cooked compares
Among the 49 cereal grains and pasta items on this site, quinoa, cooked ranks 41 of 49 by calorie density, against a category average of 291 kcal per 100 g — so it is about 59% less calorie-dense than typical for its group.
It carries 3.7 g of protein per 100 calories, so it is not a meaningful protein source.
To burn off one cup (222 kcal), a 70 kg adult would walk for roughly 45 minutes — see the walking calculation on our sister site, or pick a different activity. Treat that as a sense of scale rather than a rule: eating and moving are not a simple ledger.
SOURCE·USDA SR Legacy·REVIEWED JUL 2026
A reference table describes the average quinoa, cooked. Yours was grown somewhere, picked at some ripeness, and cooked by you.
Questions this entry settles
How many calories are in quinoa, cooked?
Quinoa, cooked contains 120 calories per 100 g, which works out to about 222 calories per cup. It also provides 4.4 g of protein, 21.3 g of carbohydrate and 1.9 g of fat per 100 g.
What is the macro breakdown of quinoa, cooked?
By calories, quinoa, cooked is roughly 71% carbohydrate, 15% protein and 14% fat. That makes it a predominantly carbohydrate-based food.
How long does it take to burn off a cup?
About 45 minutes of ordinary walking for a 70 kg adult (MET 4.0). That is a rough guide for scale, not a prescription — appetite and activity interact in ways a simple subtraction does not capture.
Is this figure exact for the quinoa, cooked I bought?
No. These are USDA reference values, averaged across samples. Real foods vary with variety, ripeness, growing conditions, cut, brand and how they were cooked — 10–20% either way is normal. Use them for planning, not precision.
Neighbouring entries
The 6 foods that sit closest to quinoa, cooked on the calorie-density shelf, all within cereal grains and pasta.
Source: USDA FoodData Central, SR Legacy — public domain, reviewed JUL 2026. Full USDA description: "Quinoa, cooked". General information only — not medical or nutrition advice. Values are averages for a food type and vary by brand, ripeness and preparation.
