HOW TO USE MEASURING CUPS

Dip and Sweep method

There are many ways to use a measuring cup. You can scoop the cup into your flour or sugar and shake off the excess, you could spoon the ingredient into the cup and level it off with a butter knife (what we call “dip and sweep”) or you could sift flour right into the cup. All of these techniques will give you different amounts by volume and that’s just three of many different ways you might be using your measuring tools.

1. Aerate flour by whisking it first. Flours will compact upon storage. Fluffing it up a bit will give you a better result. Skip this step if your measuring granulated sugar.
2. Using the exact-sized measuring cup called for, dip it into your ingredient so you have a heaping scoop.
3. Scrape off the excess with a straight edge implement, such as an icing spatula.

When cooking, cook to a recipe. When baking, bake to a formula. For instance, if you'd like a little more or less salt in your soup, taste it first, then go ahead. On the other hand, if a muffin recipe says to add 1/2 tsp of salt, you should add exactly that much. Altering baking recipes can result in a less-than-tasty product. (Anything with baking powder in it needs a little salt to help things along.)

If you're trying a new recipe, try it exactly as written the first time. Make adjustments once you have tasted it and you know how it works.

U.S. measurements used in the kitchen have these proportions:

3 teaspoons = 1 tablespoon = 0.5 fluid ounces

16 tablespoons = 1 cup = 8 fluid ounces

2 cups = 1 pint = 16 fluid ounces (a pint of water weighs one pound)

4 cups = 2 pints = 1 quart

4 quarts = 1 gallon

Tablespoons are abbreviated T or Tbsp. Teaspoons are abbreviated t or tsp. Cups are abbreviated c.

Butter often has measurements marked on the wrapper in tablespoons. To use these measurements, use a sharp knife to cut straight through the stick, wrapper and all. Generally, one stick of butter is 1/2 cup.

Flour is best measured by weighing it, but if you wish to measure flour by volume, sift it first and spoon it into the dry measure gently, without pressing or packing it in. Then level with a knife as usual.

Measure brown sugar by packing it moderately firmly into a dry measure with the back of a spoon.

To measure things like grated cheese or chopped nuts, pack them loosely into a dry measure until they are about even with the rim.

To measure a substance with the consistency of peanut butter or shortening, use a spatula to pack it into a dry measure. Then, use the spatula to scoop it out again.

Spraying the measuring cup with non-stick spray before filling it with peanut butter helps the peanut butter slide out more easily.

An alternative method for measuring large (over half cup or more) things of an awkward consistency (margarine, peanut butter etc) is displacement measurement. To do this take a large liquid measuring vessel (e.g. 2C measuring glass), fill it with water to a particular point (e.g. 1C) and then scoop the food you are trying to measure into the water. Add the measure you want (e.g. 1/2C) to the measure the water was at (e.g. 1C), and when the water level is to the new measure (1 1/2C), pour off the water and use the amount of substance you measured.

A jigger or a shot is .1875 U.S. cups, or 3 Tbsp. Should you need to measure one, jigger measurements are available.

You may see definitions and even measuring spoons or tools for a "pinch", "dash", and so on. You can measure these quantities if you want, but they usually connote a generic small amount, to taste. These spoons contain quantities as follows:

Tad: 1/4 tsp.

Dash: 1/8 tsp.

Pinch:1/16 tsp.

Smidgen: 1/32 tsp.

A "dollop" is not a specific measurement, but rather a smallish lump of a semisolid food or a splash of liquid. It is to taste, perhaps however much will stick to a spoon.

Tweet