My grandma didn’t use scales.
My mum didn’t either. After all, cooking is an art form, right? Throw a few things together that should work, test as you go, and hey presto!
Not always.
That might work for cooking, but baking is a science. And if there’s one thing I learned on The Great Australian Bakeoff, it’s that the difference between a batch of delicious, round, uniform biscuits, and one giant sloppy pancake biscuit is one item:
Kitchen scales.
You can get a set these days for about 20 bucks, and the difference in your baking will be remarkable.
Top Comments
I only use scales to measure butter and have never had a baking fail.
If you use properly tested recipes that clearly set out whether they're using Australian standard measures or not, all you need to do is follow the instructions if you're an average baker. Always assume measurements are level unless specified. It should always say whether or not ingredients are sifted.
The biggest tip I have is ALWAYS check measuring spoons. Chances are, they have a US tablespoon, which is only 15mL instead of the Australian tablespoon, which is 20mL. Same with cups. One standard cup is 250mL. Supermarket bought cups are usually ok, but I'm yet to find proper spoons that have a 20mL spoon. If in doubt, just do 4tsps instead - each teaspoon is 5mL.