Fluid Ounces Vs. Dry Weight: Decoding 1 1/4 Cups Across Different Ingredients
By Alexander Ross
Culinary labs consistently warn against using liquid measuring cups for dry goods and vice versa. Liquid vessels feature a pouring spout, empty headroom above the top graduation line, and markings on clear tempered glass or plastic. To measure 1 1/4 cups of buttermilk, place the pitcher on a flat surface, bend down, and check the bottom of the meniscus at eye level. Looking down from above skews the perspective, easily introducing an extra half-ounce of liquid.
Dry measuring cups, by contrast, are designed to be filled to overflowing and leveled flat across the top edge. When Serious Eats conducted hundreds of test scoops across popular metal and plastic dry cups, researchers found that dipping a measuring cup straight into a flour bag packed the granules together, introducing up to 30 percent excess flour by weight compared to the standard scoop and level method.
To measure 1 1/4 cups of flour accurately without a scale, fluff the flour in its canister with a fork. Spoon it gently into a 1-cup metal vessel and a 1/4-cup vessel until mounded. Sweep a flat straight-edge, like the back of a butter knife, across the rims. Never shake or tap the cup, as vibrations compress the fine grains down into the corners.
Alexander Ross has covered the video game industry for a decade, writing deep dives on game design, esports tournaments, VR developments, and gaming culture.
