If you’re wondering if mashed potatoes are a good source of fiber, you’ve stumbled upon the right article for you. In this post, we will answer all of the questions you may have about mashed potatoes as a fiber source.
- In the first part, we will discuss the fiber content in mashed potatoes, giving you the exact fiber count and the number of calories you can find in them.
- After that, we will compare the fiber content in mashed potatoes to other similar foods, to give you more perspective.
- Finally, we will give you the fiber count in mashed potatoes in multiple quantities.
No more wasting time, let’s start!
Quick Answer: So, are mashed potatoes a good source of fiber? A cup of mashed potatoes has 4.4 grams of fiber and 263.7 calories. This means they are a below-average source of fiber, unfortunately.
Look at it this way, for every 100 calories of mashed potatoes you eat, you will get only 1.7 grams of fiber. This is simply not a good enough amount for us to consider them a good fiber source.
By eating one cup of mashed potatoes you will get a decent fiber boost, and you can use them as a secondary fiber source, but they shouldn’t be your main one. There are simply far better options out there.
Let’s put things into perspective. Nutritionists say that we should eat 30 grams of fiber every single day. If you plan to reach that with mashed potatoes alone, you would need to eat almost 7 full cups!
Seven cups of mashed potatoes have 1,800 calories, which is an insane amount. Naturally, you shouldn’t be eating this amount of mashed potatoes in a day. This is why you can get the majority of your daily fiber from other, better sources, and use mashed potatoes to get the missing few grams.
Mixing up different foods is the key to helping you eat more fiber in a day. Now, let’s see how mashed potatoes compare to other similar foods.
Comparing Fiber In Mashed Potatoes To Similar Foods
We now know that a cup of mashed potatoes has 4.4 grams of fiber and 263.7 calories. (1.7 grams of fiber per 100 calories) Now, let’s see how they compare to other similar foods based on their fiber content:
- A medium-sized baked potato has 3.8 grams of fiber and 160 calories (2.4 grams of fiber per 100 calories) Baked potatoes are also not the best source of fiber, but are still better than mashed potatoes, which might surprise some!
- A medium-sized sweet potato has 3.9 grams of fiber and 111.8 calories. (3.5 grams of fiber per 100 calories) Sweet potatoes are a decent fiber source, and offer twice as much fiber as mashed potatoes per 100 calories!
- 1 cup of oatmeal has 4 grams of fiber and 158 calories. (2.53 grams of fiber per 100 calories) Oatmeal is definitely not the best fiber source, but it is somewhat decent. It is also better than mashed potatoes.
- White rice has 1.4 grams of fiber and 195 calories per cup. (0.72 grams of fiber per 100 calories) White rice is definitely not a good source of fiber. It manages to be much worse than mashed potatoes.
- A cauliflower has 11.8 grams of fiber and only 147 calories. (8 grams of fiber per 100 calories) It is an amazing source of fiber, easily much better than mashed potatoes.
- A parsnip has 4.7 grams of fiber and 72 calories. (6.5 grams of fiber per 100 calories) It is yet another fiber source that manages to be far better than mashed potatoes.
How Much Fiber Mashed Potatoes Contain By Quantity
- 1 cup of mashed potatoes has 4.4 grams of fiber and 263.7 calories.
- Mashed potatoes have 1.8 grams of fiber and 105.5 calories per 100 grams.
- Mashed potatoes have 0.5 grams of fiber and 29.9 calories per oz.
Wrap Up
Mashed potatoes are a somewhat decent source of fiber. They will provide you with a decent amount that should help you get a minor fiber boost, but won’t be able to be one of the main sources of fiber in your diet. For that, you should definitely look elsewhere. With only 1.7 grams of fiber per 100 calories, they will only help you a little bit in reaching the recommended daily 30 grams of fiber. But it still counts.
Hey, I’m Joey. I’ve been cooking since I was a little kid and love everything about it. You can find my writing about food, kitchen appliances (such as blenders) and much more. Thanks for stopping by!
