Rice cake: fast starch, little fullness, two very different foods

Two foods share this name. The dry puffed disc from Western supermarkets and the chewy glutinous rice cake of East Asia, mochi or tteok, behave very differently, and much of the research on this page is about the second one. The nearest evidence for the puffed kind comes from puffed rice breakfast cereal, made by the same puffing process. In a randomized crossover trial in 6 trained men, puffed rice cereal with a glycemic index of about 82, eaten 45 minutes before cycling, gave 141 minutes to exhaustion against 165 after rolled oats, and it did no better than water. In a second trial in 12 healthy adults, the plain unsweetened puffed cereal raised blood glucose more over two hours than the same cereal with 43 g of sugar added, an area under the glucose curve of 155.5 against 1,832 mg/dL (101.7 mmol/l) min over 120 minutes. Sugar free does not mean slow. In a trial of 24 young adults, rice cakes served as the low energy control, and they left people hungrier over 180 minutes than 500 calories portions of nuts or chocolate. The summary of that trial gives no hunger scores for the rice cakes themselves.

The numbers, per 3.5 oz (100 g)

As people eat it, per 3.5 oz (100 g)

How much is actually in it

• Per 100 g, plain rice cakes list 7.81 mg niacin, 24.6 mcg selenium and 0.445 mg copper in USDA reference data. — USDA SR Legacy, one composite entry (n = 1 food record) Evidence E source
  Niacin 7.81 mg, selenium 24.6 mcg, copper 0.445 mg per 3.5 oz (100 g)

What a real portion looks like

• Among US infants aged 6-11.9 months, 32.1% ate rice-containing snacks, yet snacks supplied only 2.0 g rice a day. — 2,635 US infants and toddlers 0-24 months, FITS 2016, 24 h recall (n = 2635) Evidence C source
  Snacks eaten by 32.1%; 2.0 +/- 0.2 g rice/d from snacks of 11.9 g/d total
• US survey portions for a plain rice cake: 1 cake 3 g, 1 cup 30 g, small bag 45 g. — US household measures, FNDDS (n = 1 food code) Evidence E source
  1 cake 3 g; 1 cup 30 g; small single bag 45 g; large bag 85 g; unspecified 18 g

What your body absorbs

• Cooked glutinous rice cake is said to hold more digestion-resistant starch than raw rice, one reason pieces can stay in the gut for up to 3 months. — case series discussion, secondary statement Evidence D source
  No measured value in this paper; retention up to 3 months reported

What cooking and storage change

• Cooking makes a hard mochi soft and sticky, and 40% of people with a retained piece wore dentures. — 15 published cases of retained rice cake in the stomach, mostly older men (n = 15) Evidence D source
  Dentures 40%, rapid eating 13.3%, tooth loss 6.7%; retained pieces were 0.79 in (2 cm) or larger
• Magnetic-field treatment during germination raised GABA in germinated brown rice cake from 2.50 to 6.27 mg per 3.5 oz (100 g). — laboratory rice cake formulation, 60% germinated brown rice Evidence D source
  GABA 2.50 to 6.27 mg/100 g in cake

What it does to your health

• Puffed rice cereal (GI about 82) eaten 45 min before cycling gave 141 min to exhaustion versus 165 min after rolled oats (GI about 61) in 6 men. — 6 trained male volunteers, 22 years, 75 g carbohydrate 45 min before cycling at 60% VO2peak (n = 6) Evidence B source
  Exercise time 141 +/- 8 min (puffed rice) vs 165 +/- 11 min (oats) vs 134 +/- 13 min (water); only oats differed from control
• A sweet potato glutinous rice cake taken at 0 and 30 min of a 1 h ride at 80% VO2max matched a carbohydrate gel on performance and lowered hunger (p<0.05). — endurance cyclists, 1 h at 80% VO2max plus time trial Evidence B source
  Hunger and sweetness ratings lower with rice cake (p<0.05), thirst tended lower (p<0.10); heart rate, blood glucose, exertion unchanged
• Pink Rice Cake, a Southeast Asian glutinous rice snack, was one of 6 high-GI foods among 15 tested in 47 adults. — 47 healthy adults (18 men, 29 women), after 10-12 h fast, glucose reference (n = 47) Evidence B source
  Classified high GI (value not in abstract)

Safety, limits and interactions

• In 17 patients with small bowel obstruction from rice cake, none needed surgery, versus 4 of 7 with bezoars. — 24 patients with food-induced small bowel obstruction, Japan, retrospective (n = 24) Evidence C source
  Surgery 0/17 rice cake vs 4/7 (57%) bezoar
• Rice crackers labeled without wheat carried trace wheat protein: 3 of 8 brands had 0.26-1.13 micrograms per gram. — 1 wheat-allergic boy plus 9 retail rice cracker products, Japan (n = 1) Evidence D source
  Offending cracker 1.50 microg/g wheat protein; 3 of 8 others 0.26-1.13 microg/g
• In a Korean survey of 3,332 ready-to-eat foods, 19.3% of filled rice cakes carried Staphylococcus aureus. — 3,332 ready-to-eat food samples, Korean wholesale markets, 2003-2004 (n = 3332) Evidence C source
  S. aureus in 19.3% of filled rice cakes; 47% of isolates enterotoxigenic

