Weights of Foods and Liquids

Weight of food stuffs used in cookery.— The following is an approximate, comparative list of the bulk and weight of different articles of common domestic use. These will be found to vary slightly, but are as accurate as can be given and have been proved by experience to be sufficiently correct for all practical purposes.

It is important to note that the weight of things used commonly in cooking varies. For example, 1 Cup of water weighs 8 ounces, but 1 Cup of milk weighs 8 1/4 ounces, accounting for the difference in specific gravity. This is usually only helpful to know when a recipe calls for an ingredient by weight, but lacks sufficient guidance to tell you how much to actually use. If, for example, your recipe calls for “a scant 4 ounces grated cheese”, you know that it doesn’t mean half a cup, but actually, the weight of the cheese, which is actually the equivalent of a full cup.

Unfortunately, in the 1950’s, with the advance of pre-packaged foods, the kitchen scale became an uncommon feature in most American homes. Today, it is making a resurgence, and we heartily recommend to all our readers that they invest in a good, accurate kitchen scale.