How many calories are in chicken breast?
100 g (3.5 oz) of cooked, skinless chicken breast is about 165 kcal and 31 g of protein — roughly 19 g of protein per 100 kcal. That ratio is why it appears on every deficit meal plan ever written; the weighing trap below is why the logged number is so often wrong anyway.
Per portion
| Portion | Calories | Protein | Carbs | Fat |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 100 g raw, skinless | ~120 kcal | 23 g | 0 g | 2.5 g |
| 100 g cooked, skinless | ~165 kcal | 31 g | 0 g | 3.5 g |
| One medium fillet, 175 g raw (~130 g cooked) | ~215 kcal | 40 g | 0 g | 5 g |
| 200 g cooked, skinless | ~330 kcal | 62 g | 0 g | 7 g |
| 100 g pre-packed cooked slices | 110–130 kcal | 21–24 g | 1–2 g | 2–3 g |
| 100 g breaded, fried escalope | 250–290 kcal | 20–23 g | 12–16 g | 14–16 g |
What changes the number
The pan, more than the meat. A tablespoon (15 ml) of oil is about 120 kcal and the breast absorbs much of it: dry-grilled and pan-fried versions of a fillet differ by 60–100 kcal.
Breading, because the coating takes on oil the bare meat would not: a breaded escalope is denser per gram than a fatty thigh.
Glazes. Yoghurt-and-spice marinades are near zero; honey, teriyaki and BBQ glazes are 30–60 kcal a tablespoon, most of it staying on.
Added water. Fillets sold “with added water” can be 5–15% brine, so calories per 100 g fall slightly and protein with them. Read the per-100 g panel, not the front of the pack (as ever).
Skin adds about 30 kcal per 100 g here; on thigh and wing the gap is much wider, as the chicken page covers.
Where it fits in a deficit
Protein per 100 kcal is the number that matters when calories are limited:
| Cooked, per 100 g | Calories | Protein | Protein per 100 kcal |
|---|---|---|---|
| Prawns | ~100 kcal | 24 g | ~24 g |
| Cod | ~105 kcal | 23 g | ~22 g |
| Turkey breast, skinless | ~135 kcal | 30 g | ~22 g |
| Chicken breast, skinless | ~165 kcal | 31 g | ~19 g |
| 0% fat Greek yoghurt | ~57 kcal | 10 g | ~18 g |
| Chicken thigh, skinless | ~205 kcal | 26 g | ~13 g |
| Whole eggs | ~145 kcal | 13 g | ~9 g |
| Lentils | ~115 kcal | 9 g | ~8 g |
White fish and prawns beat it; chicken breast wins on price and on people eating it five times a week. A 200 g cooked portion is 62 g of protein for 330 kcal, close to a day’s protein target for less than a large sweetened coffee.
Overcooked it is dry, which is why it so often arrives drowned in something that erases the advantage. It is also not bulky: 200 g looks like a small plate, so it wants vegetables beside it, not just rice.
Raw weight, cooked weight and the 70 kcal mistake
Breast loses a quarter to a third of its weight as water when grilled or roasted: 150 g raw comes off the heat at 105–110 g. Only water leaves, so cooked breast is denser — about 165 kcal per 100 g against 120 raw.
- 150 g of cooked breast is about 250 kcal.
- Logged against a raw entry, it reads 180 kcal.
That is 70 kcal missing from one meal, or roughly 350 kcal across five chicken meals a week — enough to quietly flatten a modest calorie deficit. The reverse overstates by the same margin.
Same error as rice, where the swing is larger because rice roughly triples in weight. Weigh raw and use raw figures, or weigh cooked and use cooked figures; never mix. Raw is safer: water loss depends on how hard you cooked it, and no database entry knows whether you seared the fillet or poached it.
Figures are typical values and vary by variety, size and preparation. General information, not medical advice.