Food & Cooking⏱ 4 min read
Cooking Conversions: Cups, Grams, Fluid Ounces, and Tablespoons
US recipes use cups; UK recipes use grams. Neither is universally correct, and the conversion depends entirely on the ingredient. Here is the definitive reference.
A cup of flour and a cup of water weigh completely different amounts. "1 cup = 240ml" is only true for liquids — for dry ingredients, the density makes every conversion ingredient-specific.
Volume Conversions (Always True)
These are exact regardless of ingredient (liquid volume):
1 US cup = 240ml = 16 tablespoons = 8 fluid ounces
1 UK cup = 284ml (rarely used in modern UK recipes)
1 tablespoon (tbsp) = 15ml
1 teaspoon (tsp) = 5ml
1 fluid ounce (fl oz) = 29.57ml
Quick reference:
1/4 cup = 60ml
1/3 cup = 80ml
1/2 cup = 120ml
2/3 cup = 160ml
3/4 cup = 180ml
1 cup = 240ml
Dry Ingredients: Cups to Grams
Ingredient1 Cup (g)1 Tbsp (g)1 Tsp (g)
Plain flour125g8g3g
Bread flour130g8g3g
Caster sugar200g12g4g
Icing sugar120g8g3g
Brown sugar (packed)220g14g5g
Rolled oats90g6g2g
Cocoa powder100g6g2g
Desiccated coconut80g5g2g
Butter227g14g5g
Honey / syrup340g21g7g
Why "1 cup of flour" Varies
Flour in a cup varies by 20-30% depending on technique:
Scooped directly (flour compacted): up to 155g per cup
Spooned gently then levelled: approximately 125g per cup
Sifted first then spooned: approximately 110g per cup
This is why professional bakers use weight (grams) not volume.
"1 cup of flour" in a US recipe can mean 110-155g -- a 41% range.
Best practice for baking:
Convert all cup measurements to grams by weight.
Use the 125g/cup standard for unsifted plain flour.
For precise recipes (macarons, soufflé, bread): weigh everything.
Oven Temperature Conversions
Description°C (fan)°C (conventional)Gas Mark
Very low120°C140°C1
Low140°C160°C3
Moderate160°C180°C4
Moderately hot180°C200°C6
Hot200°C220°C7
Very hot220°C240°C9