What's in a cup?

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trunkfish
trunkfish Posts: 81 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
A question for Americans - what does a cupful mean? If it's solid food, would that be about 100g - or if it's liquid, is that about 200ml?

Thanks.

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  • Pebble321
    Pebble321 Posts: 6,554 Member
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    I'm not American - but I'll give you an answer anyway!

    If you're talking liquid then it's 250ml (Australia) or 8oz (US).

    Solids are harder - because not everything weighs the same per cup, it's a measure of volume not of weight. So, a cup of flour means a 250ml cup full of flour - whatever that weighs.
  • ImprovingEla
    ImprovingEla Posts: 396 Member
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    Oh thanks for posting the question and the answer.
    No a few things are clearer to me too.
  • sting5
    sting5 Posts: 408
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    bump
  • cramernh
    cramernh Posts: 3,335 Member
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    I'm not American - but I'll give you an answer anyway!

    If you're talking liquid then it's 250ml (Australia) or 8oz (US).

    Solids are harder - because not everything weighs the same per cup, it's a measure of volume not of weight. So, a cup of flour means a 250ml cup full of flour - whatever that weighs.

    Exactly... I can brunois two whole red peppers and have them fit in that one cup. about 7oz of brunoised zucchini will fit in that cup. Solid foods require a scale for true/accurate measurement.

    The cups are for fluid-based measurements...
  • trunkfish
    trunkfish Posts: 81 Member
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    Hi and thanks for your answers. The cup is not such a mystery now.
  • fay_pigu
    fay_pigu Posts: 125 Member
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    I got a set of measuring cups from Ikea because they looked quite cool in the kitchen and has 250ml on the 1 cup size.

    Quite like the idea of recipes using them but I'm a that's about right kind of chap.

    In Chinese markets they used to sell rice in bells (some probably still do), the idea is you can strike the measure and the note will confirm if true. Same with length of cloth, with string (twisted silk probably) being plucked for the note. Nice imagery even if not fact.
  • KeithChanning
    KeithChanning Posts: 214 Member
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    I'm not American - but I'll give you an answer anyway!

    If you're talking liquid then it's 250ml (Australia) or 8oz (US).

    Solids are harder - because not everything weighs the same per cup, it's a measure of volume not of weight. So, a cup of flour means a 250ml cup full of flour - whatever that weighs.

    Exactly... I can brunois two whole red peppers and have them fit in that one cup. about 7oz of brunoised zucchini will fit in that cup. Solid foods require a scale for true/accurate measurement.

    The cups are for fluid-based measurements...

    This. The quantity of any irregularly shaped solid that will fit into a cup, pint or litre depends on how hard you squeeze it in and gives a laughably inaccurate measure.

    Cups, pints, litres are liquid measures. Ounces and grams for solids, please.
  • TrimAnew
    TrimAnew Posts: 127 Member
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    The quantity of any irregularly shaped solid that will fit into a cup, pint or litre depends on how hard you squeeze it in and gives a laughably inaccurate measure.

    *shrug*

    Inaccurate though cups may be, I still prefer them over the hassle of a kitchen scale. I have one that I can't bother myself to actually use. :)

    Most things can be measured about right if you just follow a few "rules" when you measure, like sifting flour and packing brown sugar. The rest just makes cooking more of an art than a science. ie. measure one amount then adjust as necessary because even things like the weather (especially humidity) can impact a recipe.

    Of course, I also have a few recipes from family with even less accurate measurements on them, like a handful, a dash, and a pinch or even "half a pinch"--which is just funny. Those are the ones where when someone asks for the recipe my first response is, "Um...."

    Having said that, I was amused by a neighbor, a engineer, who insisted on all recipes being exact and was thus often frustrated by measurements. If a recipe said it made 24 cookies then 23 or 25 just would not do and he would put a lot of effort into making exactly 24 even cookies. I can see where a scale might have been easier for a guy like him. :P

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