Part of the Kitchen Kit & Store Cupboard hub.More in this hub: Choosing the right pan for the job · Store cupboard essentials
REFERENCE
Recipes come from everywhere — American cups, gas marks, old imperial ounces, modern metric grams. This is the one page to keep handy so none of it trips you up.
Everything below is rounded to the figures that actually work in a home kitchen, the way UK cookbooks have done for years. Bookmark it, or print it and stick it inside a cupboard door.
IN THIS GUIDE
Oven temperatures
| Gas mark | °C | Fan °C | °F | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 140 | 120 | 275 | Very cool |
| 2 | 150 | 130 | 300 | Cool |
| 3 | 170 | 150 | 325 | Warm |
| 4 | 180 | 160 | 350 | Moderate |
| 5 | 190 | 170 | 375 | Moderately hot |
| 6 | 200 | 180 | 400 | Hot |
| 7 | 220 | 200 | 425 | Hot |
| 8 | 230 | 210 | 450 | Very hot |
| 9 | 240 | 220 | 475 | Very hot |
As a rule, a fan oven runs about 20°C hotter than a conventional one, so drop the conventional temperature by 20°C if you are using fan.
Weight conversions
| Metric | Imperial |
|---|---|
| 25g | 1 oz |
| 50g | 2 oz |
| 100g | 4 oz |
| 150g | 5 oz |
| 200g | 7 oz |
| 225g | 8 oz (½ lb) |
| 350g | 12 oz |
| 450g | 1 lb |
| 500g | 1 lb 2 oz |
| 1 kg | 2 lb 4 oz |
Liquid and volume
| Metric | Imperial |
|---|---|
| 5 ml | 1 tsp |
| 15 ml | 1 tbsp |
| 30 ml | 1 fl oz |
| 150 ml | ¼ pint (5 fl oz) |
| 300 ml | ½ pint (10 fl oz) |
| 450 ml | ¾ pint (15 fl oz) |
| 600 ml | 1 pint (20 fl oz) |
| 1 litre | 1¾ pints |
Cups to grams
American recipes measure by the cup. One US cup is about 240 ml, but the weight depends entirely on what you are measuring — here are the everyday ones.
| Ingredient (1 cup) | Weight |
|---|---|
| Plain or self-raising flour | 125 g |
| Caster or granulated sugar | 200 g |
| Soft brown sugar (packed) | 200 g |
| Icing sugar | 125 g |
| Butter | 225 g |
| Uncooked rice | 200 g |
| Rolled oats | 90 g |
| Fresh breadcrumbs | 50 g |
| Grated cheese | 100 g |
| Cocoa powder | 100 g |
| Honey or syrup | 340 g |
| Water or milk | 240 ml |
Spoons and small measures
| Measure | Equivalent |
|---|---|
| 1 teaspoon (tsp) | 5 ml |
| 1 dessertspoon | 10 ml |
| 1 tablespoon (tbsp) | 15 ml |
| 1 tbsp flour | about 15 g |
| 1 tbsp sugar | about 20 g |
| 1 tbsp butter | about 14 g |
| A pinch | about ⅛ tsp |
Spoon measures are always level unless a recipe says heaped.
Handy kitchen equivalents
- 1 stick of American butter = 113 g, or 8 tbsp, or ½ cup.
- 1 large egg ≈ 50 g out of its shell.
- Juice of 1 lemon ≈ 3 tbsp (45 ml); 1 orange ≈ 6 tbsp.
- 1 medium onion ≈ 150 g; 1 garlic clove ≈ ½ tsp once crushed.
- Portions: about 100 g dried pasta or 75 g dried rice per person.
- Quick metric anchors: 1 oz ≈ 28 g, 1 lb ≈ 450 g, 1 inch ≈ 2.5 cm.
