Most home bakers never learn the correct way to measure shortening. If you’re buying Crisco in a tub, you need to know this!
When a recipe calls for shortening, there are 3 ways to measure it correctly and probably a million ways to do it wrong! (Heads up: because Crisco is a common brand of shortening, I will use the terms “shortening” and “Crisco” interchangeably in this article.)
Types of Shortening Packaging
Let’s start by looking at what type of shortening you buy:
Shortening Sticks
Is your shortening in a stick like butter? Then it’s easy to measure! These sticks are marked on the side just like butter! Simply cut off as much as the recipe calls for. Smart packaging, Crisco!
Shortening in a Tub
If you’re like me, you buy the Crisco in the tub for 1 of 2 reasons: 1)You get more in the container. (If you bake as much as I do, you need it!) 2)It’s cheaper!
Either way, measuring shortening from a tub is a bit trickier.
The Wrong Way to Measure Shortening
If you scoop shortening into a dry measuring cup, you probably have hidden air pockets all over. This means that you’re not using enough shortening in your recipe.
Here’s what happened when I used a glass container to “measure” shortening. I filled it to the top, but check out how many air pockets I have at the bottom and on the sides!
The Correct Way to Measure Shortening
Displacement
Remember way back in high school science when you learned about displacement? Maybe yes, maybe no. Here’s your recap and how it applies to your baking!
Displacement: When something is submerged in water, it will displace an amount of water equal to how much volume the object has. In other words, if you plop 1/2 cup of shortening into water, the level will rise by 1/2 cup!
Why this works: Shortening is pure fat, which is hydrophobic, meaning it won’t absorb water and the water will run right off of it. If you have a pocket in your shortening, the water will fill it, meaning you won’t have air pockets leading to under-measuring.
How to Do It the Right Way:
- Fill a measuring cup with water up to a certain line. I like to use the 1 cup or 2 cup measuring lines for ease.
Be sure that you are looking at your measuring cup at eye level.
Add shortening until you get to the mark you want. I’m measuring 2/3 cup of shortening. So 1 cup water + 2/3 cup shortening means that I’m looking for the water level to rise to 1 2/3 cup. (Be sure the shortening is completely submerged.)
You can see in the picture that I’m pushing the shortening down with a spoon. Once again, check the measurement at eye level. The water is up to the 1 2/3 cup mark!
Now, scoop the shortening out of the water and let excess water drip off. You did it!
For more information on using displacement to measure volume, check out this fun video. (Consider yourself warned about the music!)
Weight
Measuring shortening by weight is definitely easier than measuring by displacement, but this method requires an accurate kitchen scale.
The next few paragraphs explain how to figure this out on your own. If you want to skip that, check out the Table Below.
If you check the nutrition label, you see that 1 Tablespoon of shortening weighs 12 grams. You can use that information to figure out how much any amount of shortening weighs.
In the table below, I’ve converted the measurement in cups to a measurement in Tablespoons. Then, you just multiply the number of Tablespoons by the weight of a tablespoon of shortening (12 grams) to get the full weight you want.
For example: To weigh 1/4 cup (which is 4 Tablespoons), you would multiply:
4 Tablespoons x 12 grams = 48 grams
Check out the table below for the equations, or just look in the first and last columns for the weights.
Weight of Shortening Table
Put your knowledge to good use! Try these recipes that use shortening!
What’s your favorite way to bake with shortening? Comment below!
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