I've just had to convert everything into grams for a recipe. Not only is a cup different for each ingredient, for example, 1 Cup of Flour is equal to 128g and 1 Cup of Sugar is equal to 201g. But there's also conflicting conversions!? Another site tells me 1 Cup of Flour is equal to 110g!

What's the deal? Why not just have a universal weight and weigh every thing in grams for example! What if you need 1 and 5/6 Cups!?

God damn it's complicated!

Cup = volume, not weight

It really isn't complicated if you are familiar with it, 1 cup is not a measurement of weight so converting it into weight is going to be a little different, depending on the density of the ingredient. First off, if we consider that the difference in a few grams of flour or sugar really ISN'T going to impact the dish greatly, we have a better idea of the flexibility we have. If you think about it in terms of what it is, and not what it translates into, it makes a lot more sense. A cup of sugar may weigh 201 grams, but it also takes up a certain amount of space. Volume is Mass / Density.

I imagine if I were trying to measure 2 pounds of ground beef in milliliters, I'd be a little frustrated too.

Well I never!



I think that could be the problem. I'm just not used to it! I take it you have standard sized cups in the US? So much easier to just use scales and weigh everything in grams in my opinion

ya

what takes me a few seconds to toss in a cup and see its right, is the same to get out the scale and weigh everything?

bottom line, time = money. it may not be perfect, but its fast.

I take it there are standard cup sizes in America? Butter most be a problem to measure it's volume as a solid, no?

Most sticks of butter, commercial and restaurant size, come with lines measuring out each tablespoon (each stick is 8 tablespoons). One cup is 16 tablespoons, although most recipes will list butter measurements in tablespoons.

Not really, it's measured into lbs, which makes two perfect cup measurements. So if I need a cup, just cut in half. A half cup, cut off a forth. Obviously some things require a more presses measurement, but for the most part I can go without a scale.

A cup here is 8 ounces, or 226 grams if you like

This post was edited by FloraFreak on Aug 1 2011 01:50pm