Cooking Conversions

American recipes rely on volume-based measurements — cups, tablespoons, teaspoons, and sticks of butter — while European and international cooking is grounded in weight. One US cup holds exactly 236.59 ml, one tablespoon 14.79 ml, and one teaspoon 4.93 ml. This volume-versus-weight divide is not merely a convention; it has real consequences in the kitchen, and especially in baking, where precise ratios between flour, fat, sugar, and liquid determine the final texture and structure of a dish.

When following an American recipe in Europe — or adapting a European one for a US audience — conversions are indispensable. The weight of an ingredient per cup varies dramatically with density: a cup of all-purpose flour weighs just 125 g, while a cup of honey weighs 340 g. This means no single multiplier can cover all ingredients. Our tools use certified density data sourced from the FAO/INFOODS Food Composition Database, ensuring that conversions reflect the actual weight of each specific ingredient rather than a rough average.

Cooking Measurement Tools

Understanding Cooking Measurement Systems

US Volume Measurements

The US customary system organises kitchen volume in a clear hierarchy: 1 cup = 16 tablespoons = 48 teaspoons = 236.59 ml. Tablespoons and teaspoons are used for smaller quantities such as spices, leavening agents, and extracts, while cups handle larger volumes of flour, sugar, or liquids. This system is standard in the United States and is also common in older Canadian and some Australian recipe books, though both countries have partially shifted to the metric cup of 250 ml. Understanding the hierarchy helps when scaling recipes up or down without a calculator — halving a recipe means 8 tablespoons instead of 1 cup, and doubling means 32 tablespoons or simply 2 cups.

Weight-Based Measurements

Professional bakers and pastry chefs worldwide use grams because weight is invariant regardless of filling technique. When measuring flour by volume, compaction alone can shift the actual weight by up to 20%: scooping directly from the bag packs the flour and can yield 150 g per cup, while spooning it in lightly and levelling gives closer to 120 g. Grams eliminate this ambiguity entirely — 125 g of flour is always 125 g, whether sifted or unsifted, humid or dry. For recipes where hydration ratios matter (bread, sourdough, choux pastry), the difference between 120 g and 150 g of flour per cup is the difference between success and failure.

Oven Temperature Conversions

Oven temperature is one of the most frequent sources of confusion when cooking across cuisines. American recipes express temperature in Fahrenheit (°F), European recipes in Celsius (°C), and older British recipes sometimes use Gas Mark — a numbered scale from ¼ to 9. Converting between them is straightforward with the formula °C = (°F − 32) × 5/9, but the table below covers the most common baking temperatures at a glance. A fan-assisted (convection) oven typically runs 20°C hotter than a conventional oven, so reduce the stated temperature accordingly.

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Frequently Asked Questions

How many tablespoons in a cup?

16 tablespoons = 1 US cup (236.59 ml). Each tablespoon equals 14.79 ml. In the metric system, 1 metric cup (250 ml) contains approximately 16.67 tablespoons, making the metric cup fractionally larger than the US standard. When converting American recipes, always use 16 tablespoons per cup rather than rounding to a metric equivalent.

How many teaspoons in a tablespoon?

1 tablespoon = 3 teaspoons. One teaspoon equals 4.93 ml. This 3:1 ratio is consistent across the US customary, metric, and Imperial systems, making teaspoon-to-tablespoon the simplest cooking conversion to remember. When a recipe calls for "a pinch" or "a dash", these are informal measures roughly equal to ⅛ teaspoon and ⅛–¼ teaspoon respectively.

What is a stick of butter in grams?

1 US stick of butter = 113 grams = ½ cup = 8 tablespoons. American recipes often call for "1 stick" or "2 sticks" of butter, referencing the standard 113 g portions in which US butter is packaged (4 sticks per pound, 454 g). European butter is typically sold in 250 g blocks, which is equivalent to approximately 2.2 US sticks. If your recipe calls for 2 sticks, use 226 g — slightly less than a full 250 g European pack.

How do I convert a US recipe to grams?

Use the ingredient-specific cups-to-grams converter for each item in the recipe, as density varies between ingredients. As quick mental shortcuts: flour × 125, granulated sugar × 200, butter × 227 per cup. For liquids, 1 cup ≈ 240 ml ≈ 240 g for water-based ingredients like milk or juice. Tablespoons and teaspoons can also be converted: 1 tbsp of a liquid ingredient ≈ 15 g, 1 tsp ≈ 5 g — though for dense or light ingredients these figures will differ.

What is 350°F in Celsius?

350°F = approximately 177°C, commonly rounded to 180°C in European recipes. This is the most common baking temperature for cakes, cookies, muffins, and quick breads. Use the formula °C = (°F − 32) × 5/9 for precise conversions. For a fan-assisted oven, reduce by 20°C — so 350°F becomes approximately 160°C fan. This temperature corresponds to Gas Mark 4 on the British scale.