Barley Water Calories and Nutrition Facts

For example, barley water provides an estimated 35–70 kcal per 250 ml when made with 10–20 g of dry pearled barley, fully cooked and blended in; straining, added sugar and serving size change the total. Try the ai nutrition analyzer for an ingredient-based estimate, though the amount left in strained liquid is difficult to calculate. Barley water is often strained, so the example does not establish a calorie range for every preparation.

How many calories are in barley water?

There is no single calorie value for barley water: recipes and products differ in how much grain they use, whether they retain it, and what else they add. The figures above are examples calculated from USDA FoodData Central data for raw pearled barley, which contains 352 kcal per 100 g.

In the example, the barley is weighed dry, fully cooked and blended into enough water to make a total serving of 250 ml. No sugar or other calorie-containing ingredients are included. If the grain is strained out instead, some starch and other substances remain in the liquid, but the raw grain’s calorie figure cannot tell you how much.

For a homemade batch, divide the estimated calories from ingredients retained in the drink by the number of servings. If you strain out the grain, counting all of its calories as though it were consumed will overestimate its contribution; without knowing what remains in the liquid, the exact amount is uncertain.

Added sugar also matters. For example, 1 teaspoon of sugar, about 4 g, adds approximately 16 kcal to the amount of barley water in which it is dissolved. Divide those calories among the servings if the sugar is added to a larger batch.

What are the nutrition facts for 250 ml of barley water?

The table shows calculated examples, not a USDA analysis of barley water. Each column assumes the stated amount of dry pearled barley is fully cooked and retained in a 250 ml serving, with no other calorie-containing ingredients. Values are rounded and assume the nutrients in the raw barley are retained; actual values can change with preparation.

These calculations use USDA FoodData Central’s “Barley, pearled, raw,” FDC ID 170284. They should not be used as nutrition facts for strained barley water: the amounts of carbohydrate, fiber and other nutrients that pass into the liquid are not specified by the raw-grain entry.

For a packaged barley water, use its nutrition label rather than this table. The label reflects that product’s formulation, including any sugar or other ingredients, although serving sizes may differ between products.

How does barley water compare with juice or soda?

An unsweetened barley water is not necessarily calorie-free, because it can still contain material from the grain. Equally, a sweetened bottled barley water is not necessarily lower in calories than juice or soda. Compare the particular products rather than relying on their names.

To compare labels fairly, convert each figure to the same volume. For example, a label listing 120 kcal per 300 ml works out to 100 kcal per 250 ml: multiply 120 by 250 and divide by 300. If a label lists calories per 100 ml, multiply that number by 2.5 for a 250 ml comparison.

Check whether the serving size describes a ready-to-drink product or a concentrate that needs dilution. For homemade strained barley water without a measured nutrition value, a precise comparison is not possible; the amount of sugar added can still help you understand part of its calorie contribution.