How much rice per person?
For a side dish, ¼ cup of uncooked white rice per person cooks to about ¾ cup. When rice is the base of the meal, like a rice bowl or a curry, plan ⅓ to ½ cup uncooked per person (The Reluctant Gourmet).
To turn cups into something you can buy, we use the USA Rice Federation's conversions: 1 cup of uncooked rice weighs about 7 ounces and makes about 3 cups cooked (USA Rice Federation).
Rice for a crowd: quick chart
| Guests | Side dish (uncooked) | Main dish (uncooked) |
|---|---|---|
| 10 | 2½ cups (1 lb 2 oz) | 1 lb 8 oz – 2 lb 3 oz |
| 25 | 6¼ cups (2 lb 12 oz) | 3 lb 10 oz – 5 lb 8 oz |
| 50 | 12½ cups (5 lb 8 oz) | 7 lb 4 oz – 10 lb 15 oz |
| 100 | 25 cups (10 lb 15 oz) | 14 lb 7 oz – 21 lb 14 oz |
| 150 | 37½ cups (16 lb 7 oz) | 21 lb 11 oz – 32 lb 13 oz |
| 200 | 50 cups (21 lb 14 oz) | 28 lb 14 oz – 43 lb 12 oz |
White rice, before any buffer.
Worked example: rice for a 100-guest buffet
Rice is a side next to chicken and vegetables. You add the default 10% buffer.
- 100 guests × ¼ cup = 25 cups of uncooked rice
- Add 10%: 27½ cups
- At 7 oz a cup, that is 12 lb 1 oz to buy
- It makes about 82½ cups of cooked rice
Uncooked rice keeps well, so rounding up to the next bag size is an easy way to be safe if more guests turn up than you expect.
Tips for making rice for a party
- Use the right size pot. Rice triples in volume, so leave plenty of room.
- Cook in more than one batch. Big batches cook unevenly. Two or three medium pots or a large rice cooker is easier.
- Keep it warm without drying it out. Cover the pan and add a splash of water before reheating.
- Chill leftovers quickly. Spread cooked rice in a shallow pan and refrigerate it soon after the party.
- Plan the whole menu. If rice sits next to pasta on a buffet, use the pasta per person calculator and reduce both a little.