6 ms·

I would also like to add that you need make sure you really understand the whole context when improving something. As someone who actually does the dishes, I c

I would also like to add that you need make sure you really understand the whole context when improving something. As someone who actually does the dishes, I cringed when I saw the OXO measuring cup, those small corners are hard to clean if flour gets stuck in there. Maybe the execution could use some work. If you consider washing part of the job, that measuring cup is worse than a common measuring cup.

dave5104 12y ago
If you're using it to measure solids like flour, you're actually using it incorrectly. The OXO cup is really for measuring liquids. To measure out solids (flour, sugar, etc.) you should be using solid measuring cups.
- Turing_Machine 12y ago
  I like to measure solids like flour and sugar by weight whenever possible. Especially with flour, the packing density introduces too much variation to get a good measurement by volume (or so my experience has indicated).
  - dunham 12y ago
    I like to measure things like honey (21g = 1 tbsp) by weight too, because half of it tends to stick to the measuring spoon. Accuracy aside, I find it easier to cook by weight (especially if I'm scaling the recipe). I set the bowl on the scale, dump in an ingredient, press tare, dump in the next one, press tare. No fiddling around with measuring cups and spoons. What weight are you using for a cup of AP flour when converting recipes? (I usually go with 125 g, per the USDA nutrient database, but I've seen numbers as high as 150 g elsewhere.)
    - Turing_Machine 12y ago
      For my most common flour-using recipe (bread machine bread), I use 140 g/cup (the conversion in the recipe book suggests 137 g). Edit: that's for high-gluten bread flour, which may have a different density than AP flour.
- rahimnathwani 12y ago
  To measure out solids, you should be using a kitchen scale, but Fannie Farmer's legacy lives on: http://roadside-attraction.com/why-i-hate-measuring-cups-and-where-they-came-from/ http://roadside-attraction.com/why-i-hate-measuring-cups-and...
- rmc 12y ago
  I will never understand the US idea of measuring solids by volume. If you recipes called for "200g of flour", then that's trivial to measure out on a scales.
  - thom 12y ago
    I hate measuring anything by volume. Life seems much easier if you just treat every liquid as 1g per ml and only ever use scales.
    - carbocation 12y ago
      Unless you are measuring ethanol, which is more like 0.78g per mL.
      - allendoerfer 12y ago
        So his method comes with additional health benefits for free.
    - bryang 12y ago
      Also in regards to accuracy, weight never changes. Volume fluctuates depending on temperature.
      - jakobsen 12y ago
        Weight does change around the world, mostly because at the equator you are farther away from the centre of mass of the earth than you are at the poles, but also because of local gravity anomalies. It's mass that never changes, so maybe we should all get an inertial balance for our kitchen!
  - dgallagher 12y ago
    It's quicker sometimes. This morning I made some oatmeal. I took a 1/2 measuring cup, scooped out some oatmeal, shook it quickly to remove the overflow, threw it in a pot, and dropped the measuring cup in my sink. It took around 5-10 seconds. If I had to do the same by weight, I would have had to get my scale, put on a bowl, zero the scale, slowly start pouring oatmeal onto the scale until it reached the desired weight, throw that into a pot, put the bowl in my sink, and put the scale away. That'll probably run around 15-20 seconds. If I screw up and poured too much into the bowl by accident, it'll take a lot longer to correct than briefly shaking a pre-sized 1/2 measuring cup. Other times a scale is much easier to use too; it just depends on the context.
- analog31 12y ago
  I have no problem using liquid measuring cups for solids. Just wiggle the cup a bit, and the flour will level itself. My main reason for segregating solids and liquids is to keep the solids from sticking in the cup. Nothing needs to be all that precise except for some kinds of sweets. At the end of the job, there's nothing to clean. My dad, a chemist, insists on weighing the dry ingredients, and I agree in principle, but find volume to be quicker.
- eduardordm 12y ago
  This actually makes my point even more poignant. Where I live, the majority measuring cups can be used both for liquid and solids, they usually come with a bunch of scales for a variety of products, both with volume and weight[1]. Recipes are usually "200ml of milk and 1 cup of flour, eggs, mix it" I put the 200ml on the measure a cup and add the rest on top of it and mix on the same cup to avoid having yet another bowl to wash. I only use another bowl for making larger things, like cakes. [1] http://www.sousanatal.com.br/gerenciador/app/webroot/images/COPO%20MEDIDOR.jpg http://www.sousanatal.com.br/gerenciador/app/webroot/images/...
functional_test 12y ago
Have you used an OXO measuring cup? They really are a lot easier to use when baking and cooking, and my sponges never have a problem getting in those corners.
- dunham 12y ago
  My main issues with it: the handle broke off, it can be tricky to read the top-down markings when dealing with dairy (fats tend to stick to plastic), and it's hard to mix things in it, due to the shape of chamber. (E.g. an egg yolk or two into the cream I just measured.) On the other hand, my "pyrex" measuring cup lost all of its markings to the dishwasher, which also makes it a bit difficult to measure anything in it (without a scale).
  - mason55 12y ago
    > the handle broke off This happened to mine as well, I was a bit disappointed, expect OXO to be better quality. They'd probably replace it if I asked but I feel like it's my fault since I dropped it, even though a plastic cup should survive a fall on the kitchen floor.
    - pbhjpbhj 12y ago
      It wouldn't surprise me that the plastic had been carefully chosen to lack the plasticity to stay in one piece when dropped from counter-top height; bet that increases profits for the company (at the expense of wasted resources for everyone).
      - mason55 12y ago
        OXO has an extremely generous warranty replacement policy so I doubt that's the case
      - dunham 12y ago
        Actually, this wasn't a drop. I had just washed it and was holding it by the handle. I gave it a shake to get rid of the remaining water and it snapped. I think the joint is somewhat plastic, to the point that it feels slightly flimsy, possibly to prevent drop failure.

dave5104 12y ago

If you're using it to measure solids like flour, you're actually using it incorrectly. The OXO cup is really for measuring liquids. To measure out solids (flour, sugar, etc.) you should be using solid measuring cups.

