Metric vs. Imperial: Which Measurement System Works Best in Cooking?

When it comes to cooking, whether you use metric or imperial measures can make a significant impact on the outcome of your recipes. Personally, I either follow a recipe to the letter, using ounces or grams, inches or meters, makes little difference to me. I carefully weigh my ingredients so that they fit the tin, but volumes work well for scaling.

Experiences from Different Sides of the Atlantic

I live in the US and I am bi - I use both SI units and US customary units in my everyday life, but I use grams exclusively in cooking. If I find a recipe I like, I immediately convert it to grams. Cooking by mass, or weight, is very convenient and repeatable. This is especially important for dry measures, such as flour and pancake mix, where small errors can produce a completely different experience.

Once, whenever I bought a new box of Aunt Jemima’s pancake mix, I would immediately write the gram equivalent on the box. This makes scaling a recipe super simple. For instance, this morning I made a 3/4 batch, and a 3/4 of an egg was a little tricky to measure.

Personal Cooking Style: By Eye or Precision?

While I measure most things when I cook, I tend to rely on what looks right and with practice, I’m seldom wrong. If I’m trying a new-to-me recipe, I usually measure things. Since I live in the US, the recipes and measuring devices tend to be in imperial units, but I do have a food scale that measures in grams if a recipe is from elsewhere.

Professional Insights: The Weight Advantage

Professional bakers and cooks tend to prefer measuring dry ingredients by weight. This is because the volume can and does vary dramatically depending on various circumstances. On the other hand, wet ingredients, such as egg yolks, are often measured by weight for convenience. For example, the XXL-eggs I usually buy for home use have twice the mass/volume of the everyday eggs. Whether I break 2 or 3 eggs for the recipe or just squeeze that amount out of a TetraPak of pasteurized, homogenized egg yolks, it makes no difference.

Simplicity and Precision

In my humble opinion, metric units are less of a hassle to deal with. However, I must note that I have grown up using them. On the other hand, some people find it confusing due to the differences in fluid measures: cups, tablespoons, bushels, etc. While both systems should be the same, you can choose whatever suits your needs best. The key is consistency and accuracy to ensure a successful cooking experience.

In conclusion, whether you prefer to use metric or imperial measures in cooking, the focus should always be on precision and consistency. Whether you’re baking a cake or frying an omelet, the choice of measurement system can mean the difference between a perfectly executed dish and one that falls short of expectations. Stay tuned for more insights on cooking and measurement in our upcoming articles.

Further Reading

If you're interested in learning more about cooking measurement systems, check out our related articles on metric measures and imperial measures.