Talk to me about food scales

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Mine's a pretty basic one (I can't remember the model) but it was around $20 USD. I've had it for 10 years! Wow.

It measures in grams & ounces.

Digital with a tare function is good.

You may want to consider how it will live in your kitchen -- will you put it in a cupboard when not using, or tilt it on its side to lean against a wall or leave it out all the time (in which case, you're looking at it all the time). That, and how easy it would be to clean, will help you think about design.

And weight capacity. If you often make a lot of food at once, like a huge pot of chili, you may want a scale that can handle say 12 lbs instead of only a few.

The one I've been borrowing also has an auto-shut-off, and if I could choose, I would not have that. But it's not a huge deal.

Oh, get an extra battery!

Digital, tare function, weighs in grams and ozs.

Found a picture of mine.

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I'd get one with a flat surface.

I may need to do this. Thanks for this post.

I have an OXO brand. I like it because it has a flat surface (easy to put a plate on), the part that shows the information pulls out so you can see it easily even with a dinner plate on the scale, and it weighs up to 5 pounds so that one can way total recipes and then calculate servings easily. The batteries are AAA and I use rechargeable ones - the scale is easy on them. The only thing I would do differently is to get the OXO scale that can weigh up to 12 lbs - I sometimes make big "vats" of chili in the winter and the total exceeds the 5-lb capacity.

I would suggest a flat surface scale over one with a bowl. The flat ones are more versatile and mean that can weigh many items right on the serving dish without having to wash an extra bowl. The tare function is wonderful.

This food scale works good for us: Ounces or Grams, zeroes out nicely:
http://www.walmart.com/ip/Mainstays-Slimline-Digital-Scale/35854314

America's Test Kitchen recommends OXO Food Scale. This goes up to 11 pounds, which I like for various reasons, including being able to weigh casserole dishes, but they have a less expensive model with a 5 # capacity.

http://www.americastestkitchen.com/equipment_reviews/695-digital-scales

Handy as they are, measuring cups will never measure up to the accuracy of a digital scale. We’ve found that when measuring dry ingredients using a “dip and sweep” method, different cooks can be off by as much as 10 percent—a variance that, in baking, can mean the difference between a dense cake or a fluffy, tender crumb. To find the best scale for the job, we tested nine models, each measuring in 1-gram increments. As we placed 30-, 200-, and 500-gram lab weights on their surfaces-and moved them around to make sure readings were equal in every position-we found only negligible discrepancies (within 2 grams). We based our rankings, then, on how easy the scales are to use. Whether you choose a scale that measures in decimals (as the professionals use) or fractions (as most home recipes are written) is a matter of preference. We ranked scales most highly for roomy platforms (over 6 inches); at least 7-pound capacity; a large, clear readout display; and sensitive, accessible buttons. Our new favorite, which displays weights in fractions or grams, measures up all around.

Winner: OXO Food Scale

Exceptionally intuitive. The super-clear display offers an optional backlight, four easy-to-read buttons, and, unique to OXO, can be pulled out from the large, removable (i.e. washable) platform when weighing bulky items.