Ground Pork Nutrition Calculator — Calories & Nutrition per Serving

Cooked ground pork delivers 0.74mg thiamine per 100g — 62% DV — more than any other common ground meat ^[1]. Ground beef provides 0.04mg (3% DV), ground turkey provides 0.05mg (4% DV), and ground chicken provides 0.06mg (5% DV). Pork delivers 12–18x more thiamine than its direct substitutes.

Thiamine (vitamin B1) supports energy metabolism and is water-soluble, meaning it doesn't accumulate in the body and needs regular dietary replenishment. A single 4-oz serving of cooked ground pork provides 0.84mg thiamine — 70% of the daily requirement without any fortification ^[1].

Research on pork as a thiamine source has confirmed that pork contains 5–10 times more thiamine than beef or chicken across all cuts, making it the premier whole-food thiamine source in Western diets. The thiamine is concentrated in the lean muscle tissue rather than fat, so even leaner ground pork retains high levels ^[2].

Raw ground pork has 263 kcal per 100g. Cooking raises it to 297 kcal per 100g — only a 13% calorie increase ^[1]. This modest increase occurs because fat renders out during cooking while moisture also evaporates. The two losses partially cancel: less fat per gram (fewer calories) offset by less water per gram (more calorie density).

From a 1-pound (454g) raw package, expect approximately 340–360g of cooked ground pork (75–80% yield). The rendered fat that drains away represents approximately 50–70g. If you drain the fat after cooking (as recommended for crumbles), the cooked product is approximately 250 kcal per 100g rather than 297 ^[1].

Studies on cooking losses in ground pork products have confirmed that draining rendered fat after browning can reduce total fat content by 25–40% compared to retaining all drippings — a significant difference for tracking, especially in recipes where the meat is browned before being added to a dish ^[3].

Cooked ground pork delivers 38mcg selenium per 100g — 69% DV ^[1]. This exceeds ground beef at 18–22mcg (33–40% DV) and is comparable to ground turkey at 27mcg (49% DV). A 4-oz serving of ground pork provides 43mcg selenium — 78% DV.

Selenium functions as a cofactor for selenoproteins involved in antioxidant defense and thyroid metabolism. The selenium content in pork is relatively consistent across cuts and grades because it's derived primarily from the animal's diet (grain and forage) and concentrated in muscle tissue ^[1].

Lean ground pork (96%) concentrates selenium even further to 42mcg per 100g (76% DV) because removing fat increases the proportion of selenium-rich lean muscle per gram. This makes lean ground pork one of the most selenium-dense common proteins available ^[2].

Plain cooked ground pork has 73mg sodium per 100g. Breakfast sausage made from ground pork has 749mg sodium per 100g — a 10x increase from the seasoning blend (salt, sage, black pepper, red pepper flakes) ^[1]. The calorie difference is also substantial: 297 kcal for plain vs. 339 kcal for sausage-seasoned, due to higher fat content in traditional sausage formulations.

When using ground pork as a sausage substitute, you can season it yourself with sage, thyme, black pepper, and a controlled amount of salt — achieving similar flavor at a fraction of the sodium. A typical homemade seasoning adds approximately 200–300mg sodium per serving compared to 600–800mg in commercial sausage ^[1].

Research on ground pork sausage formulations has documented that commercial breakfast sausage typically contains 2.0–2.5% salt by weight, which translates to 800–1,000mg sodium per 100g. Making sausage from plain ground pork with measured salt allows precise sodium control for tracking purposes ^[3].

Ground pork is the default ground meat in most East and Southeast Asian cuisines — from Chinese mapo tofu and dan dan noodles to Thai larb and Vietnamese banh mi. A typical serving in these dishes is 60–80g of cooked ground pork (178–238 kcal) combined with strong aromatics that stretch the meat across a full meal ^[1].

The flavor profile of ground pork — mildly sweet, not gamey, and with enough fat to carry sauce — makes it the preferred base for dishes that rely on sauce absorption. In mapo tofu, approximately 50g of ground pork (149 kcal) flavors an entire dish serving 2–3 people. In larb, 80g per person is standard ^[1].

For tracking Asian ground pork dishes: the meat itself contributes 178–238 kcal per 60–80g serving. The sauces (soy, oyster, fish sauce, chili oil) can add 100–250 kcal and 500–1,500mg sodium per serving depending on the recipe. Weigh the raw meat before cooking and log sauce components separately for precision ^[2].