Ever wonder how your favorite foods stack up against each other in terms of nutrition?
We compared the nutritional contents of
cooked
couscous
versus
whole wheat flour
(100g each)
below using 2020 USDA and NIH data[1].
For a quick recap of significant nutrients and differences in couscous and whole wheat flour:
Both whole wheat flour and couscous are high in calories. Whole wheat flour has 196% more calories than couscous - whole wheat flour has 332 calories per 100 grams and couscous has 112 calories.
For macronutrient ratios, couscous is similar to whole wheat flour for protein, carbs and fat. Couscous has a macronutrient ratio of 14:85:2 and for whole wheat flour, 11:84:5 for protein, carbohydrates and fat from calories.
Macro Ratios from Calories:
Couscous | Whole Wheat Flour | |
---|---|---|
Protein | 14% | 11% |
Carbohydrates | 85% | 84% |
Fat | 2% | 5% |
Alcohol | ~ | ~ |
Whole wheat flour is high in carbohydrates and couscous has 69% less carbohydrates than whole wheat flour - whole wheat flour has 74.5g of total carbs per 100 grams and couscous has 23.2g of carbohydrates.
Whole wheat flour is an excellent source of dietary fiber and it has 836% more dietary fiber than couscous - whole wheat flour has 13.1g of dietary fiber per 100 grams and couscous has 1.4g of dietary fiber.
Whole wheat flour and couscous contain similar amounts of sugar - whole wheat flour has 1g of sugar per 100 grams and couscous has 0.1g of sugar.
Whole wheat flour is a great source of protein and it has 154% more protein than couscous - whole wheat flour has 9.6g of protein per 100 grams and couscous has 3.8g of protein.
Both whole wheat flour and couscous are low in saturated fat - whole wheat flour has 0.43g of saturated fat per 100 grams and couscous has 0.03g of saturated fat.
Whole wheat flour and couscous contain similar amounts of Vitamin A - whole wheat flour has 2.7ug of Vitamin A per 100 grams and couscous does not contain significant amounts.
Whole wheat flour and couscous contain similar amounts of Vitamin E - whole wheat flour has 0.53mg of Vitamin E per 100 grams and couscous has 0.13mg of Vitamin E.
Whole wheat flour and couscous contain similar amounts of Vitamin K - whole wheat flour has 1.9ug of Vitamin K per 100 grams and couscous has 0.1ug of Vitamin K.
Whole wheat flour has more thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, pantothenic acid and Vitamin B6. Both couscous and whole wheat flour contain significant amounts of folate.
Couscous | Whole Wheat Flour | |
---|---|---|
Thiamin | 0.063 MG | 0.297 MG |
Riboflavin | 0.027 MG | 0.188 MG |
Niacin | 0.983 MG | 5.347 MG |
Pantothenic acid | 0.371 MG | 1.011 MG |
Vitamin B6 | 0.051 MG | 0.191 MG |
Folate | 15 UG | 28 UG |
Whole wheat flour has 313% more calcium than couscous - whole wheat flour has 33mg of calcium per 100 grams and couscous has 8mg of calcium.
Whole wheat flour is an excellent source of iron and it has 876% more iron than couscous - whole wheat flour has 3.7mg of iron per 100 grams and couscous has 0.38mg of iron.
Whole wheat flour is an excellent source of potassium and it has 579% more potassium than couscous - whole wheat flour has 394mg of potassium per 100 grams and couscous has 58mg of potassium.
Carotenoids are micronutrients commonly found in plants and some animal products. An example is beta-carotene, the notable carotenoid which is a popular source of Vitamin A.[4][5]
For specific types of carotenoids,
Couscous | Whole Wheat Flour | |
---|---|---|
lutein + zeaxanthin | 25 UG | 220 UG |
beta-carotene | ~ | 5 UG |
The comparison below is by common portions, e.g. cups, packages. You can also see a more concrete comparison by weight at equal weight (by grams) comparison.
Note: The specific food items compared are: Couscous (Couscous, cooked) and Whole Wheat Flour (Wheat flour, whole-grain, soft wheat) .
Cooked Couscous g
()
|
Daily Values (%) |
Whole Wheat Flour g
()
|
|||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
KCAL % |
|
5% | calories | 5% |
|
KCAL % | |
G % |
|
5% | carbohydrates | 5% |
|
G % | |
G % |
|
5% | dietary fiber | 5% |
|
G % | |
G | 5% | sugar | 5% | G | |||
G % |
|
5% | total fat | 5% |
|
G % | |
G % |
|
5% | saturated fat | 5% |
|
G % | |
G | 5% | monounsaturated fat | 5% | G | |||
G | 5% | polyunsaturated fat | 5% | G | |||
G | 5% | trans fat | 5% | G | |||
MG | 5% | cholesterol | 5% | MG | |||
MG % |
|
5% | sodium | 5% |
|
MG % | |
5% | Vitamins and Minerals | 5% | |||||
UG % |
|
5% | Vitamin A | 5% |
|
UG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | Vitamin C | 5% |
|
MG % | |
IU % |
|
5% | Vitamin D | 5% |
|
IU % | |
MG % |
|
5% | calcium | 5% |
|
MG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | iron | 5% |
|
MG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | magnesium | 5% |
|
MG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | potassium | 5% |
|
MG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | thiamin (Vit B1) | 5% |
|
MG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | riboflavin (Vit B2) | 5% |
|
MG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | niacin (Vit B3) | 5% |
|
MG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | Vitamin B6 | 5% |
|
MG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | pantothenic acid (Vit B5) | 5% |
|
MG % | |
UG % |
|
5% | folate (Vit B9) | 5% |
|
UG % | |
UG % |
|
5% | Vitamin B12 | 5% |
|
UG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | Vitamin E | 5% |
|
MG % | |
UG % |
|
5% | Vitamin K | 5% |
|
UG % | |
G % |
|
5% | protein | 5% |
|
G % | |
UG % |
|
5% | biotin (Vit B7) | 5% |
|
UG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | choline | 5% |
|
MG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | chlorine | 5% |
|
MG % | |
UG % |
|
5% | chromium | 5% |
|
UG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | copper | 5% |
|
MG % | |
UG % |
|
5% | fluoride | 5% |
|
UG % | |
UG % |
|
5% | iodine | 5% |
|
UG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | manganese | 5% |
|
MG % | |
UG % |
|
5% | molybdenum | 5% |
|
UG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | phosphorus | 5% |
|
MG % | |
UG % |
|
5% | selenium | 5% |
|
UG % | |
MG % |
|
5% | zinc | 5% |
|
MG % | |
G | 5% | Water | 5% | G | |||
G | 5% | Starch | 5% | G | |||
G | 5% | Alcohol | 5% | G | |||