American cup measurements

SuffolkSally
SuffolkSally Posts: 964 Member
in Food and Nutrition
See, here in the UK, this would be about bra sizes, and therefore interesting.

As it is, many of us have to battle with the bizarre US cup measurement when preparing food.

Now don't get me wrong, it's fine for liquids.

Except that then you measure them in ounces, instead. Which to many of the rest of us, is (highly confusingly) a weight measure rather than a volume one. Watch me trying to weigh my wine - a very messy procedure, trust me...

I've had a set of measuring cups for many years, and I have scales which measure weight in imperial and metric, also a measuring jug for ounces and millitres.

But these cups of yours? If you're trying to be precise, or happen to be a bit obsessional, how the hell do you cope?

1 cup lettuce. What, sort of loosely shoved in? Packed in?

1 cup flour. Sieved, with therefore added air? Or not? Packed in hard or just poured from the bag? That cup of raisins which goes with it? Actually weighs far more and destroys the recipe - how does that work?

1 cup olives. Great big fat ones, four to a cup? Chopped ones? Huge calorie difference...

and so on...

Replies

  • Denjo060
    Denjo060 Posts: 1,008
    :laugh: LOL too funny :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :noway:
  • Long_and_Lean
    Long_and_Lean Posts: 175 Member
    agreed 1000%. You have to be very judicial about which food items you enter from the MFP database, or you could be vastly underestimating the amount you're eating.
  • Fiona_Bullough
    Fiona_Bullough Posts: 138 Member
    Agree! Find it so difficult.
  • clover5
    clover5 Posts: 1,640 Member
    I understand your confusion. Usually the measurement for a product regardless of whether it's olives, nuts or flour, is measured as packaged. So, olives will be whole unless they are sliced canned olives. For flour, just dip from canister and level off the cup with finger or a knife.

    To add to your confusion, many of us here just eyeball it - meaning we guess. A tennis ball is about the size of 1 cup. A golf ball - 2 tablespoons.
  • kyle4jem
    kyle4jem Posts: 1,400 Member
    I despair when I see listings like apples and chicken and the amount is 1 cup... how is that possible unless minced finely!!!

    And then you wonder why folk bemoan the fact they're not losing weight when they are probably under-estimating calories consumed and then over-estimating calories burned to boot.

    I know you can get a bit OCD about it all when calorie counting, but at least with g/oz for solids and ml/fl oz for liquids you know where you are.
  • SuffolkSally
    SuffolkSally Posts: 964 Member
    I understand your confusion. Usually the measurement for a product regardless of whether it's olives, nuts or flour, is measured as packaged. So, olives will be whole unless they are sliced canned olives. For flour, just dip from canister and level off the cup with finger or a knife.

    To add to your confusion, many of us here just eyeball it - meaning we guess. A tennis ball is about the size of 1 cup. A golf ball - 2 tablespoons.

    Sooo that would be a sort of generous-to-the-hungry-diner guess then? As my US standard 1 cup measuring cup is greatly different to a UK tennis ball... well that raises a further question in fact. Is the eyeballed tennis ball considered as crushed into a measuring cup, or in its more expansive natural state?

    However, if we have to start being experts in sports equipment in different countries merely in order to sort out our calorifc food intake - well all I can say is there's a need for a book on the subject. I claim intellectual property hereby, all royalties and 50% of profits after proven legitimate expenses.
  • smiffy645
    smiffy645 Posts: 167 Member
    If you get a copy of the monthly magazine from Waitrose they have a conversion chart for lots of ingedients for cup to metric
  • carriempls
    carriempls Posts: 326 Member
    I understand your confusion. Usually the measurement for a product regardless of whether it's olives, nuts or flour, is measured as packaged. So, olives will be whole unless they are sliced canned olives. For flour, just dip from canister and level off the cup with finger or a knife.

    To add to your confusion, many of us here just eyeball it - meaning we guess. A tennis ball is about the size of 1 cup. A golf ball - 2 tablespoons.

    Actually, flour is to be measured a specific way. Just dipping into the canister that way you're going to get too much.

    It should be sifted or at the least spooned into the measuring cup, do not shake the cup to settle and then, yes, level it off with a knife.

