The Measuring Tip
You may have heard this joke before… Did you hear about
Blonde Betty’s new business? On Mon, Wed, & Fri, she
sells homemade biscuits, on Tues, Thur and Sat, she sells
door knobs. Doorknobs? Dang, those biscuits got hard
fast. She probably sold more doorknobs than biscuits.
Blonde Betty, I’m here to help.
First, let’s look at why the biscuits would harden into
doorknobs. The answers are simpler than you think.
Q: Why does bread get heavy, like a brick?
A: Because it has too much water.
Q: How do I avoid this?
A: Check your measuring cups.
Baking is no joking matter when a person feels inadequate about
their cooking skills. If a person chooses not to cook, it should be a
preference, not a feeling of inadequacy.
One more important tip to help the bread stay light, sift the
flour before placing it in the bowl. Even if the flour is presifted, it will settle. The distance between the processing
plant for the flour and your flour canister, is several miles.
Think about it, pre-sifted doesn’t mean your flour will stay
light, it just means that any grains that missed the milling
process are sifted out.
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When baking breads, it is important to have the right tools
for the right job. Are you using dry measuring cups when
you should be using a liquid measure, or vice versa? Refer
to the images on the right for the difference between dry
and liquid measuring cups. When I took Home Economics
in the 9th grade, Mrs. K. made sure we knew the difference
and took points off for using the wrong measuring cup. This
can be one of the reasons for getting too much liquid in the
bread. Some people interchange dry and liquid measures
without a problem, I’m not one of these people. Fluid
ounces are based on volume (liquid measure), dry ounces
Dry measuring cups, ranging from ¼ to 2 cups in size. The
are based on weight (dry measure).
stainless steel construction of these measuring cups allow them to
go anywhere in the dishwasher. They can also be used on the stove
top for melting ingredients.
The most likely reason to mess up a recipe, is the measuring
cup. Liquid measuring cups can be the culprit, and in
my opinion, usually the culprit. Shocking thought, but
aren’t we supposed to trust our measuring cups? Aren’t
they based on the standard weights and measures? Isn’t
the manufacturer looking out for my best interest? You
would think so, but no. I have a 1-cup, 2-cup and two
4-cup measure, and I didn’t think anything of it, for a
long while. Then one day it happened, I decided to use the
bread machine and whip up a loaf of bread. The 1-cup and
2-cup measures were in the dishwasher, so I used one of
the 4-cup measures to measure out 1 cup of water. That
loaf came out of the bread machine like a brick when it
was finished. My husband accused me of not following the
directions, got out another bread mix, and used the very
same measuring cup to measure out 1 cup of water. When
the loaf he made came out like a brick, I knew it wasn’t
anything I did, because it wasn’t my fault (like he thought).
When it comes to eyeballing ingredients for your favorite
recipes, be very careful with bread recipes, they are not
like spaghetti sauce where you can add another pinch of
this and try a pinch of that for flavoring, we are talking
about the core of a bread recipe. Sure, eyeball the amount
of seasoning to taste for a bread recipe, but not the core of
the recipe.
Liquid measuring cups. The name of the manufacturer has been
removed. The name is not important here, as this is not the
only manufacturer that prints measurements on the side of the
measuring bowls. Allowing for a slight rotation on the image, it
is still possible to see that the marks on the left measuring cup do
not line up with the cup on the right. The measuring cup on the
right is off by ¼ cup, and has the possibility to ruin the core of any
recipe.
So what about the TV chefs that use these types of measuring
cups? I can only guess that an assistant checked them for accuracy
before allowing them to be used on the show.
It is my opinion, that consumers should stop buying measuring
cups with measurements printed on the side. It is also my opinion
that these measuring cups are only good for heating liquids in the
microwave, and nothing else.
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Knowing that two loaves of bread had been ruined by
the measuring cup, I got out the measuring spoons,
and measured out 16 tablespoons of water. It took 20
tablespoons to make one cup of water on the offending
measuring cup. The two ruined loaves of bread had 1¼
cups of water. I set the two 4-cup measures next to each
other, take a look and see what I saw. The light went on,
the difference in the two measuring cups explained why
recipes sometimes varied. Anything I made with a four
cup measure did vary. There were occasional complaints
from the husband. “You didn’t measure it right.” Well,
corporate America had a hand in my error.
