If you’ve ever heard someone say that a large eating spoon is equivalent to a tablespoon used for measuring and thought “that sounds like the least accurate measurement you could possibly use”, you were right.
The photos each show an equal amount of sugar in the measuring spoon and eating spoon.
The first pic is a leveled eating spoon, which fills less than half of the measuring spoon.
The second pic is a mounding eating spoon (scooped into the sugar and lifted out without tapping or wobbling to shake sugar off) which overfilled the measuring spoon significantly.
The third pic is an actual tablespoon of sugar poured onto the eating spoon, which is close to what you’d get if you mound the spoon and tap it on the side of the container 2-5 times.
by Sarah-Who-Is-Large
25 Comments
Yeah that’s why weighing is far superior than using the cups/spoons system. It’s not only better, it’s much simpler.
Why isn’t weighing standard in the us.
So the answer is…YES, if you have that old school technique 🤔
I don’t think anyone imagines that teaspoons and tablespoons meant for eating are the same as measuring spoons.
I have a set from the 1950s, and the regular spoon and soup spoon are extremely close to the measured amounts of a teaspoon and tablespoon. My set from the 2000s is apparently made for giants…the regular spoon is closer to a tablespoon.
Plates and cups have similar become oversized since then. A coffee used to be 6oz of water, but size that in your latest mug and see how small an amount that really is.
Is the spoon not a tea spoon though? Actual table spoons (the utensil) are larger. At least it looks smaller than a table spoon to me in that perspective.
The spoons we find on tables, at home or in restaurants, are usually actually tea spoons or dessert spoons. Actual table spoons are more like soup spoon size or bigger
My guess is if you do the same experiment comparing it to a measuring teaspoon it will be more similar
Measuring in grams solves this problem. 1 tablespoon of sugar may vary slightly in weight, but 15 g of sugar is always 15g of sugar.
Mounding! That’s a new one for me. I’ve usually seen it described as “a heaped tablespoon”.
Obviously it’s hard to tell because of perspective, but I’m relatively sure that’s a teaspoon. Tablespoons are usually bigger.
But that is a teaspoon you’re using… right? Tablespoons are larger. That’s just a normal small eating teaspoon.
No one bringing up that a regular spoon that you use is a dessert spoon? Teaspoon for coffee, dessert spoon for eating, tablespoon is more of a serving spoon.
I’m pretty sure that’s a teaspoon, though. Tablespoons are the bigger ones in your silverware set (they’re what a lot of people refer to as soup spoons).
There are 3 teaspoons to a tablespoon, so really that looks about right.
The ‘eating spoon’ is called a dessert spoon, which is slightly smaller than a tablespoon. Actual tablespoons are quite large, and when levelled, would equal the same as the measuring spoon
Fuck. Volumetric. Measurement.
Is that… Is that a tea spoon?
I’d recommend putting each result on a scale and look at the actual difference. Because measuring by volume is extremely inaccurate in general, no matter what unit.
Use grams and you’ll never have to wonder
Thank you, for bringing this clarity to the world
Large eating spoons aren’t even all the same size as each other, like between brands or even the same brand different style. So yeah no shit it’s an inaccurate measurement
Doing the lord’s work thank you
That’s a very good test
This is why we weigh things.
This is why grams are far superios to volumetric devices. As a european it annoys me to no end that yanks still insist on these arcaic measurments that allow for way to big a margin of Error. Not only will they insist on using them, they will actually defend the use of them and I cant quite figure out why. Pointing this out is almost always taken as a personal attack.
What I find hilarious is that there are people in other countries who care how Americans bake in their own homes. What’s also hilarious is that they think we don’t know how to weigh ingredients. Some of us do either or both, depending on the recipe.
A lot of people are bringing this up: the eating spoon is the larger of the two main spoon sizes in my silverware set, which has been referred to as the tablespoon by all my family and friends for my entire life. I have smaller tea spoons and one really big serving spoon as well.