    Being American, I whole-heartedly agree with the cup measurement thing being wacky. I much prefer to weigh stuff. Far more accurate for both calories counting AND for baking, when the proper ratios are so important to the end product.
  • ElizabethRoad
    ElizabethRoad Posts: 5,138 Member
    I don't understand the confusion on this. No it's not all that precise but we seem to manage without any problems. Why is it so difficult for you to estimate?
  • saxmaniac
    saxmaniac Posts: 1,133 Member
    Weighing is not messy. Get a digital scale that can tare -- nothing dirty that wasn't going to get dirty in the first place.
  • Monny287
    Monny287 Posts: 109
    A lot of American cookbooks give you exact measurements for what they mean. If they want one cup of sifted flour, they'll tell you. Or one cup of flour, sifted---which took me forever to realize was different than the first one, by the way. If they want the olives chopped, they'll tell you. MFP database is not as precise. :P
  • ano157
    ano157 Posts: 2
    You can be pretty precise if it is a cup of brown sugar, SuffolkSally. You just load the cup and smoosh it down till it is level and no air left. Sadly, most of us are probably avoiding quantities of brown sugar. ;)
  • geordiegirl27
    geordiegirl27 Posts: 307 Member
    If you get a copy of the monthly magazine from Waitrose they have a conversion chart for lots of ingedients for cup to metric

    ^^ thats handy to know

    I struggle with the cup thing too, where possible, because I use the app as well, I scan the barcodes of the things I buy and it stays in my recent list. Really could do with a favourites button so things you use regularly are there in your own special box.

    Great post thanks for asking :)
  • SuffolkSally
    SuffolkSally Posts: 964 Member
    I don't understand the confusion on this. No it's not all that precise but we seem to manage without any problems. Why is it so difficult for you to estimate?

    That would rather be why I'm asking the question. I'm sure it's fine for you guys, but for those of us who have never lived in America, but are using a database which contains predominantly American measurements, it can be a poser.

    My post was meant to be humorous in its British way but hopefully get more of a genuine debate going. I have seriously have seen US people worrying about cup sizes - the point I made about lettuce was in fact made originally by a post by an American lady.

    And you'll have seen some of the difficulties if you read the above posts.

    If you're not living in America, or are but on a plan which requires exact calorie counting,or even in the US but still feel confused then the US cup system doesn't seem very helpful. I know you've got it - I'm not saying it's like a national fault or anything. And you just said yourself it's not all that precise.

    So - not really sure what point you're making.
  • Erisad
    Erisad Posts: 1,580
    I use ounces instead of the actual cups most of the time. 4 ounces = 1/2 cup and 8 ounces = 1 cup. It helps me keep it straight. :)
  • ArchangelMJ
    ArchangelMJ Posts: 308 Member
    This is precisely why I just use a digital scale now and weigh in grams for my calorie counting. But when I'm not doing that, I find cups to be pretty straight forward. I've never had problems when baking and stuff. Meanwhile, lettuce more or less has no caloric value, lol, so I don't see why it'd be such a big deal if your measurement was off.
  • yarwell
    yarwell Posts: 10,477 Member
    Volume measures like cups should only be used for liquids if you want any precision.

    As an illustration of our descent into Idiocracy my digital scales can switch between ml and g - all that changes is the symbol on the display.
  • Witchmoo
    Witchmoo Posts: 261 Member
    I don't understand the confusion on this. No it's not all that precise but we seem to manage without any problems. Why is it so difficult for you to estimate?

    That would rather be why I'm asking the question. I'm sure it's fine for you guys, but for those of us who have never lived in America, but are using a database which contains predominantly American measurements, it can be a poser.

    My post was meant to be humorous in its British way but hopefully get more of a genuine debate going. I have seriously have seen US people worrying about cup sizes - the point I made about lettuce was in fact made originally by a post by an American lady.

    And you'll have seen some of the difficulties if you read the above posts.

    If you're not living in America, or are but on a plan which requires exact calorie counting,or even in the US but still feel confused then the US cup system doesn't seem very helpful. I know you've got it - I'm not saying it's like a national fault or anything. And you just said yourself it's not all that precise.

    So - not really sure what point you're making.

    Go Sally, so nice to see a good point well made rather than just rudeness....hurrah for you I say!
  • hunter624
    hunter624 Posts: 252
    Never mind a cup how big or small is a pinch of something?????
    :drinker:
  • urglewurgle
    urglewurgle Posts: 224 Member
    Totally agree that this "cup" malarkey drives me bonkers!
  • Loulady
    Loulady Posts: 511 Member
    Truth.

