SECTION

WEIGHTS AND MEASURES

HOW TO STUDY THIS SECTION

This section deals with the various weighing and measuring methods/techniques
used in finding the weight and volume of foodstuffs at the household
level. The most important feature of the section is the discussion on the items of
the practical kit. So, it is essential for you to keep your practical kit by your side
while reading.
As you will read through this section, you will find that the main stress in the
section is on learning by doing. The section is divided into five subsections.
There are inbuilt activities in each of these subsections. These activities if
performed, as you read, will-not only provide you the understanding of this
section but also provide you the basic skill for doing the activities related to
other sections of the manual. By doing so. you can also bring perfection in your
day-to-day cooking or improve your meal plans. Make sure that you spend
sufficient time in doing the activ~tiksgrven here.

Structure
1.0 Introduction
1.1 Weighing and Measuring Equipment
1.2 Relatihg Weight to Standard Measures
1.3 Relating Weight to Size and Number
1.4 Relating Household Measures to Standard Measures
1.5 Finding the Relationship between the Amount of Cooked Foodstuffs and Raw
Foodstuffs
1.6 Summing U p

1.0 INTRODUCTION

Have you ever observed your mother while she is cooking meals for the family? You
would probably have noticed that she uses a cup, glass or katori as a measure for
cooking. Sometimes, she does not even need that also. She manages even with her
fistlhand She knows that a big katori of raw dal or two medium steel.glasses of rice
(raw), when cooked, will be enough for her family. You are sometimes surprised at
how accurate she is in her estimate ! She has learned this through experience. She
probably won't be able to tell you the weight of a particular foodstuff she has cooked.
But in her day-to-day cooking, she rarely needs this.
However, as a student of nutrition, you need to know the approximate weight/volume
of foodstuffs in many situations like
If you want to know the nutrient conte:lr of the katori of dal you ate yesterday at
d i n e r time, you must know how much dal (raw) it contained.
If you recommend a minimum of 500 ml of milk for a pregnant woman, you
. should be able to tell her which elass/cu~is to be used for measurine this amount.
Pa* I If you want to cook a dish according to the recipe given in this practical
manuaVblocks/any other recipe book, you should know how to measure the
ingredients given for a particular recipe.
Like these 'there are many other situations in meal planning where you might need to
know the weight/volume of foodstuffs. Mow can you determine weightlvolume of
foodstuffs at home? One way which you can think of, is a weighing balance. Other
things which can help are a measuring glass, measuring cups and spoons. These are
known as standard measures. If you open the practical kit you have received as part
of your study material, you will find these standard measures. You should note here
that a weighing balance is not included in the practical kit. However, one weighing
balance is provided at your study centre. You can go to your study centre and use it,
if needed
Now, the questions which may arise in your mind are - From where can you obtain
a weighing balance ? What should you do if you don't have a weighing balance ?
What is a measuring glass, cup or spoon ? How are they different from the glass or
katai you use at home ? How can you use them for determining weight/volume of
foodstuffs ? In this section, you will find answers to all these questions.

Objectives
After going through this section, you will be able to :
identify the various ways of determining weight and volume of foodstuffs
differentiate between household measures and standard measures
weigh foodstuffs on a household weighing balance
use your practical kit for determining the weight/volume of foodstuffs and
relate household measures to the items of the practical kit.

1.1 WEIGHING AND MEASURING EQUIPMENT

We are starting this subsection, with the understanding that you are familiar with
terms like 'weight' and 'volume' and the units in which they are expressed In case
you need to recall, go through Box 1.1.

You have read that you can use a weighing balance or the measuring cups or spoons
for weighing and measuring. These are known as weighing and measuring equipment.
On this basis, let us try to define 'weighing equipment' and 'measuring equipment'.
Weighing Equipment: Any equipment which is used for determining weight is
known as a weighing equipment or weighing balance. There are various kinds of
weighing balances. You must be familiar with the weighing balance used at shops or
other commercial places. The weighing balance used at the household level is
different from that used at commercial places, as it is not very accurate and can
measure only small quantities. However, it is suitable for the purpose of weighing at
household level. You will learn more about household weighing balances on page 10
of this subsection
Measuring Equipment: Measuring equipment or measures refer to devices which
help in measuring the quantity/volume of foodstuffs. Can you think of some examples
of measuring equipment? Yes, the cup, glass or katori which you use at home can be
termed as measuring equipment. You can use them for determining the quantity of
foodstuffs in certain measuring units - half katodone katodtwo katoridor one small
katoriltwo large katoridhalf a medium katori These utensils are termed as household
measures. The household measures are quite useful in day-teday cooking. However,
they have one limitation. They cannot tell you the exact amount i.e. weight or volume
of foodstuffs.