What people believe that the data does not support

• Adding 43 g sucrose to a puffed rice cereal lowered the 2 h glucose response from 2,801 to 1,832 mg/dL (155.5 to 101.7 mmol/l).min in 12 healthy adults. — 12 healthy volunteers, mean age 23, equal-carbohydrate meals (n = 12) Evidence B source
  Glucose AUC 101.7 +/- 14.0 vs 155.5 +/- 324 mg/dL (18.0 mmol/l).120 min, P < 0.01; insulin AUC 2267 vs 3505 microU/ml.120 min
• As a low-energy volume control, rice cakes left 24 adults hungrier than 500 calories preloads of nuts or chocolate over 180 min. — 12 men and 12 women, healthy normal weight, mean age 22, weekly preloads in random order (n = 24) Evidence B source
  Hunger lower after 500 calories preloads than after low-energy preloads (rice cakes, pickles) or none; energy content was the main driver

Who this works differently for

• Case series and review: sticky rice cake (mochi) retained in the stomach caused abdominal pain in 93.3% and mucosal injury in 93.3% of reported cases. — 6 new patients plus published Japanese cases of retained rice cake (n = 15 cases reviewed) Evidence D source
  Abdominal pain 93.3%, mucosal injury 93.3% (bleeding 42.9%), endoscopy needed 80%
• A 64-year-old man with diabetes developed duodenal obstruction and ulcers after eating mochi, relieved by endoscopic fragmentation. — 1 man, 64, diabetes mellitus (n = 1) Evidence D source
  Duodenal obstruction and multiple ulcers; impaired motility proposed as a factor
• Across about 8,300 US NHANES participants, rice cakes and crackers had the largest link with urinary MMA arsenic in children and adolescents. — about 8,300 US participants aged 6 and older, NHANES 2003-2010, 24 h recall (n = 8300) Evidence C source
  Rice cakes/crackers: largest association with urinary DMA in adolescents and MMA in children and adolescents
• A breastfed infant had FPIES to rice after only chewing a wrapper that covered a rice cake. — 1 exclusively breastfed infant, first episode at 5 months (n = 1) Evidence D source
  Three acute FPIES episodes, non-IgE

The bottom line

A single plain cake in the US survey weighs 3 g, which reflects mini cakes, and a small bag is 45 g. Per 100 g, the one USDA record lists 7.81 mg niacin, 24.6 mcg selenium and 0.445 mg copper, with no sample spread to show how much brands differ. Among the steamed glutinous versions, a Southeast Asian snack called Pink Rice Cake was one of 6 high glycemic foods out of 15 tested in 47 healthy adults, and the exact value is in the full paper only. A mochi type cake made with sweet potato for a cycling study matched a carbohydrate gel on performance over a one hour ride and lowered hunger ratings, and the summary does not say how many riders took part. Who should be careful. Cooked mochi turns soft and sticky, so it can be swallowed in large pieces without much chewing. The studies below looked only at pieces that reached the stomach and bowel, not at choking, and this page has no evidence on choking risk for older people or children. In the published cases the retained pieces were 0.79 in (2 cm) or larger and 13.3 percent of patients had eaten quickly. In 15 published Japanese cases of mochi stuck in the stomach, 40 percent of patients wore dentures, 93.3 percent had abdominal pain and 80 percent needed an endoscopy. At one Japanese center, none of 17 patients whose small bowel was blocked by rice cake needed surgery, against 4 of 7 blocked by a bezoar. A single case report describes a 64 year old man with diabetes whose duodenum was blocked by mochi, and the diabetes link is only the authors' guess. For children, a US national survey of about 8,300 people found rice cakes and crackers had the largest association with urinary MMA arsenic in children and adolescents, which is a marker of exposure and says nothing yet about harm. Among US infants aged 6 to 12 months, 32.1 percent ate rice snacks such as cakes and puffs, though these supplied only 2.0 g of rice a day. For allergies, 3 of 8 Japanese rice crackers without wheat on the label carried traces of wheat protein, 0.26 to 1.13 micrograms per gram, and one breastfed infant reacted to rice after chewing the wrapper of a rice cake. Filled rice cakes from Korean wholesale markets carried Staphylococcus aureus in 19.3 percent of samples, a finding about moist filled tteok and not the dry puffed kind.