    I really wish we could just hurry up and get on the metric bus.
  • nikkitodhunter
    nikkitodhunter Posts: 110
    Argghh THIS!! It frustrates me SO. MUCH. What a weird way of measuring things!?
  • adrushe
    adrushe Posts: 25
    haha, i've never really thought about it like that before.. I am Canadian though, not sure if it's the same problem :P
  • ArchangelMJ
    ArchangelMJ Posts: 308 Member
    Did you know you can buy measuring cups complete with a small "just a pinch" measurement. It pretty teeny, smaller than a teaspoon.
  • ATOLLIT
    ATOLLIT Posts: 149
    I know EXACTLY what you mean!! It probably doesn't help that I don't even have a set of measuring cups - but that is mainly because I have never ever seen one for sale in the UK, and I don't intend on paying a small fortune for one in a specialist shop. I have tried measuring stuff using a coffee mug before - but I have a lot of different sized coffee mugs, so which one I use tends to depend on how much food I fancy :bigsmile:

    Worse though, is the amount of baking recipes written out in cups, I have no idea how to convert them to weights, and I googled it once and found 5 different websites with totally different amounts on...
  • Ticktockman
    Ticktockman Posts: 21
    For converting to and from metric, google does an excellent job. Just type in "convert 2 cups to liters", for example, and google does the work for you.
  • Ticktockman
    Ticktockman Posts: 21
    ... sorry, double posted that somehow.
  • urglewurgle
    urglewurgle Posts: 224 Member
    Worse though, is the amount of baking recipes written out in cups, I have no idea how to convert them to weights, and I googled it once and found 5 different websites with totally different amounts on...

    I think for most baking as long as you use the same cup you're ok.

    Love the avatar by the way!
  • ATOLLIT
    ATOLLIT Posts: 149
    Worse though, is the amount of baking recipes written out in cups, I have no idea how to convert them to weights, and I googled it once and found 5 different websites with totally different amounts on...

    I think for most baking as long as you use the same cup you're ok.

    Love the avatar by the way!

    Thanks :D

    You'd think so... I also got confused when sweetener says "if measuring volume use the same amount, if measuring weight use 1/10 the amount".... I definitely had the wrong amount last time I tried to bake anything. I mean, the muffins were still tasty, but only because I like really bitter dark chocolate!
  • pdworkman
    pdworkman Posts: 1,342 Member
    They measure liquids in fluid ounces, not troy ounces. It is a volume measurement not a weight measurement. LOL. 1 fl oz = 30 mL.

    Lettuce - torn, not finely shredded, loosely packed

    Flour - sifted, spooned into the measuring cup, not packed down, not shaken down, levelled with a knife/spatula

    Olives - small or medium sized, not sliced unless it says so

    Nothing is packed in except brown sugar or solid fats (which should really be used with the water displacement method, but rarely are.)

    But I prefer weighing also. If you're in a real bind, check the USDA database: http://ndb.nal.usda.gov/ It will give you choices as to the method of measurement, which will give you the ratio that you need to figure it out.

    For example:

    http://ndb.nal.usda.gov/ndb/foods/show/6380 whole wheat flour - 1 cup = 120 g

    http://ndb.nal.usda.gov/ndb/foods/show/3069 iceberg lettuce - 1 cup, chopped (1/2" pieces, loosely packed)
    = 57g

    http://ndb.nal.usda.gov/ndb/foods/show/2382 olives - 1 Tb = 8.4 g



    Now don't get me wrong, it's fine for liquids.

    Except that then you measure them in ounces, instead. Which to many of the rest of us, is (highly confusingly) a weight measure rather than a volume one. Watch me trying to weigh my wine - a very messy procedure, trust me...

    I've had a set of measuring cups for many years, and I have scales which measure weight in imperial and metric, also a measuring jug for ounces and millitres.

    But these cups of yours? If you're trying to be precise, or happen to be a bit obsessional, how the hell do you cope?

    1 cup lettuce. What, sort of loosely shoved in? Packed in?

    1 cup flour. Sieved, with therefore added air? Or not? Packed in hard or just poured from the bag? That cup of raisins which goes with it? Actually weighs far more and destroys the recipe - how does that work?

    1 cup olives. Great big fat ones, four to a cup? Chopped ones? Huge calorie difference...

    and so on...

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