amateurish American bakers in the temper for authenticBritish sconesmay be get when they crack open a British cookbook or download a formula from the BBC or another U.K. internet site . That ’s because English recipes be given to give fixings in weights , like Hans C. J. Gram or ounces , rather than in cups , American style .
But it ’s not just Brits who choose weighing out component . Professional bread maker in the U.S. go that path as well . This is because weights are more accurate , and they produce less mess .
" Once you learn to scale factor , batter , dough , you do n’t want to go back to the book method of valuate , " explain Sharon Davis , program growing director for theHome Baking Association , in an e-mail interview . " One bowl , no cups to wash away , precise results … it ’s enceinte . "
So why are weight superior to volume measurement ? One reason is that the scale does n’t lie , but the typical measuring cup does . In fact , many trusted measuring cups are not up to test - kitchen standard , says Davis . Then there ’s the fact that many cup - users simply are n’t doing it right .
She throw an exercise of a family cook measuring 3 cup offlour , 1 loving cup at a time . " You compact it in or you dip into the bag and agitate it sort of level , " she says . " Each cup you assess was about 2 tablespoon to 1/4 cup off because you did n’t measure right or you used a liquid cup to measure dry ingredient or you had precious measure tools but they were n’t standard . So , you just add 3/4 loving cup too much flour ( or maybe too little ) to a lucre , bar or muffin formula . " The result ? " The slugger or sugar is too mobile or sticky or dry . You get bricks or fallen cupcakes . "
So , why do Americans continue to use cups ? Davis says it ’s what they are taught ; it ’s more intuitive than weights ( since people originally baked by " find " and scooping up stuff ) and also scales are still pretty rare in U.S. household .
But using a scale ( which you could buyfor around $ 35 , but as cheaply as $ 15 ) is pretty easy . but turn it on , place the bowl on it and hit " bearded darnel . " This bidding reset the measurement to zero , so that the bowl ’s system of weights wo n’t be factored in . take the measurement character ( grams , ounces , etc . ) and place the constituent in the arena until the desired system of weights is run into . This shortHome Baking Association videogives a demo , plus an account of how cups can give you different measurements .
Not well-situated switching to scale yet ? Davis suggests investing in standardised dry and liquid volume cup , rather than using that one chicken feed measure cup for everything .
