In an earlier post, I detailed reasons why you should use a scale with your recipes. Today I am going to demonstrate how you use your scale to tare your ingredients, and help break free of the chains of volume measurement.
For this exercise, I am going to measure two ingredients: flour, then salt.
Step 1: Have a good scale.
Step 2: Find out how to use the tare on the scale.
Step 3: Place your bowl on the scale, use your tare function to reset the weight to zero.
Step 4: Add your ingredient to the weight you need.
Step 5: Reset the scale to zero.
Step 6: Add second ingredient.
Step 7: Repeat steps 5 and 6 for each remaining ingredient in your list.
That is it. Now, go and scale your recipes! I guarantee that with a little practice you will never use those volume measurement tools again.*
*Okay, in some cases it is cool to use them, as in very small amounts of spices. The problem comes with scaling them later, but that is beyond the scope of this article.
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
wow i asked for a scale for a christmas present! (the little silver ones from williams sanoma)
i agree with blue, it is not natural. food dye is food dye. however i always use powder dyes and not liquid because they are more concentrated and have no moisture affect on the food. so, tsp of powder blue! the others are powdered dyes as well…it’s completely healthy otherwise! (100% sugar)
@mallory elise – Sweet! I hope you get it for Christmas. The whole blue thing sticks with me from school. I remember a classmate doing a project with me and he insisted everything be blue. (To break the rules.) There is breaking the rules to push the limits, then there is a blue risotto with smoked salmon that makes you realize – yes, that is why there is that rule.