The Black Nutrition Calculator takes the guesswork out of tracking dark, antioxidant-rich foods. Whether you're logging black beans for a plant-based meal, measuring blackberries for a snack, or portioning black rice and black quinoa for a grain bowl, this tool converts your serving size into calories, protein, carbohydrates, fiber, sugars, and fat.
Just choose a food from the list, enter the amount in grams, ounces, or cups, and press Calculate. The result gives you a clear macro snapshot plus a step-by-step breakdown showing exactly how each number was derived. It's designed for anyone tracking calories, following a high-protein or high-fiber diet, or simply curious about the nutrition in naturally black foods.
The underlying values are based on standard USDA nutrition data, so you can trust the numbers for everyday meal planning, recipe tweaks, and portion control.
🥗 Choose a black food
⚖️ Enter serving size
How to Use This Tool
Start by picking the black food you want to track from the dropdown list: cooked black beans, black rice, blackberries, black lentils, black sesame seeds, black olives, or black quinoa. Next, enter your serving size in grams, ounces, or cups. The calculator has built-in cup weights for every food, so you do not need to weigh cooked grains or berries if you prefer volume. Press Calculate to see calories and the five main macronutrients: protein, carbohydrates, fiber, sugars, and fat. The step-by-step breakdown shows the conversion to grams and the per-100 g multiplier, which is useful if you want to double-check the math or adapt it to a custom recipe. For quick entries, tap a preset pill such as 100 g, 1 cup, 1/2 cup, or 4 oz. Use Copy result to paste the summary into a food diary, spreadsheet, or message.
Formula Explained
Every food in the database is described per 100 grams of edible portion. To calculate any nutrient for your serving, the tool first converts your chosen unit to grams. Ounces are multiplied by 28.3495. Cups are multiplied by that food's typical cup weight, which comes from standard USDA portion weight references. The formula used for every line is:
nutrient = (per-100 g value x total grams) / 100
Example: cooked black beans have 132 kcal, 8.9 g protein, 23.7 g carbs, 8.7 g fiber, and 0.5 g fat per 100 g. If you eat 1 cup, the tool uses 172 g as the cup weight. Calories = 132 x 172 / 100 = 227 kcal. Protein = 8.9 x 1.72 = 15.3 g. The same scaling applies to every other value, which is why the breakdown line shows the multiplier grams / 100.
Values are compiled from USDA FoodData Central standard reference entries. Cooking methods, water absorption, and brand formulations cause real-world variation, so treat the output as a dependable planning estimate rather than a laboratory measurement. You can explore official data at USDA FoodData Central.
Worked Examples
Example 1: 1 cup of raw blackberries. Cup weight is 144 g, so calories = 43 x 144 / 100 = 61.9, rounded to 62 kcal. Fiber = 5.3 x 1.44 = 7.6 g. Sugars = 4.9 x 1.44 = 7.1 g.
Example 2: 4 oz of black sesame seeds. Grams = 4 x 28.3495 = 113.4 g. Calories = 573 x 1.134 = 649.8, about 650 kcal. Fat = 49.7 x 1.134 = 56.4 g. Because seeds are calorie-dense, a small serving still delivers a large energy punch.
Example 3: 150 g of cooked black lentils. Calories = 116 x 150 / 100 = 174 kcal. Protein = 9.0 x 1.5 = 13.5 g. Fiber = 8.0 x 1.5 = 12 g. This makes black lentils an excellent plant-based protein and fiber source.
Reference Data
| Food (per 100 g) | Calories | Protein | Carbs | Fiber | Fat |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Black beans, cooked | 132 | 8.9 g | 23.7 g | 8.7 g | 0.5 g |
| Black rice, cooked | 160 | 4.1 g | 34.1 g | 2.0 g | 1.6 g |
| Blackberries, raw | 43 | 1.4 g | 9.6 g | 5.3 g | 0.5 g |
| Black lentils, cooked | 116 | 9.0 g | 20.1 g | 8.0 g | 0.4 g |
| Black sesame seeds, dried | 573 | 17.0 g | 23.4 g | 11.8 g | 49.7 g |
| Black olives, canned | 115 | 0.8 g | 6.3 g | 3.2 g | 10.7 g |
| Black quinoa, cooked | 120 | 4.4 g | 21.3 g | 2.8 g | 1.9 g |
Common Mistakes & Pro Tips
Do not weigh dry beans and treat the result as cooked. Dry black beans have roughly 341 kcal per 100 g, while cooked black beans have 132 kcal per 100 g because they absorb water and about double in weight. If a recipe calls for dry beans, weigh them before cooking and use a dry-bean nutrition entry rather than this cooked list.
For dense foods like black sesame seeds, use grams instead of cups; a cup of seeds can vary by more than 10% depending on how tightly they are packed. For blackberries, cups are usually fine because the berries are uniform. If you track net carbs, remember that fiber is a carbohydrate that is not fully digested: for black beans, net carbs equal 23.7 g total carbs minus 8.7 g fiber, or about 15 g.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are these values for cooked or raw food? The list specifies each item. Black beans, black rice, black lentils, and black quinoa are cooked without added fat. Blackberries are raw, black sesame seeds are dried, and black olives are canned. If you add oil, butter, or sauce, add those nutrients separately.
Why are black sesame seeds so high in calories? They are roughly 50% fat by weight. A 100 g portion supplies 573 kcal and 49.7 g fat, most of it unsaturated. They are healthy in small amounts, but calories add up quickly.
Can I use this for meal prep? Yes. Calculate each ingredient separately and sum the values. For a mixed dish, weigh the finished dish and divide using the breakdown. The calculator is most accurate for single ingredients prepared without added oils or seasonings that change the nutrient profile.