A few years back I decided I was going to start measuring ingredients by weight for all my baking. I bought an OXO food scale and plunged into the world of pounds and ounces, and it completely transformed the way I bake. To this day, that scale is one of the best kitchen purchases I’ve ever made. Measuring the traditional way (by volume, with cups) works, but it’s a flawed system. Ingredients are more likely to be measured incorrectly, which can potentially throw off a recipe completely. Flour in particular is one of the easiest ingredients to mis-measure, and at the same time one of the most important to measure correctly in order to ensure the success of a recipe. SO, if you don’t own a scale, it’s crucial that you measure your flour properly by hand. Today we’re learning how to do that! Plus – even better – I’ve teamed up with OXO to give away a brand new 11 lb food scale to one veryyyy lucky reader. More details on that below!
Now, if you ARE going to measure your flour by hand, here’s how it’s done:
Step 1: Give your flour a good whisk to loosen it up; flour has a habit of settling and compacting, and one thing you never want to do is measure out a packed cup of flour.
Step 2: Lightly spoon flour into your measuring cup. You don’t want to scoop it straight into the cup because that’ll cause that compacting that we don’t want.
Step 3: Use a knife to swipe away the excess flour and level off your cup.
At this point, you should have a cup of flour that’s properly measured. We call this the spoon-and-level method, and you’ll see that specified for measuring flour in every recipe on the blog.
There’s some discrepancy over how much a single cup of flour should weigh (which just goes to show why weighing your ingredients is the much simpler route, since 1 pound will always be 1 pound), but most sources will figure it somewhere between 4 ¼ – 4 ½ ounces. All the recipes you find on this blog will equate 4 ¼ ounces to 1 cup of flour. This isn’t something you need to be concerned with if you’re creating your own recipe or following one with weight measurements already listed, but in the event that the recipe you’re looking at is written in volume measurements only, you’re much better off whipping out a scale and weighing out 4 ¼ ounces for every cup called for. The same really goes for every ingredient in a recipe, but flour is one of the most crucial.
Needless to say, it’s SO much easier to simply put a mixing bowl on your scale and weigh the amount perfectly – less measuring cups dirtied, greater accuracy, and more foolproof baking. It also makes it easier to understand how recipes work; once you can learn the basic ratio of ingredients by weight for different types of recipes, it’s much simpler to make substitutions and even come up with your own recipes from scratch.
Now, who’s ready for a giveaway?! To enter for your chance to win an OXO ll lb food scale (the one I’ve used since day one and swear by!), check out the Rafflecopter box below. You can earn up to 13 entries by following the prompts given. The giveaway is open until midnight on Sunday, August 23rd, and one winner will be chosen and notified within 48 hours after the close of the giveaway. Good luck! :)
How To Measure Flour
Measuring flour accurately is important! Learn how to do it properly by hand.
Ingredients
- flour
Instructions
- Whisk flour in bag/container to loose. Lightly spoon into measuring cup and use a knife to level off.
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emily omara says
to encourage me to cook more!
robyn donnelly says
I would like to win because I don’t always measure everything to make something.
Kathy B says
I would like to win this scale because I’m already weighing my ingredients, but its time for a newer better scale and I like this OXO version.
HS says
I’d like to win the OXO scale for baking, it make measuring much easier.
susan smoaks says
i would love to win this scale because i am trying to lose weight and a food scale is very important to know how many calories are in things.
Kirsten Mullin says
I would love to win the OXO scale for a few reasons. My love for cooking and baking started from my mother and has enhanced further when I got married, from my Portuguese mother-in-law! They inspire me in different ways, from my meat and potatoe British heritage and my new inspiration with old school authentic Portuguese. I have slowly over the years been working on a family cookbook to preserve our family traditional receipes. This scale would come in handy when trying to convert both my moms and my mother-in-laws measuring techniques, from her generations old tea cup, to old wooden spoons and by of course by memory. Carrying on family traditions is very important to me and my whole family!
Sandra Omara says
I’ve realised why sometimes my baking is not perfect! It’s because I have not been measuring my ingredients accurately, hopefully I win the scales!
Dee Johnson says
I would love to win this so I can make better homemade meals for my family.
Juan says
Interesting how measuring by weight is most accurate.
LauriM says
I would love to win the OXO scale because it would help with my baking and I love their products.
Deborah Farris says
I really need an OXO scale because my last scale just died on me!!!
angie hurs says
I can a lot of garden produce and this would be perfect
brooke says
I can’t tell you how much having a food scale is a must in the kitchen. I’m currently using my mom’s I use it for an amount of things measuring my meat I package, anything for dieting and most importantly when cooking and baking I’ve even used it to count calories and carbs. Thanks so much for the chance I currently don’t have my own and would use this constantly
Lisa Shepherd says
would love to have this to use while teaching my daughter how to cook!
Lisa Shepherd says
Would love to win to use while teaching my daughter to cook!
