HOW TO MEASURE FLOUR: A STEP-BY-STEP GUIDE

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Measuring flour the right way can make a HUGE difference in the success of a recipe! Learn how to measure flour with my easy, step-by-step guide for consistent results all the time!

Have you ever made cookies or cakes that turned out really dry and tough? Chances are you probably added too much flour.

One thing I learned over the years is that measuring flour the right way is CRUCIAL in baking!

First of all, you need to think about your utensils.

Are you using the right cup?

This might sound like an obvious question, but coffee cups, mugs or tea cups are not the same as measuring cups.

In baking, you really should have two different measuring cups, one for dry ingredients and one for liquid ingredients. The reason is one measures weight and the other measures volume.

The more accurate you are, the better results you'll have with a recipe.

So, once you have the right measuring cups, it’s time to measure the flour.

How do you measure flour correctly?

Some people scoop the measuring cup into the flour, but I found that this could add as much as 30 percent MORE flour, which could ruin a recipe.

Here’s what I do:

STEP 1: AERATE THE FLOUR

flour in a bowl with a spoon stirring it

Flour that’s in a bag or container tends to get compact. Aerating it means stirring it with a spoon and fluffing it up. I like using a really large bowl or container to do this, so that there’s enough room to aerate.

STEP 2: SPOON THE FLOUR

flour in a bowl and some flour being spooned into a measuring cup

After aerating it, don't scoop the cup into the flour. Instead, spoon it into a cup. Fill it over the rim of the cup, but make sure you don't pack it down.

STEP 3: LEVEL IT OFF

some flour in a bowl and flour in a measuring cup being leveled off with a knife

some flour in a bowl and flour in a measuring cup that's just been leveled off with a knife

Level the excess flour off by using the back of a knife or an offset spatula. You may need to do this more than once, just don’t pack the flour down or tap the cup with the knife.

The importance of using a digital scale

I found that it’s much more accurate to measure ingredients when using a digital scale, even after I use cups, so that I get consistent results every time.

When I use this method, 1 cup is 127 g / 4.5 oz. If you're within 4-5 grams of this amount you'll still have a pretty accurate amount for a successful recipe.

I hope you found this post useful!

~Voula