In such a situation, (where you want to find out eight or volume of foodstuffs), the
standard measues of your practical kit may be helpful. As you know, the standard
measures'provided to you in your practical kit include a measuring glass, measuring
cups and spoons. Can you tell the difference between the standard measures and
household measures ? Find out for yourself by doing the following activity.
 Weights and Measures

I Very often you make use of terms like 'weight' or 'volume'. Do you know h6w
these terms are defined ? Here are the definitions for bath these terns,
Weight: The earth attracts or pulls every object
pull or attraction of the earth on an object is called
Volume : The quantity of space an object takes up
Do remember that every object which has a weight also has a volume and vice
versa. Usually for measuring raw solid foodstuffs like atta d& sugar, etc, we
use weight as a measure. Liquid foodstuffs like milk, water are taken in volume
measures.
I The units in which weight/volume are commonly expressed are giv?r, below : 1
Units to express weight Units to express v
Ki~ol3ram(kg) ; gram (B) Litre (.I;)millilitres
milligram (mg) ; microgram (mcg)
1 Kilogram (kg) = 1000 grams (g)
1 gram (g) = 1OOO mi'lligrams (mg)
1 milligram (mg) = 1000 miciograms

in grams and kilograms.

. at some places you may
nd units like pound and ounce being
used for weight
1 pound (Ib) = 0.453 kg
or

ACTIVITY 1
@ TAKE OUT T H E MEASURING GLASS (standard measure) FROM YOUR
PRACTICAL KIT AND A STEEL TUMBLER (household measure) FROM
YOUR KITCHEN SHELF. LOOK FOR THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN
T I E TWO.

@ FILL T H E STEEL TUMBLER WITH W A T E R HOW MUCH WATER

DOES IT CONTAIN ?
......................................................................

@ TRANSFER T H E WATER FROM T H E STEEL TUMBLER T O THE

MEASURING GLASS. NOW, WRITE THE-VOLUME O F WATER
CONTAINED IN IT

By doing this activity you will find that the measuring glass has certain markings 03
it, which indicate volume. You will notice similar markings on measuring cups ar.1
spoons indicating volume. Any measure which has markingsicalibrations indicating
vdume is termed as a standard measure, According to this definition, the measuri1:g
glass and the measuring cups and spoons of your practical kit are standard measures.
Can you call any calibrated equipment a standard measure ? No, any device/
equipment is a standard measure only when t' e markings on it give the accurate
measure of volume.
RaetkaI M-u.1- Pan 1 NOW,YOU are familiar with the terms like weighing balance, standard measures and
household measures. Let us now come back to your problem in meal planning, when
you need to fmd out weight/volume of foodstuffs.
Your practical kit includes only the standard measures and not a weighing balance. In
this situation, you would like to know the answels to questions such as the
following : Are the standard measures provided to you enough for your practical
activities or do you need to buy a household weighing balance. The answer is - you
need not buy a household weighing balance. A household weighing balance is needed
only for knowing the exact weight of foodstuffs However, for practical purposes in
meal planning you can make do even with the approximate weight/volume of
foodstuffs. The standard measures ie. measuring glass, cups and spoons, can provide
you sufficient information for this purpose. However, you should note hem that the
standard measures can tell directly the volume of foodstfls but not the weight.
For the purpose of finding weight using the standard measures, you need some
additional information. What is this additional information ? How is it used for finding
the weight of foodstuffs ? You will have to wait a little while for getting the answers to
these questions. The secret behind these aspects will be revealed to you in subsection
1.2. Before learning about them, let us first learn how to use a household weighing
balance and the standard measures in your kit
How to use a household weighing balance ?
It is important for you to learn the use of a household weighing balance. You can use
the weighing balance provided at your study centre as a cross check for standard
measures.
A household weighing balance can measure from 5-10 g to 500-2000 g depending
upon its capacity. Look at the figure given below. The weighing balance
shown in the figure can measure from 5 g to 1000 g. The same weighing balance is
provided at your study centre. You can go to the study centre and examine i t This
weighing balance has two main parts - (i) the body and (ii) detachablepan. By
carefully looking at it, you will fmd that the body is attached to the pan by means of a
stud. You will also notice three things on the body of the balance :
markings which indicate weight
0 a pointer and
0 an adjustment knnb. -- .
- - -
--,