Sources

1. rcak-r6-18 · reference dataset
   SR Legacy FDC 168107 Rice cake, cracker (include hain mini rice cakes): niacin 7.81 mg/100 g · selenium 24.6 mcg/100 g · copper 0.445 mg/100 g
   USDA SR Legacy 2018, FDC 168107 Rice cake, cracker · checked 2026-09-29
2. rcak-r6-12 · cross-sectional study
   Percentage consuming rice or rice-containing foods was highest for infants aged 6-11.9 months (58.2%), including snacks (32.1%)... and although most frequently reported, snacks provided the least quantity of rice (2.0 ± 0.2 g/d).
   J Acad Nutr Diet, 2025 · checked 2026-09-29
3. rcak-r6-17 · reference dataset
   FNDDS 2708162 Rice cake (54318500): 1 cake 3 g · 1 cup, NFS 30 g · 1 small or medium single serving bag 45 g · 1 large single serving bag 85 g · Quantity not specified 18 g
   USDA FNDDS 2021-2023, food code 54318500 (Rice cake) · checked 2026-09-29
4. rcak-r6-08 · case series discussion
   retained rice cake occasionally remains in the GI tract for up to 3 months (20), as cooked rice cake contains higher concentrations of digestion-resistant starch than raw rice (21).
   Intern Med, 2019 · checked 2026-09-29
5. rcak-r6-07 · case series with literature review
   An uncooked hard rice cake becomes “soft” and “sticky” after being cooked (toasted or boiled), enabling people who have ingestion-related problems such as dentures (40%), rapid eating (13.3%), and tooth loss (6.7%) to swallow large pieces of rice cake without chewing well
   Intern Med, 2019 · checked 2026-09-29
6. rcak-r6-16 · food technology experiment
   SMF significantly increased the GABA content by stimulating glutamate decarboxylase, with the values increasing from 28.17 to 32.43 mg/100 g and from 2.50 to 6.27 mg/100 g in GBR (36 h) and GBR cake, respectively.
   Food Chem, 2023 · checked 2026-09-29
7. rcak-r6-01 · randomized crossover trial
   rolled oats (moderate GI, approximately 61; MOD-GI) or puffed rice (high GI, approximately 82; HI-GI)... Exercise time was prolonged (P <.05) after the MOD-GI meal compared with control, but the HI-GI trial was not different from control (MOD-GI, 165 +/- 11; HI-GI, 141 +/- 8; control, 134 +/- 13 minutes).
   Metabolism, 2001 · checked 2026-09-29
8. rcak-r6-04 · randomized crossover trial
   Heart rate, oxygen consumption, blood glucose elevation, and the rate of perceived exertion did not differ among the trials during exercise. However, the visual analog scale rating revealed that SPRC significantly suppressed hunger and sweetness ratings (p<0.05) and tended to suppress thirst ratings (p<0.10) during exercise.
   J Nutr Sci Vitaminol (Tokyo), 2020 · checked 2026-09-29
9. rcak-r6-05 · glycemic index test
   the other six belonged to high-GI foods (Ice Lemon Tea, Chinese Carrot Cake, Chinese Yam Cake, Chee Cheong Fun, Lo Mai Gai and Pink Rice Cake).
   Br J Nutr, 2015 · checked 2026-09-29
10. rcak-r6-09 · retrospective cohort
    None of the rice cake SBO patients required surgery, whereas 4/7 (57%) bezoar SBO patients underwent surgery.
    Jpn J Radiol, 2019 · checked 2026-09-29
11. rcak-r6-13 · case report
    A trace quantity of wheat protein, 1.50 microg/g, was determined in the offending rice cracker. In addition, 3 of 8 other kinds of processed rice crackers were contaminated by wheat protein, with levels ranging from 0.26 to 1.13 microg/g.
    Ann Allergy Asthma Immunol, 2004 · checked 2026-09-29
12. rcak-r6-14 · prevalence survey
    31.6% of the tested cream-cakes, 19.8% of the raw fish, and 19.3% of the rice cakes with filling were contaminated with S. aureus.
    J Food Prot, 2007 · checked 2026-09-29
13. rcak-r6-02 · randomized crossover trial
    Glycaemia was significantly lower after the meal containing the highest amount of sugar (glucose AUC 101.7 +/- 14.0 mmol/l.120 min) compared with the non-sweetened cereal (155.5 +/- 18.0 mmol/l.120 min, P < 0.01).
    Eur J Clin Nutr, 1994 · checked 2026-09-29
14. rcak-r6-03 · controlled preload trial
    Hunger ratings following consumption of the 2092 kJ (500 kcal) preloads of peanuts, peanut butter, almonds, chestnuts and chocolate were significantly lower than the low energy preloads or no preload condition
    Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord, 2000 · checked 2026-09-29
15. rcak-r6-06 · case series with literature review
    retained rice cake in the stomach typically shows the following: abdominal pain (93.3%), mucosal injury (93.3%) with bleeding (42.9%); high-density (120-206 Hounsfield units) CT findings; and indication for endoscopy (80%). In the esophagus, hot, toasted rice cake causes thermal injury.
    Intern Med, 2019 · checked 2026-09-29
16. rcak-r6-10 · case report
    In patients with diabetes mellitus, impaired gastrointestinal motility may contribute to duodenal obstruction by mochi.
    Cureus, 2025 · checked 2026-09-29
17. rcak-r6-11 · cross-sectional study
    fish (adults), rice (children), and rice cakes/crackers (adolescents) had the largest associations with urinary DMA. For MMA, rice beverage/milk (adults) and rice cakes/crackers (children, adolescents) had the largest associations.
    PLoS One, 2014 · checked 2026-09-29
18. rcak-r6-15 · case report
    It was realized that in the first episode, the wrapper was covering a rice cake.
    Eur J Pediatr, 2014 · checked 2026-09-29