Sunflower seeds

One US cup of sunflower seeds weighs 140 grams. Going the other way, 100 grams is about 0.71 cups.

Sunflower seeds in baking and cooking almost always mean the hulled kernels — the pale grey-green flat kernels removed from the black-and-white striped shell. Whole in-shell seeds are a snack food eaten differently and measured by weight rather than volume. This entry describes the hulled kernels.

USDA FoodData Central publishes 1 cup of dried sunflower seed kernels at 140 grams (FDC 170562, Seeds, sunflower seed kernels, dried), giving a bulk density of 0.5918 grams per millilitre. King Arthur's ingredient weight chart publishes 1/4 cup at 35 grams, which extrapolates to exactly 140 grams per cup. The two sources agree precisely, well inside the 10 percent tolerance we apply to the milled category. Precise agreement across two independent sources is unusual on this site and reflects the consistent packing behaviour of these flat, relatively uniform kernels.

Sunflower seeds are among the most nutrient-dense seeds in common use, with roughly 51 percent fat (mostly polyunsaturated), 21 percent protein, and unusually high levels of vitamin E (over 200 percent of the FDA daily value per 100 grams), magnesium, and thiamine. In baking they add crunch, mild sweetness and moisture retention to breads, granola, cookies, and seed-topped loaves; ground into sunflower seed butter, they behave similarly to peanut or almond butter in cookies and spreads and are used as an allergen substitute in nut-free settings.

The seeds are sold in three common commercial forms that measure slightly differently. Raw dried kernels (this entry) at 140 grams per cup. Dry-roasted kernels are essentially the same weight because roasting only drives off a small amount of moisture. Oil-roasted kernels are slightly denser (about 145 grams per cup) because the oil coating adds weight and reduces the air space between kernels. When a recipe specifies sunflower seeds without further detail, raw or dry-roasted is the assumption; oil-roasted are typically labelled as such.

Whole in-shell sunflower seeds are a different measurement problem. The shells occupy roughly two-thirds of the volume but only about 15 percent of the edible weight. USDA's entry for whole in-shell sunflower seeds with hulls gives approximately 46 grams of edible kernel per cup — very different from the hulled kernel figure. Recipes almost never call for measuring in-shell seeds by cup; this variant is included only for completeness.

Related products this entry does not cover: sunflower seed butter (also called sunbutter, weighs about 250 grams per cup similarly to peanut butter), sunflower seed flour (finely ground kernels, weighs about 96 grams per cup, used in gluten-free and nut-free baking), and sunflower sprouts (germinated seeds eaten as a green, measured very differently).

FDA does not have an identity standard specific to sunflower seeds. Codex Alimentarius does not have a specific sunflower seed standard. Neither publishes a bulk density.

The category here is 'milled' because sunflower seed kernels pack similarly to milled powders in a measuring cup — small enough to conform to the container, and their bulk density depends slightly on scoop method. The 10 percent tolerance applies, and both sources sit exactly on the same figure.