When any object is placed on the pan, the pointer moves and indicates weight If you
want to adjust the pointer at a particular point you can use the adjustment knob.
You can weigh any foodstuff from raw to cooked on the household weighing balance.
As you know, some of the foodstuffs are dry and when removed from the utensil in
which they are placed, leave it clean e.g. rice, apple, guava etc. You can place these
foodstuffs directly on the pan of the weighing balance. Other foodstuffs are
liquidy/sticky/greasy/powderye.g. cooked dal/atta,oil etc. You snould not place them
directly on the pan of the weighing balance. In fact, you can classify foodstuffs in two
a o u ~ sas shown in Table 1.1. .
 Table 1.1 Classlflcatlon of foodstuffs into p u p s for the purpose of wcigbin~ Weightcr and Measures

Weighing in a separate utensil

Oil, ghee, butter

Rice/chirwa/murmura
Sugar (if dry and not sticky) Cooked foodstuffs

Let us now learn how to weigh items included in groups A and B on the weighing
balance.

ACTIVITY 2
WEIGHING FOODSTUFFS ON A HOUSEHOLD WEIGHING BALANCE

) BRING THE POINTER TO

THE ZERO MARK USING
THE ADJUSTMENT KNOB.

DIRECTLY ON THE PAN

OF THE WEIGHING
Practical Manual - Part 1
READING INDICATED BY
THE POINTER
Weight of apple as indicated by the
......
pointer is g

i) TAKE A KATORI/PLATE
OR ANY OTHER UTENSIL
WHICHEVER IS
APPROPRIATE FOR THE
FOODSTUFF YOU WANT
TO MEASURE AND PLACE
IT ON THE TOP OF THE

11) BRING THE POINTER TO

THE ZERO MARK USING
THE ADJUSTMENT KNOB.
 Weights and Measures
IN THE UTENSIL.

iv) NOTE DOWN THE

READING INDICATED BY Weight of Bengal gram (whole) as
THE POINTER indicated by the pointer .......

following points into consideration. Make sure that :-

1 @ ' the balance is placed on an even surface
@ the pan of the balance is clean and dry
i! @ very heavy objects (more than the capacity of the weighing balance) are not taken
for weighing
@ the pointer is set at the zero mark.
How to use the standard measures of the kit
After learning about the household weighing balance, let us now fbcus our attention
on standard measures. As you know standard measures are part of your practical kit.
Let us discuss the use of each one of them separately.
Measuring Glass : It is a calibrated plastic glass. It is used for measuring the volume
of liquids such as water, milk or fruit juice. You can measure 25 ml to 300 ml of
liquid in it at a time. The glass can be used to find the volume of liquid contained in
the given container - cup/glass/tumb\er or measure the given amount of liquid -
100 ml to 200 ml or 300 ml.
Let us learn how to use the measuring glass.
ACTIVITY 2

(i) POUR THE LIQUID YO

WANT TO MEASURE I
THE GLASS.
iiij NOTE DOWN T H E
READING I F T H E LEVEL
O F T H E LIQUID IS
DIRECTLY ON T H E MAKK.
IT IS EASY T O NOTE
DOWN THE READING. IF
NOT, YOU HAVk T O
DECIDE THE VOLUME
DEPENDING ON YOUR
OWN PERCEPTION.
YOU HAVE T O CHECK
WHETHER T H E LEVEL IS
IN T H E CENTRE OR MOKE
TOWARDS T H E UPPER
SIDE OR LOWER SIDE.
CONSIDER THE
FOLLOWING EXAMPLE. IF
T H E LEVEL O F THE
LIQUID IS IN T H E CENTRE
O F 250 A N D 300 rnl, YOUR
READING WILL BE 275 ml.
IF THE LEVEL IS
TOWARDS THE UPPER
SIDE, T H E KEADING WILL
BE 285 rnl. I F T H E LEVEL IS
TOWAFWS T H E LOWER
SIDE THE READING WILL,
While using the measuring glass you should make sure that the :- Weigbts and Measures
glass is clean and dry
liquid you want to measure is not too hot
Meaiuring spoons : Your Practical Kit has a set of four plastic spoons. They are
labelled as one tablespoon, one teaspoon, half teaspoon and one fourth teaspoon. The
quantities which the spoons can measure are :-
One tablespoon (1 T) = 15 g
One teaspoon (1 tsp) = 5 g
Half teaspoon (112 tsp) = 2.5 g
One fourth teaspoon ( 114 tsp) = 1.25 g
The spoons are usually used for measuring small quantities of ghee, oil, butter, and
sugar.
Note : Remember that 1 teaspoon of butter, ghee. oil or sugar is not exactly 5 g. If
you weigh one teaspoon of these foodstuffs on the weighing balance, you will find that
the weight is close to 5 g. ~b you can consider that 1 teaspoon of these foodstuffs is
5 g. Same is true for other spoon measures.
Let us learn how to use the measuring spoons. i'
iii) TAKE A FLAT KNIFE OR THE FLAT
EDGE OF THE SPOON AND LEVEL
THE HEAP NEATLY.

