A cooking equipment question

[sraun]

What's the difference between dry and liquid measuring cups? Why did I get taught that you never measured liquid in dry and vice versa? They're both volume measurement, and they're measuring the same volume, so what gives?

Comments

[magentamn.livejournal.com]

Liquid cups usually have a margin above the amount on the cup. A one cup measure is actually one cup and a couple of tablespoons. One of the reasons is that if you are trying to be VERY precise, you need to make sure the liquid is flat, not rounded over, as it might be in a dry measure cup. And it's easy to over-pour liquids. A dry measure cup is exactly that amount, so you can dip a one cup measure into the flour, then level it off with a knife and know you have an exact cup of flour. Does this make sense?

Another thing - it makes it less likely you will dip the same cup you used to measure oil in your flour canister.

[rono-60103.livejournal.com]

My take on it, which is not too different from magentamn's, is that a liquid cup has more room so you can fill it to the line and not risk spilling, whereas a dry cup you can fill to the brim and then scrape off to the level.

Of course my wife, and sometimes me since she has been known to complain when I do otherwise, will use the 1/2 and 1/4 cup dry measures when we need that much water for something and no more.

[ailsaek.livejournal.com]

What he said, except that I almost never bother with liquid measuring cups at all.

[quadong.livejournal.com]

Yeah. What they said.

Kelly was convinced that a liquid cup and a dry cup were different volumes and yelled at me for being sloppy until I demonstrated to her their identicality by pouring water from one to another.

[lonotter.livejournal.com]

I don't always bother using a dry measuring cup, if I've got a liquid one out anyway. I don't trust myself not to make a mess trying to measure liquids in a dry cup, but I don't generally have a problem the other way around. :)

Ain't None

[lsanderson.livejournal.com]

Liquid measuring devices are usually transparent and marked in various volumes and weights. (A pint's a pound dontcha know.) They need to be reasonably scaled to your need. A one quart Pyrex measure probably isn't going to measure 1 tablespoon very well. Sure, you can measure a cup of flour in a quart pyrex, but ittsa pain.

Dry measures are generally meant to be leveled off at the top for American style baking. All in all, dry volume measuring is pretty inaccurate, and most pro or British/European bakers weigh dry ingredients.

[auriaephiala.livejournal.com]

There's no difference in volume. It's strictly how you use them.

It's easier to pour liquids into a liquid cup to get to the correct level, because you can see through the glass sides of the cup. It's easier to measure flour or sugar in a dry measure cup.

You can also melt butter in a liquid cup (in the microwave). For muffins, you can measure the milk in the liquid measure cup, and then add the egg and oil and mix them all together there, thus avoiding dirtying another bowl.

Probably more than you wanted to know

[harimad.livejournal.com]

There's no difference in volume - the measures are designed for differences in use.

Dry volume cups are multiple as I'm sure you know. The idea is you scoop the dry item into the cup then use something flat (like a knife) to push away the excess. Don't shake the measure to get the dry item to settle or you'll get too much. (Note that this method of measuring can yield rather different amounts of certain dry items, most notoriously flour. If you sift the flour into the cup then flatten it you can get as much as 25% less than if you dip the cup into a bag of flour than flatten it. The commonly accepted US "best method" (unless the recipe specifies otherwise) is to stir up the bag of flour, then dip your cup in, then flatten.) (Or get a recipe that uses weight, which is much more accurate.)

Wet volume measures is usually one: use one measuring cup for almost any amount of liquid. Pour the liquid in, crouch down so you're even with the liquid level, line it up with the appropriate mark. Or use an OXO measuring cup that lets you eyeball it accurately from above. Most liquid measuring cups are wide enough that you don't have to worry about the meniscus. Of course, some liquid gets left in a cup, so you don't want to measure 1/8th cup in a 4 cup measure.

The final advantage to having two sets is that it helps you keep wet cups out of your bag of sugar.

I keep two sets of dry measures and often use one for small amounts of wet ingredients. I always use a dry measure to measure something sticky like honey: spray the cup with Pam, measure sticky stuff, push it out with a silicon spatula. Ditto for shortening unless I feel like weighing it. Others use volume displacement to measure shortening; both work.

[17catherines.livejournal.com]

I treat them as the same. So far, this has worked.

love

Catherine

[windtear.livejournal.com]

What they said, pretty much. Dry cups are designed to be levelled off by an outside implement, so they are exact measures with no further indication or room. (This is a cup, it has no mark for a half cup and it is exactly one cup; it's a dry cup). Wet cups are usually made of a clear material (either glass or plastic), have multiple measures on the side and normally have a lip shaped into a spout or other pouring device.

Now this doesn't mean you can't use a dry cup to measure wet ingredients or vice versa, but dry cups are designed to be good for dry ingredients so they aren't the best for wet ingredients, and wet cups are built for liquids, not flours etc. and so it's practical and sensible to use each for their designated substance.

[harimad.livejournal.com]

There are some really badly designed dry measures that can't be leveled off. Nigella Lawson, to her - I hope - everlasting shame, put her name on some (http://www.nigella.com/living_kitchen/detail.asp?area=4&article=53) that look like teacups and whose measure mark is 1/2" below the cup's rim. Can't be stacked, large and awkward and breakable, and guaranteed to

[harimad.livejournal.com]

Oops - that should have been "guaranteed to get the measurement wrong."