I contacted the manufacturer, and they said they are
allowed to be off by 5% by law, and that they would not
replace the bad measuring cup. If I want a measure that is
exact, then I have to buy professional grade cookware that
is certified to measure true. Professional grade cookware
can be expensive when you’re living paycheck to paycheck.
The manufacturer’s response was, “Get Lost,” and I was
mad.
The good measuring cup with raised marks on the side. It’s
plastic, and it’s only top shelf dishwasher safe, but it measures a
lot truer than a measuring cup with printed ink. The fluid ounce
side is showing here, and the garlic can was placed inside to make
the raised marks show up better. On the left side of the image,
you can see part of the 1 cup measure that is made by the same
manufacturer.
Over all, I prefer glass measures. They are microwave safe and they
are top/bottom shelf dishwasher safe. This is the second set of
plastic measures that I’ve gotten, the first set had some cracks on
the bottom. They weren’t leaking yet, but as the first set had lasted
for a year or so, it was time to spend another $1.70 for some recipe
insurance.
On a trip to one of the local mega marts, I looked at
the measuring cups. There were other manufacturers
that had the ink printed marks on the side of the glass.
Lining them up next to each other reveal that they weren’t
all that accurate either. The marks didn’t not line up to
each other. Then I saw the answer, there was a plastic
1-cup measure, and a plastic 2-cup measure. The marks
weren’t printed on the side with ink, they raised on the
outside of the cup. The raised marks were part of the mold
that made these inexpensive plastic measures. When two
of the plastic measuring cups were set next to each other,
the marks lined up. The plastic measures would measure
the same, no matter what! The 1-cup measure was about
80¢ and the 2-cup measure was about 90¢. Even if the were
replaced every year or so, that would be a lot more better
than ruining recipes and throwing away food. (Image on
the right.) I don’t know the name of the manufacturer,
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maybe they are shy. If you work for the manufacturer of
these accurate measuring cups, a big thank you. My sanity
and confidence to cook has returned.
What about the 4-cup measures? I still have them, they
get used to heat tea water in the microwave. They don’t
get used for critical recipes. Tea water is about all they are Yes, I’m guilty. I have a preference for stainless steel. It doesn’t
good for. Yes, I’m still upset that the company could have melt or warp in the dishwasher the way plastic can. The larger
such a poor attitude about keeping the customers happy. spoons are being sold as muffin measures.
Am I on a soapbox here? You bet. I don’t like ruining
16 tbsp = 1 cup
8 tbsp = ½ cup
recipes, and I get a little touchy when someone suggests
4 tbsp = ¼ cup
that I don’t know how to cook.
If you have any questionable measuring cups, get out the
measuring spoons. There are 16 tablespoons to a cup. This
process will go faster if you have measuring spoons in the
2, 4, and 8 tablespoon increments.
If you want to find professional grade cookware tools,
start with your local restaurant supply store. If they don’t
have what you’re looking for, go to laboratory equipment.
I spent several years in the semi-conductor industry, where
measuring 30 millimeters of hydrofluoric acid was critical.
You may also contact local bakeries, where they make
up batches for 30 loaves of bread from one recipe, to see
where they get their supplies from. Just remember, some
of these items will be priced higher than you expect. A
4-cup measure that is allowed to be off by 5% runs about
$7 by itself. I’d rather save money than spend it, so I look
for economical solutions.
The manufacturer that created the inaccurate measuring
cup, also makes one that holds 8 cups. I won’t buy it, I
won’t even consider it, knowing that it can be off by 5%.
If I have to measure 8 cups, I’ll make do with what I have,
rather than ruin the recipe.
Food is to be eaten and enjoyed, not criticized because a person
doesn’t know someone is manufacturing their feelings of
inadequacy in the kitchens. And when you ask for justice, “Get
Lost” is not the message you want to hear.
The right tool for the right job.
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