The Ultimate Guide To Cooking Measurements

There’s a way of measuring any ingredient, from millilitres for liquids to ounces for dry food. Read on to learn how to convert measurements in cooking.

Although traditionally an American measurement, cups are commonly used in recipes, especially baking. But if you prefer to stick to metrics, here’s how to convert cup measurements to millilitres:

Teaspoons and tablespoons are often reserved for small quantities of ingredients like herbs and spices. As a rule of thumb, three teaspoons make up a tablespoon:

If you want to measure liquids and a tablespoon won't cut it, litres and fluid ounces are good alternatives. One Litre equates to 34 fluid ounces, but here's a complete conversion breakdown:

Although metrication came to the UK in the early 80s, some recipes still use ounces. If you prefer sticking to metric grams, look no further than our conversion table below:

Many measuring tools are available, each with its own benefits and purpose. Here are the most popular measuring tools for ingredients:

· Measuring spoons. These are perfect for small volumes, like bicarbonate of soda or cooking oil.

· Measuring jugs. Often with millilitre and fluid ounce readings, jugs are used to measure liquids.

· Measuring cups. Great for dry or liquid ingredients, use these when you’re following a cup-based recipe.

· Scales. You can find both digital and manual scales; often with a choice of measurement options, scales work best for dry ingredients.

It’s not just the ingredient measurements that differ. You’ll find different ways of measuring temperatures in the kitchen too. Getting the temperature of your oven spot on is a crucial step and just as important as having precise quantities.

Celsius and Fahrenheit are the main temperature measurements used everywhere, from weather reports to recipes and more. We've converted the most common cooking temperature for you below:

When popping a cake in the oven, you'll notice that some recipes recommend a gas mark or fan temperature. Gas Mark is a setting used in gas ovens and hobs, whilst fan refers to the scale in fan ovens. The fan measurement is around 20˚C less than conventional Celsius. If all these different measures have you confused, look no further than our guide to Celsius, fan and gas mark temperatures below:

If you need to heat your oven to a specific temperature, this can easily be set on the appliance itself. But if you want to measure the internal temperature of food, especially important for meat like chicken, use a manual thermometer.