Lea says
I love to bake during my spare time and I also would like to watch serving sizes we consume in our household.
Faleen Fedol says
I would love to win this for my son and daughter in law. They are fabulous, award winning chefs in their spare time and would probably love this as an addition to their kitchen. They live across the country from me, but have been quite generous when i need to see physicians in their area. They open their house to me and cook the most terrific meals. Friday night dinner, usually a 5 or 6 course affair has anywhere from 6 to 15 or more guests each week.
faleen fedol says
Love your variety of dairy free recipes…..so many things to choose from in different categories.
jULIE says
I would love to replace the one I have from another brand that is broken! My husband and I both used it often!
Curtis says
it will provide more precision to my cooking.
Larry Lee says
to bake better food
Larry Lee says
to bake better
RG says
ty for the chance
Christa Lopez says
I would love this to make sure my baking comes out perfectly!
Deanna McNamara says
I’ve always wanted a scale, but had to pay the rent first.
ken l says
This would be great for measuring ingredients
Marsha A says
I have a scale that needs to be replaced. It’s so wishy-washy and inaccurate. Would be great to have a reliable scale and one that can weigh 11 lbs at that is even better!
Judith Hicks says
Hoping to win this OXO scale. It will improve my baking with exact measurements.
PlumGaga says
My college-student granddaughter has just moved into an apartment, so I’d love to have the scale for her. I’ve brought her up to weigh rather than measure and I’d like it to be easy for her to continue that good practice.
Teresa Organ says
I would like to win the OXO scale because it looks like it would be really neat to use.
Mark wagstaff says
to make baking much easier.
Sheila says
Perfect tool for the kitchen. My mom had one & used it all the time.
Michael T says
would like to win this for my wife, when it comes to baking she goes a little freestyle and doesnt measure anything. She could use some help.
Becky Downing says
I would love to win the OXO food scale because I know OXO products are high quality. My current kitchen scale only measures up to 5 lbs and at that, I am not sure it is accurate. My dream kitchen would have one of everything made by OXO!
I now bake all the bread for our family and having the OXO scale would simplify that process.
Avra-Sha Faohla says
Because I’m an avid baker. I would definitely use it!
julie says
I would love to win, my husband weighs his food to portion control and our scale has been broken for a while
Cindy says
That looks like the coolest scale … ever!!!
Jason says
Because OXO make Awesome Products
Darlene says
Love OXO products. I do not buy any other brand. I also give OXO products as gifts.
Janetfctc says
I would love to win because my ancient scale goes bonkers anytime I try to weigh anything anymore, lol
Jayne says
I have been looking for a reliable kitchen scale for ages but have never found one that I like. Until this OXO one. :-)
Ashlovett says
Love your post. I’m motivated!
Kathy says
I’d love to know that I’m baking with the proper amounts.
Terri C says
I’ve needed one of these for years, I love to bake bread and sometimes I get to much in it. Also I’d love to have one for dietary reasons. Thanks for the chance!
Sharyl Wolter says
I would like to win it so I can be more precise in baking breads, cakes, etc.
Cyreise Highfill says
It would save so much time to just be able to weigh the flour. I learned so much by reading this. Thank you!!!!
Aaron B says
I would like to win the OXO scale because my current kitchen scale is a pretty cheap one and I’m not sure about it’s accuracy. Especially when measuring smaller amounts.
Stephanie Coldwell says
It seems like there’s always something that I need to measure, this would be so nice!
janetfctc says
I’d be tickled to win this because my old scale whimpers and cries every time I try to use it anymore :-D
Ali Celestino says
I would use it for all the baking I do.
Marie B. says
This scale would cut down on measuring cups and dealing with sticky ingredients.
Karen Olson says
I love Oxo products! They make everything easier on my osteoarthritis. I would love this scale, not just in the kitchen but also for weighing yarn when I divide a skein to make socks two at a time.
Thank you for the opportunity!
Karen
alexandra says
It actually is a pretty convenient tool for some random non-kitchen uses! Love that you’re thinking of all those possibilities!
Erin M. says
I’d love to have a kitchen scale for baking!
Swee' Pea says
I have been standing on my bathroom scale to weigh my tomatoes and potatoes. My old mechanical kitchen scale, is really inaccurate. I’d love to have this OXO digital scale! It’s on my holiday wish list.
alexandra says
Omg lol that’s too funny! I hope you get one; it’ll make your life SO much easier!
eva says
Nice scale
shaunie says
We make so many foods that require measuring, this would definitely come in handy
Barb H. says
I love the quality of all OXO products I have, and this scale looks to be just as great.
Kelly D says
I would like this for when I am making recipes.
Freeman Huffstickler says
Guess I need to buy a scale but in the meantime, your article and the link to King Arthur s Flour s chart saved my butt for a recipe I needed to make today! Is it less because it s sifted first?
alexandra says
Not sure what you mean about it being less… if you want to clarify I’d be happy to try and answer your question though! :)