Chapter 12 Recipes and Work Plans
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Measuring Ingredients
When preparing foods, you will need to measure different types of ingredients in
different ways. Knowing how to measure ingredients correctly will help food products
turn out right.
Measuring Dry Ingredients
Dry ingredients include sugar, fl our, baking soda, salt, and spices. Measure these
ingredients in dry measuring cups. Spoon the ingredient into the correct measuring cup
until it is overfi lled. Do not shake or tap the measuring cup. Hold it over the ingredient
container or a sheet of waxed paper. Then use a straight-edged spatula to level off any
excess. The ingredient should be even with the top edge of the measuring cup.
Flour is thoroughly sifted during the milling process and does not need to be sifted
before measuring. Just stir it lightly and measure it like other dry ingredients. However,
you should not skip the sifting step when a recipe tells you to sift fl our with other dry
ingredients. In this case, sifting helps combine the ingredients.
Measure brown sugar a bit differently from other dry ingredients. Press it fi rmly into
a dry measure with the back of a spoon. This is called packing. Overfi ll the measuring
cup and then level it with a straight-edged spatula. The brown sugar should hold the
shape of the measuring cup when you dump it out.
Use measuring spoons when measuring less than 1⁄4 cup (50 mL) of dry ingredients.
Dip the correct measuring spoon into the ingredient container and level off any excess.
You may need to use combinations of dry measures to measure the amounts of
ingredients you need. For instance, you would fi ll a
1⁄3-cup
measure twice to measure
2⁄3 cup. You would fi ll a 1⁄4-teaspoon measure and a ½-teaspoon measure to measure 3⁄4
teaspoon.
Measuring Liquid Ingredients
Liquid ingredients include milk, water, oil, juices, food colorings, and extracts.
Measure these ingredients in liquid measuring cups or measuring spoons. The handles
and spouts on liquid measuring cups make pouring easy. The extra room at the top of
the cup will help you avoid spilling.
Set the liquid measure on a fl at surface. Then bend down so the desired marking
on the measuring cup is at eye level. Slowly pour the ingredient into the measuring cup
until it reaches the mark for the desired amount. See 12-4.
Use measuring spoons when measuring less than ¼ cup (50 mL) of liquid ingredi-
ents. Carefully pour the ingredient into the correct spoon until it is fi lled to the edge.
Measuring Fats
Butter, margarine, shortening, and peanut butter are fats used in recipes. Stick
butter and margarine have markings on their wrappers to help you measure needed
amounts. Each stick equals 8 tablespoons or ½ cup (125 mL). Use a sharp knife to cut
through the wrapper at the marking for the desired number of tablespoons.
You can measure shortening and peanut butter in dry measuring cups. Use a fl exible
spatula to press these ingredients into the measuring cup, making sure you eliminate
any air pockets. Overfi ll the measuring cup, then level it with a straight-edged spatula.