When a recipe calls for a "cup" of flour?

Question

What size cup is that? Can anyone tell me how I can measure it accurately (I have measuring sppons if that helps)

Thanks so much

Answer 1

8 oz

Or about 16 level tablespoons

Answer 2

It is actually a lot more accurate to weigh flour. I use a digital scale at home and it makes life a lot easier. A cup of all purpose flour should weigh 5 ounces.
If you use a measuring cup be sure that it is for dry ingredients (pyrex cups with handles and spouts are for measuring liquids). http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw/002-3739696-0378410?initialSearch=1&url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=Oxo+Good+Grips+Soft-Handled+Measuring+Cup+Set+

The following is an interesting article from Cook's Illustrated:
How Can One Cup of Flour Weigh 5 Ounces? I thought a Cup Was 8 Ounces?

You have confused volume measurements with weight. In baking, dry ingredients are most accurately and consistently measured by weight, and this is how professional bakers do it. Measures of volume can vary depending on what technique you use to get the flour in the cup and how aerated the flour is. Sifting, for instance, aerates flour, so 1 cup of sifted flour weighs less than 1 cup of unsifted flour. All of our recipes call for unsifted flour unless indicated otherwise.

The technique we use to measure flour in the test kitchen is “dip and sweep”: Dip the measure into the bag or canister of flour and fill it to overflowing, then sweep off the excess with a straight edge, such as the side of an icing spatula. When measured with dip and sweep, 1 cup of all-purpose flour weighs 5 ounces. The weight of flour varies with the protein content; the more protein, the heavier the flour. Bread flour, which is high in protein, thus weighs more cup for cup than cake flour, which is low in protein.

When we measure flour for our recipes, we use the following conversions:
1 Cup All-Purpose Flour = 5 ounces
1 Cup Bread Flour = 5 1/2 ounces
1 Cup Cake Flour = 4 ounces

Answer 3

There are many wrong ways to do this but only one right way.
There are 2 kinds of measuring cups ;those for wet ingredients and those for dry ingredients. The dry cups are usually sold in sets that nestle into each other and they are made of plastic or metal .
The proper way to use one is to have your dry ingedient in a large container , dip the cup in , scoop out the ingredient and then with the cup still over the container use the back of knife to level off the ingredient .

Answer 4

I was taught in home ec not to dip the cup in the flour because it will compress or pack the flour. You dip a spatula in the flour and drop it lightly in a 1 cup dry measuring cup and then level it off with the spatula.

Answer 5

a cup indicates the volume of an average coffee cup. About 250 ml. it's an easy way to measure. Just fill a coffee cup with flour and presto

Answer 6

It's a cup measure. You can buy one for <$1.
Actually it's 240ml, but 16 T is right.

Answer 7

Who needs to measure Just use a whole 5 lb bag

Answer 8

in basic terms the all objective flour is powerful. in case your making something that would call for baking powder you may then destroy out with utilizing the self increasing flour as a replace of even putting contained in the baking powder.

Answer 9

1 cup = 250 mL

Answer 10

16 tablespoons if you don't have a cup