Measuring your ingredients in cups when you are used to scales.

[Kake Lover]

Measuring anything more than a tablespoon by volume rather than by weight seems such an inexact science to me. It's ok for liquids obviously.

I know there are conversion charts for some of the most common ingredients and I have a set of cups to measure if I need to, but it is such a faff!! Especially dry ingredients such as flour or icing sugar. How on earth do you measure the flour without spilling it everywhere and where do you catch the stuff that overflows when you level it off? What about margarine or butter! —trying to squeeze and squash it into a cup has me seeing red! Whereas I can often judge exactly the right amount in weight to cut off the block.

Using scales is so easy in comparison. I have a set of each kind to choose from, depending what I'm making. The old fashioned balance scales are my favourite, I also have a flat digital set to measure all the ingredients into the mixing bowl or saucepan and a set with a dial that has its own mixing bowl. Great for measuring icing sugar straight into the seive sitting over the bowl.

I want to try and make one of the Marmite cakes tomorrow which is why I'm asking. The cheesey one is in grams but the other one is in cups.

 

[Cinisajoy]

Hi. How is your margarine packaged? In sticks or in tubs?
As to the dry stuff, I just dip the measuring cup in the flour, sugar, etc and then just take a knife and scrape the excess back into the canister.

I hate measuring peanut butter for the same reason as your margarine.

 

[Kake Lover]

Hi. How is your margarine packaged? In sticks or in tubs?
As to the dry stuff, I just dip the measuring cup in the flour, sugar, etc and then just take a knife and scrape the excess back into the canister.

I hate measuring peanut butter for the same reason as your margarine.

Margarine comes in tubs and butter comes in blocks, often with weight markings down the side.

There aren't many storage containers that allow you to put the larger cups inside.

 

[Cinisajoy]

Margarine comes in tubs and butter comes in blocks, often with weight markings down the side.

There aren't many storage containers that allow you to put the larger cups inside.

You just totally confused me. How do you store your flour?
In that case, can you put a smaller measuring cup in your flour?
I can get margarine in sticks.
Best way to do margarine would be to melt it if possible then measure.

 

[Cinisajoy]

Since a picture is worth more than words, here is my storage system.

 

[Cinisajoy]

In the above photos, there is a one cup measuring cup in the cornmeal and all purpose flours. A 2 cup one is in the bread flour. 1/4 cup is in the sugar.

 

[SatNavSaysStraightOn]

None of my storage containers allow for a 1 cup measure to fit in them either. some fit the half but not many. I will do the recipe once in cups weighing things out and recording it. it varies depending on the ingredients though, so I found to the nearest sensible measure and had a touch of hope for good measure. but I understand where @Kake Lover is coming from. most things are just better in grams of ounces imo. we are just not used to measuring in cups in the UK.

 

[Kake Lover]

 

[Kake Lover]

My jars are perfect for pouring from! I also do what @SatNavSaysStraightOn does and the first time I do a recipe, I measure it in cups and then weigh it and record it for next time.

 

[MrsDangermouse]

I can fit cup measures in my flour boxes - I keep flours in wide lock & lock boxes about the same size as a 1.5kg bag of flour laying on it's back. They stack so they only take up the same amount of room as taller jars but are easier to use.

Having said that, I don't use normally use measuring cups when I'm baking as also I find the butter issue difficult to cope with (I've only ever seen "sticks" of butter/marge in the USA). If its a new recipe in cups then I'll normally use a conversion chart like this one to find out the weight or I'll google for the conversion of whichever ingredient it is.

 

[GadgetGuy]

Here are mine, as you all know. I can get up to a 1-cup measuring cup into them. But I will look around for scoops to use with them.

 

[Ellie]

I use grams or ounces for everything except tsp or tbsp. With some jars even getting something bigger than a 1/2 tsp into the jar is impossible (Schwartz spices come to mind) which is really annoying.

I don't understand using cups of half a stick to measure something out. It makes no sense to me.

 

[Cinisajoy]

I use grams or ounces for everything except tsp or tbsp. With some jars even getting something bigger than a 1/2 tsp into the jar is impossible (Schwartz spices come to mind) which is really annoying.

I don't understand using cups of half a stick to measure something out. It makes no sense to me.

I found a very thin set of measuring spoons for my spices.
This thread has become very interesting.
Butter and margarine here comes in 1 pound boxes, 4 1/2 cup sticks.
Margarine can also come in tubs.
Oh wait, my daughter buys her butter in 1/4 cup sticks. Or I should say her daddy does so the kid (age 26) doesn't have to get out a butter knife.
*that may change when her dad's girlfriend moves in.

 

[MrsDangermouse]

This thread has become very interesting.
Butter and margarine here comes in 1 pound boxes, 4 1/2 cup sticks.
Margarine can also come in tubs.
Oh wait, my daughter buys her butter in 1/4 cup sticks. Or I should say her daddy does so the kid (age 26) doesn't have to get out a butter knife.
*that may change when her dad's girlfriend moves in.

In the UK soft margarine comes in tubs (normally 500g or 1kg), hard margarine and butter come in 250g blocks.

Most of our recipes are by weight, I think its only since the rise of the internet (which has brought access to recipes from many more sources) that measuring cups have become readily available. I bought my measuring cups years ago when I was on holiday in the US because I had read about them in a recipe, but I think I'm still the only member of my family to have some, whereas everyone has a set of scales. I only really use the cups for a few sauces - I find they're quite good for liquid ingredients, and for measuring rice because that is better done by volume. I don't really think cups will replace weight over here - I find it so much easier to do most things by weight and it makes it easier to scale recipes too.

 

[Cinisajoy]

Our hard and soft margarines are pretty much identical as far as fat and water content. They may be blended slightly different or they may just package at different temperatures.
Amusing note: when my brother cooks, he uses weights. I use cups. He has been to culinary school.

As to the internet, it has just been in the past few years that I have seen weights.

On recipes, I don't mind one or the other or even both unless it is something like:
250 grams ground beef
1/2 pound potatoes
1 cup flour
3 oz ketchup
1 gram salt
2 tsp sugar
1 liter water
Etc.
Oh please, use one format or the other. Don't keep switching.
Note: The above is not a recipe just an example.
I have actually seen something similar in self-published "cookbooks" at Amazon. Those usually have other flaws too where it is obvious the book has been ran through Google Translate and no editing or proofreading.

Now if one does say this:
250 grams (1/2 pound) ground beef,
That is awesome.