Supported Measurements

As cooks we are very respectful of proper measurements, especially when it comes to baking. We have done our best to make Recipezaar understand just about every measurement unit out there, as well as make it easy to convert any recipe from US to metric and back.

In the process, we have learned a lot about how chefs around the world measure differently. When a European chef calls for a "cup" they are referring to a standard coffee cup, not the strict 8 oz cup used in the US system. Furthermore, Europeans usually use weight measurements instead of volume in recipes, and most kitchens are equiped with a scale which is quite uncommon in the US. We are looking at ways to make differences like these work and coexist.

If you have other cooking measurement lore, any measurements we have missed, or features we could add, please let us know.

Unit		Uses	Notes
bag		bag bags	When the ingredient comes in a bag, as in "1 bag of tortilla chips"; often with another measurement for the box, as in "1 (12 oz) bag of tortilla chips"
big		big	Used when you are specifying a large item, such as a "10 big apples" or a "1 big pepper".
bottle		bottle bottles	When the ingredient comes in a bottle
box		box boxes	When the ingredient comes in a box, as in "1 box of frozen spinach"; often with another measurement for the box, as in "1 (7 oz) box of frozen spinach".
bunch		bunch bunches	As in a "1 bunch of cilantro"
can		can cans	For ingredients that come in cans, such as beans. For example, "1 can (10 oz.) of beans". Note that it is greatly appreciated if you also specify the size of the can. This makes it more clear to those who aren't as sure what you mean. Put the size of the can in parentheses between the word "can" and the ingredient.
carton		carton cartons	When the ingredient comes in a carton, as in "1 carton of cream"; often with another measurement for the carton, as in "1 (8 oz) carton of cream".
container		container containers	When the ingredient comes in a container, as in "1 container of strawberries"; often with another measurement for the container, as in "1 (16 oz) container of strawberries".
count		count	When the ingredient is simply counted.
cup		c cs cp cps cup cups	The very common "cup". As in "1 cup sugar".
centimeter		cm centimeter	When the ingredient should be measured by legth. 1/100 of a meter.
clove		clove cloves	As in a clove of garlic, not the clove as in the spice. Recipezaar is smart enough to distinguish between these.
dash		dash dashes	Just a bit of the ingredient. This isn't an exact measurement, but people will know what you mean.
dozen		dozen	Used when the ingredient comes in dozens, such as eggs. So you'd say "2 dozen eggs". DO NOT use "dozen" as a count of the ingredient, such as "dozen apples". For that, say "1 dozen apples".
drop		drop	As in "4 drops red food coloring".
ear		ear ears	For ears of corn. That's about all this is used for.
envelope		envelope envelopes	When the ingredient comes in envelopes as a package. Yeast is a good example. Here it's also helpful to specify the size of the envelope, like "1 oz.". And you put that in parentheses between "envelope" and the ingredient like so: "1 envelope (1 oz.) yeast"
fluid ounce		fl oz fluid ounce
gallon		gal gals gallon gallons
glass		glass glasses	A glass, typically 3.5 ozs. But it's best to be more exact and say 3.5 ounces so that you don't risk confusing people.
gram		g gram grams	The metric unit of weight measure.
head		head heads	As in a "head of garlic" or "head of lettuce".
inch		" in inch inches	The friendly English measure of length. Not used terribly often in recipes, but comes in handy when you want to specify the length of something like string or a stick of cinnamon.
jar		jar jars	Some ingredients come in jars as opposed to cans. Again, it's very helpful to specify the size of the jar and put it in parentheses between "jar" and the ingredient. For example, "1 jar (12 oz.) maraschino cherries".
kilogram		kg kilo kgram kilogram kilograms	The metric measurement of weight. 1 kg=1000 grams. Use this for big and heavy ingredients.
large		large	Same as "big" (above). Use whichever you're most comfortable with.
pound		lb lbs pound pounds	The English measurement of weight. 1 pound=16 oz.
leaf		leaf leaves	For things such as cabbage, i.e., "6 leaves of cabbage".
link		link links	For sausages, i.e., "6 links of chicken sausage".
liter		l liter liters	Metric liquid measurement, just a bit more than a quart.
loaf		l loaf loaves	For bread, as in "1 loaf of french bread".
medium		med medium	Same as "big" or "large" except less in size. For example, "3 medium apples".
medium-sized		med-sized medium-sized	For example, "3 medium-sized apples".
milliliter		ml milliliter milliliters	Metric liquid measurement. 1 milliliter=1/1000 liters.
ounce		oz ozs ounce ounces
package		pk pack package packages	When the ingredient comes in a package, as in "1 package of rice noodles; often with another measurement for the package, as in "1 (8 oz) package of rice noodles".
piece		piece pieces	When the ingredient is simply counted in pieces, as in "4 pieces baking chocolate".
pinch		pinch pinches	Similar to a dash, but this is literally what you can pinch between your thumb and finger (any finger you like.
pint		pt pint pints	Also an English measurement, most notably for beer, as in "20 pints of Guinness"!
package		pkg pkgs package packages	Use this for ingredients that come in a specific package, any kind of package, such as cheese. It's up to you to use "package" rather than specify the size, but if you do use "package", please specify the size as well in parenthese between "package" and the ingredient. Example: "1 package (6 oz.) cheddar cheese".
packet		pkt packet	Just like "package"(above). Using either is a matter of personal preference. But please follow the suggestion as with "package" (see above).
quart		qt quart quarts
scoop		scoop scoops	When the ingredient is scooped, as in "2 scoops vanilla ice cream".
sheet		sheet sheets
slice		slice slices	When the ingredient comes in slices, as in "4 slices bread".
small		small
sprig		sprig springs	Used for ingredients that come in "sprigs", like cilantro, parsley, etc.
stalk		stalk stalks	Like a sprig, but appropriate for such things as celery.
stick		stick sticks	When the ingredient comes in sticks, as in "1 stick of butter".
strip		strip strips	For anything that can be specified in strips, like "2 strips of bacon".
taste		taste	An unspecified amount, suitable to the chef.
tablespoon		T tbl tbls tblsp tbs tbsp tbsps tablespoon tablespoons	There's many ways to abbreviate this common measurement...almost any way you can imagine
teaspoon		t tsp tsps teaspoon teaspoons	There's almost as many ways to abbreviate this common measurement.
whole		whole	This is used to specify the entire ingredient, such as "1 whole garlic head".