iv) TME AMOUNT LEFT IN THE SPOON

IS TME AMOUNT WHICH IT CAN
MEASURE.

While using the spoons make sure that :

e Spoons are clean and dry
6i Butter is in soft form
61 Sugar is dry and not moist or sticky.

Measuring Cups : The set of measuring cups you have been provided consist of 4
cup measures - one cup (1 C), half cup (112 C), one third cup (113 C) and one fourth
cup (114 C). Using these cups you can find out the approximate weight of raw solid
foodstuffs. How to find out weight is dealt with later in subsection 1.3. Here, we will
just concentrate on lemming how to use the measuring cups.

TAKE A MEASURING C W
i)
-
(malie svr+ ,d K ;s ckan and
WJ.
 Weights and Measurcs

(make sure that you fill it lightly

until it is heaped).

THE CUP IS THE AMOUNT

WHICH IT CAN MEASURE.
- -

Note :
One cup measure of all foodstuffs does not weigh the same. The cup
measures the quantity (volume) of the particular foodstuff it can hold How to
relate this quantity (volume) to weight is discussed later in subsection 1.3.
Practical Manupl - Part I There are some markings on the cups in millilitres which indicate volume. Since
you have received a measuring glass separately as a volume measure, you need
not use cups for measuring volume of liquids.

PRACTICAL POINT: HOW TO TAKE CARE OF

YOUR PRACTICAL KIT
All the standard measures which are part of your practical kit are made of
plastic. Taking care of them is not a difficult task. You need to observe the
( following precautions while using them.
1) Always keep them in a cool place. Never place them near the fire or any
heat source.
1 2) Make sure that they are clean and dry before use. I
1 3) D o not pour very hot liquidlother hot foodstuffs in them. I
4) After use proper cleaning is essential. D o not use metal brushes or
scrubbers. for cleaning otherwise scratches will appear and markings will
rub off. If greasy, wash them with soap and water. '

I 5 ) Wipe dry before putting them back in the box. I

1.2 RELATING WEIGHT TO STANDARD

MEASURES

We hope by now you have learnt the techniques of using a household weighing
balance and the standard measures. Let us now learn how to find weight using
standard measures.
In meal planning you may need to know the weight of the following categories of
foodstuffs.
Cereals
Pulses
Flesh foods (meat, fish, poultry)
Fats and oils
Sugar
Nuts and oilseeds
Fruits and vegetables
Out of the above mentioned food categories, you can put cereals, pulses, fats and oils,
sugar and nuts and oilseeds in measuring cups or spoons (standard measures) and
measure them. The weight of these foodstuffs can be related to standard measures.
However, it is not possible to use the standard measures for other categories of
foodstuffs i.e. fruitslvegetables and flesh foods due to their size and shape. W e use
the relationship between weight and sizelnumber for these foodstuffs. How to find
weight by this method is the tcpic of discussion in the next subsection. In this
subsection, we will only discuss how to relate weight to standard measures.
As you have already read, standard measures can directly tell you the volume1
quantity of foodstuffs placed in them. However, for finding weight, you need
additional information. What is this additio1:al information and how is it used for
finding weight ? Let us try to understand this by the following example.
Consider the following two situations.
Situation 1 : You have been provided a household weighing balance and asked to
cook 80 g of rice.
Situation I1 : You have been provided the standard cup measures (1 C, 112 C, 1;/4 C
and 113 C) and the information that one fourth cup (114 C measure) of rice is equal
to 4 0 g You have t o cook 80 g of rice.
Can you measure 80 g of rice in situations I and I1 ? Yes, in situation I, you can Weights and Measures
directly weigh 8 0 g of rice on the weighing balance. In situation 11, you can use the
additional information given and take two levelled one fourth cups (114 C measure) of
rice for cooking. The additional information provided in situation I1 actually presents
the relationship between a standard measure (i.e. 114 C measure) and weight (i.e. a
weighing balance). The situation I1 given here illustrates the fact that if we find out
the relationship bhween standard measures and weight for other foodstuffs also, we
can easily find the weight of foodstuffs at home. The two essential things for finding
this relationship is a household weighing balance and the standard measures. We
have collected this information for various foodstuffs and compiled it in Charts 1, 2
and 3 (Annexure 1 - Part A).
All you have to do is to take the appropriate standard measure and refer to the right
chart for a particular category of the foodstuff.
Chart 1 : gives the relationship between weight of raw cereals and pulses and the
measuring cups.
Chart 2 : gives the relationship between weight of fatsloilslsugars and the measuring
cups.
Chart 3 : gives the relationship between weight of nuts1oiIseeds (groundnuts) and the
measuring cups.
Do remember thatfb.v this method ~ ~ tr-ill
o uget otilj' a rough idea about the weight oJ
foodstuffs and not the exact weight.
Let us now understand how to use weight and standard measure charts for finding the
weight of foodstuffs. You can do so by do~ngthe following activity.
\CTIVITY 4(a) ..

