Scallops are a lean, protein-rich seafood that brings a mild sweetness to pasta, stir-fries, and seared dinners — and they also contribute a meaningful amount of potassium. This scallop potassium calculator estimates how much potassium you get from a given portion, whether you're weighing raw scallops, cooked scallops, or working from ounces and pounds on a recipe label.
Potassium supports nerve signaling, muscle contraction, and healthy blood pressure, so knowing your intake is helpful if you're tracking electrolytes, following a DASH-style eating pattern, or managing kidney or heart conditions. The calculator applies USDA-based potassium values for raw, steamed/poached, and dry-cooked scallops, then converts your serving into grams and shows the percent of the daily value (4,700 mg).
Use it for meal prep, recipe nutrition, or weekly intake logs — and pair it with other food calculators to build a complete micronutrient picture.
🧮 Step 1: Enter Scallop Amount
⚙️ Step 2: Choose Preparation
How to Use This Tool
To get a quick potassium estimate, start by entering the scallop amount in grams, ounces, or pounds. The quick-fill buttons — 100 g, 3 oz, 170 g, and 4 oz — are handy shortcuts for common portions. Then select the preparation method: raw, moist-cooked, or dry-cooked.
Because cooking removes water, cooked scallops contain more potassium per 100 g than raw scallops even though the scallop itself loses no potassium. If you cooked a batch at home, weigh the cooked portion for the most accurate result. If you're planning a recipe with raw scallops, enter the raw weight and choose the raw option.
How the Calculator Works
The calculator uses a simple proportion: potassium content = serving weight in grams × potassium per 100 g ÷ 100. The potassium density values are based on typical USDA data for mixed-species scallops:
- Raw scallops: ~205 mg potassium per 100 g
- Cooked, moist heat (steamed/poached): ~280 mg per 100 g
- Cooked, dry heat (baked/broiled/sautéed): ~300 mg per 100 g
Potassium in Scallops vs Other Seafood
Scallops sit in the moderate range for seafood potassium. The table below lists approximate cooked values per 100 g to help you see where scallops fit in your diet.
| Seafood (cooked) | Potassium (mg / 100 g) | % DV* |
|---|---|---|
| Clams (steamed) | ~600 | 13% |
| Salmon (cooked) | ~360 | 8% |
| Scallops (steamed) | ~280 | 6% |
| Shrimp (cooked) | ~260 | 6% |
| Tuna (cooked) | ~250 | 5% |
*Percent DV based on a reference intake of 4,700 mg potassium.
Factors That Affect the Estimate
Several variables can nudge the potassium value up or down. Scallop species matters somewhat — sea scallops and bay scallops have similar nutrition, but growing waters and diet can create small differences. Frozen scallops are often treated with sodium tripolyphosphate to retain moisture, which lowers potassium concentration per gram and raises sodium; the calculator assumes plain, untreated scallops. Added sauces, butter, or marinades change the total nutrition but not the scallop's potassium contribution.
For clinical meal planning, treat the result as an estimate. If you need precise potassium values for kidney disease or other medical conditions, use the nutrition label on the package, consult a registered dietitian, or search USDA FoodData Central.
Tips for Potassium Tracking
Track scallops alongside other foods so your daily total stays balanced. Weigh the scallop portion before cooking if you're logging raw ingredients; after cooking, the same weight contains more potassium per gram because water is lost. Remember that potassium can leach into cooking liquid — steaming and poaching are fine, but if you discard the broth, a tiny amount of potassium is lost with it.
If you're following a specific potassium target, consider pairing the scallop potassium calculator with other tools on this site, like the Bacon Potassium Calculator or Yogurt Potassium Calculator, to compare foods across a meal.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are scallops high in potassium? No — scallops are moderate. A 100 g cooked serving provides about 280 mg, roughly 6% of the daily value. Compare that to clams at ~600 mg or potatoes at ~500 mg per 100 g.
Does cooking change the potassium content? The total potassium stays nearly the same, but cooking removes water, so cooked scallops have more potassium per 100 g. This calculator accounts for that by using separate values for raw and cooked forms.
How many scallops are in 100 g? It depends on size. Large sea scallops weigh about 25–35 g each, so 100 g is about 3–4 scallops. Small bay scallops weigh 8–15 g, so 100 g could be 7–12 pieces.
Can I eat scallops on a low-potassium diet? Scallops are moderate, so many low-potassium meal plans allow a small portion. However, individual tolerance varies in kidney disease, so follow your doctor's or dietitian's guidance.