DATA CENTER COLLEGE OF THE PHILIPPINES LAOAG CITY, INC.

HOTEL RESTAURANT MANAGEMENT AND TECHNOLOGY DEPARTMENT

INFO SHEET 2
Units of Measure
The standardized recipe is the map or tool that is used in the professional kitchen
to take you from the mise-en-place, the setting up of tools and ingredients to begin
cooking, to the finished product. This tool must be used correctly in order to
achieve success. Success begins with the accurate measurement of the ingredients
in the recipe.

LEARNING OUTCOMES:

1. VOLUME UNITS OF MEASURE

2. VOLUME MEASURING TOOLS
3. WEIGHT UNITS OF MEASURE
4. COUNT AS A UNIT OF MEASURE
5. THE METRIC SYSTEM
5.1 METRIC VOLUME UNITS OF MEASURE
5.2 METRIC WEIGHT UNITS OF MEASURE

VOLUME UNITS OF MEASURE

Liquids are measured by volume. Liquids include water, juice, oil, stock, or other
liquids with waterlike consistency. Volume units of measure include gallon, quart,
pint, cup, fluid ounce, tablespoon, and teaspoon.

VOLUME MEASURING TOOLS

Properly measuring the liquids used in a standardized recipe ensures the
production of a consistent menu item. Volume containers are placed on a flat
surface and filled to the desired level. The basic measuring tools are containers that
can hold a range of liquid volumes, from one cup to one gallon, along with
measuring spoons of various measurements.
Volume measuring tools are also used to portion some foods for service to guests.
Portioning foods also requires accurate measurements because the menu price is
based on a certain-size portion. Sauces and soups are liquid items portioned using
ladles. A ladle is a common tool used to measure liquids.

U.S. Volume Units of Measure: One gallon, half gallon, one

quart, one pint.

U.S. Volume Units of Measure: Table- spoon, teaspoon,

and partial units of a teaspoon.
 DATA CENTER COLLEGE OF THE PHILIPPINES LAOAG CITY, INC.
HOTEL RESTAURANT MANAGEMENT AND TECHNOLOGY DEPARTMENT

Nested ladles: 32 ounces to 1 ounce

WEIGHT UNITS OF MEASURE

Solids are measured by weight. Solid foods include meat, produce, flour, and many
other items. The traditional units of measure for weight in the United States are
pounds and ounces. . A weight ounce is typically a decimal, fraction, or a percent of
a pound. It is not the same, or equal to, a fluid ounce. A fluid ounce is a volume
unit of measure. A weight ounce is a solid unit of measure. The relationship
between pounds and ounces is displayed in Table 2.1.
Accurate weight measurement is only achieved by using a scale. Different types of
scales are available. A baker’s scale is used in the baking and pastry professions. In
commercial baking, flour must be weighted because of variations in compactness,
grinding size, humidity, grain type, and other factors

TABLE 2.1 U.S Weight Units of Measure and Their Equivalents

Pounds (lb, #) Ounces (oz.)
1 pound 16 ounces
1
2 pound 8 ounces
1
4 pound 4 ounces
1
8 pound 2 ounces
Dietetic Scale Digital Weighing Scale

COUNT AS A UNIT OF MEASURE

Certain food products are individual units, and they are measured by count.. Count
is not an exact measurement. Recipes that require total accuracy will measure count
items, like eggs, by volume or weight. A recipe for egg bread will use a volume or a
weight quantity for the eggs, rather than a count measure.
 DATA CENTER COLLEGE OF THE PHILIPPINES LAOAG CITY, INC.
HOTEL RESTAURANT MANAGEMENT AND TECHNOLOGY DEPARTMENT

THE METRIC SYSTEM

The metric system is the internationally recognized system for volume and weight
measurement. It is a decimal-based system. It is used globally, except in the United
States. However, the United States is slowly adapting to the metric system.

All food products produced and packaged in the United States display both the U.S.
standard and the metric equivalent measurement on the package. All imported food
products display the metric measurement on the package. Alcoholic beverages,
except domestic beer, are packaged exclusively using metric volume units of
measure.

It is common in U.S. kitchens to have U.S. standard and metric units of measure on
volume measuring tools. It is also common to find metric units of measure on
kitchen scales.

METRIC VOLUME UNITS OF MEASURE

The volume units of measure in the metric system are the liter (L) and milliliter
(mL). One liter equals 1,000 milliliters. The relationship between the metric sys-
tem and the U.S. standard system is shown in Table 7.2.

METRIC WEIGHT UNITS OF MEASURE

The weight units of measure in the metric system are kilogram (kg) and gram (g).
A kilogram equals 1,000 grams. The relationship between the metric and U.S.
standard system is shown in Table 7.3.

TABLE 7.2 Metric Volume Units of Measure and U.S. Equivalents*

Liter Milliliter Fluid Ounces Gallon Quart Pint Cup Tablespoon Teaspoon
(L) (mL) (Fl. oz.) (G, gal.) (Qt.) (Pt.) (C, c) (T, tbsp.) (t, tsp.)
3.8 L 3,800 mL 128 fl. ounces 1 gallon 4 quarts 8 pints 16 cups

1L 1,000 mL 33.8 fl. ounces

0.95 L 946 mL 32 fl. oz. .25 gallon 1 quart 2 pints 4 cups
750 mL 25.4 fl. oz.
500 mL 16.9 fl. oz.
0.47 L 474 mL 16 fl. oz. .50 quart 1 pint 2 cups
0.24 L 237 mL 8 fl. oz. .25 quart 0.50 pint 1 cup
30 mL 1 fl. oz.
15 mL 1T
5 mL 1 tsp.
*The conversion from liter/milliliter to gallon/quart/pint/cup/fluid ounce is a close approximation due to rounding.

TABLE 7.3 Metric Weight Units of Measure and U.S. Equivalents

Kilogram (kg) Gram (g) Pound (lb., #) Ounce (oz.)
1 kilogram 1,000 grams 2.2 pounds 35.2 ounces

454 grams 1 pound 16 ounces

28.35 grams 1 ounce
1 gram 0.035 ounces
 DATA CENTER COLLEGE OF THE PHILIPPINES LAOAG CITY, INC.
HOTEL RESTAURANT MANAGEMENT AND TECHNOLOGY DEPARTMENT

Tablespoon (tbsp) Gram (g) Teaspoon (tsp)

1 tablespoon 15 grams 3 tsp

5 grams 1 tsp