Turing_Machine 12y ago
I like to measure solids like flour and sugar by weight whenever possible. Especially with flour, the packing density introduces too much variation to get a good measurement by volume (or so my experience has indicated).
- dunham 12y ago
  I like to measure things like honey (21g = 1 tbsp) by weight too, because half of it tends to stick to the measuring spoon. Accuracy aside, I find it easier to cook by weight (especially if I'm scaling the recipe). I set the bowl on the scale, dump in an ingredient, press tare, dump in the next one, press tare. No fiddling around with measuring cups and spoons. What weight are you using for a cup of AP flour when converting recipes? (I usually go with 125 g, per the USDA nutrient database, but I've seen numbers as high as 150 g elsewhere.)
  - Turing_Machine 12y ago
    For my most common flour-using recipe (bread machine bread), I use 140 g/cup (the conversion in the recipe book suggests 137 g). Edit: that's for high-gluten bread flour, which may have a different density than AP flour.
rahimnathwani 12y ago
To measure out solids, you should be using a kitchen scale, but Fannie Farmer's legacy lives on: http://roadside-attraction.com/why-i-hate-measuring-cups-and-where-they-came-from/ http://roadside-attraction.com/why-i-hate-measuring-cups-and...
rmc 12y ago
I will never understand the US idea of measuring solids by volume. If you recipes called for "200g of flour", then that's trivial to measure out on a scales.
- thom 12y ago
  I hate measuring anything by volume. Life seems much easier if you just treat every liquid as 1g per ml and only ever use scales.
  - carbocation 12y ago
    Unless you are measuring ethanol, which is more like 0.78g per mL.
    - allendoerfer 12y ago
      So his method comes with additional health benefits for free.
  - bryang 12y ago
    Also in regards to accuracy, weight never changes. Volume fluctuates depending on temperature.
    - jakobsen 12y ago
      Weight does change around the world, mostly because at the equator you are farther away from the centre of mass of the earth than you are at the poles, but also because of local gravity anomalies. It's mass that never changes, so maybe we should all get an inertial balance for our kitchen!
- dgallagher 12y ago
  It's quicker sometimes. This morning I made some oatmeal. I took a 1/2 measuring cup, scooped out some oatmeal, shook it quickly to remove the overflow, threw it in a pot, and dropped the measuring cup in my sink. It took around 5-10 seconds. If I had to do the same by weight, I would have had to get my scale, put on a bowl, zero the scale, slowly start pouring oatmeal onto the scale until it reached the desired weight, throw that into a pot, put the bowl in my sink, and put the scale away. That'll probably run around 15-20 seconds. If I screw up and poured too much into the bowl by accident, it'll take a lot longer to correct than briefly shaking a pre-sized 1/2 measuring cup. Other times a scale is much easier to use too; it just depends on the context.
analog31 12y ago
I have no problem using liquid measuring cups for solids. Just wiggle the cup a bit, and the flour will level itself. My main reason for segregating solids and liquids is to keep the solids from sticking in the cup. Nothing needs to be all that precise except for some kinds of sweets. At the end of the job, there's nothing to clean. My dad, a chemist, insists on weighing the dry ingredients, and I agree in principle, but find volume to be quicker.
eduardordm 12y ago
This actually makes my point even more poignant. Where I live, the majority measuring cups can be used both for liquid and solids, they usually come with a bunch of scales for a variety of products, both with volume and weight[1]. Recipes are usually "200ml of milk and 1 cup of flour, eggs, mix it" I put the 200ml on the measure a cup and add the rest on top of it and mix on the same cup to avoid having yet another bowl to wash. I only use another bowl for making larger things, like cakes. [1] http://www.sousanatal.com.br/gerenciador/app/webroot/images/COPO%20MEDIDOR.jpg http://www.sousanatal.com.br/gerenciador/app/webroot/images/...

functional_test 12y ago

Have you used an OXO measuring cup? They really are a lot easier to use when baking and cooking, and my sponges never have a problem getting in those corners.

dunham 12y ago
My main issues with it: the handle broke off, it can be tricky to read the top-down markings when dealing with dairy (fats tend to stick to plastic), and it's hard to mix things in it, due to the shape of chamber. (E.g. an egg yolk or two into the cream I just measured.) On the other hand, my "pyrex" measuring cup lost all of its markings to the dishwasher, which also makes it a bit difficult to measure anything in it (without a scale).
- mason55 12y ago
  > the handle broke off This happened to mine as well, I was a bit disappointed, expect OXO to be better quality. They'd probably replace it if I asked but I feel like it's my fault since I dropped it, even though a plastic cup should survive a fall on the kitchen floor.
  - pbhjpbhj 12y ago
    It wouldn't surprise me that the plastic had been carefully chosen to lack the plasticity to stay in one piece when dropped from counter-top height; bet that increases profits for the company (at the expense of wasted resources for everyone).
    - mason55 12y ago
      OXO has an extremely generous warranty replacement policy so I doubt that's the case
    - dunham 12y ago
      Actually, this wasn't a drop. I had just washed it and was holding it by the handle. I gave it a shake to get rid of the remaining water and it snapped. I think the joint is somewhat plastic, to the point that it feels slightly flimsy, possibly to prevent drop failure.