Govind Ram (husband) and Sita (wife) are a newly married couple. Sita is concerned
about the health and nutritional status of her family. She cooks her meals by proper
meal planning. According to a meal plan prepared by her, she needs the following
ingredients for preparing lunch for the two of them.
Atta - 40 g
Rice 100 g
Moong dal - 60 g
Peas - l00g
Tomato - 50 g
Onion - 50g
Potato - 150 g
Apple - 160 g
Fat/oil - 15 g
Sugar - 20 g

How will she measure these amounts ? Let us solve her problem using the standard
measures. Take out your set of standard measures and the above mentioned
foodstuffs and do as indicated.
WHICH FOODSTUFFS WOULD YOU MEASURE USING T H E
STANDARD MEASURES ?
Atta, moong dal, fats and oils and sugar
WHICH CHARTISTANDARD MEASURE IS APPROPRIATE FOR
EACH O F THESE FOODSTUFFS ?
Atta - Chart 1 and measuring cups
Moong dal - Chart 1 and measuring cups
Fats and oils - measuring spoons
Sugar - measuring spoons
H O W WILL YOU MEASURE 40 g A T T A ?
Refer to Chart 1. You will find that 113 C can measure 35 g atta As you nzed
4 0 g of it, you can take one levelled (113 cup atta) and add a little more
(approximately 5 g) to it according to your own judgement/perception.
Practkal Mmual - Part I @ HOW WILL YOU MEASURE 100 g RICE ?
Refer to Chalt 1. Half cup can measure 90 g rice. Take little more than 112 cup
of rice.
@ HOW WILL YOU MEASURE 6 8 g MOONG DAL ?
Refer to Chart 1. 113 cup can measure 60 g of moong dal.
a HOW WILL YOU MEASURE 20 g GHEE/EDIBLE OIL?
Smaller quantities of fats and oils can be measured directly using measuring
spoons (For large quantities you need to use Chart 2 and measuring cups). Take
4 teaspoons (tsp) of ghee/edible oil.
@ HOW WILL YOU MEASURE 28 g SUGAR ?
Smaller quantities of sugar, less than 50 g, can be measured using measuring
spoons (For large quantities you need to use Chart 2 and measuring cups). Take
four teaspoons (4 tsps) sugar. -
In this way Sita can measure the cereal, pulse, fatsloil sugar (in the amounts needed .
for her lunch) by using the standard measures and charts giving the relationship
between standard measures and weight. But her problem is only partially s h e d . HOW
will she measure the vegetables and fruits needed for the lunch? The a s w e r to this
question is provided in the next subsection

1.3 RELATING WEIGHT TO SIZE AND NUMBER

How will you determine the weight of fruits and vegetables at home ? Can you
measure them in your standard cups and glass ? No, obviously not. So, what is the
answer to this question ? The answer lies in the fact that most of the fruits and
vegetables are available in the market in various sizes and shapes. You can get a
banana which is very small or very large. Now, as you know, weight will be different
for the various sizes of bananas. This means a relationship between size and weight
can be worked out based on which you can determine the weight of fruits and
vegetables. In a similar manner, weight of some nuts and oilseeds, flesh foods (like
egg) can be related to number.
You can refer to weight and size figures given in Annexure 1 - Part B for finding the
weight of fruits and vegetables. We have worked out these figures using a weighing '
balance and different f r u k and vegetables of various sizes - small medium and
large. Do remember that thesefigures give you only the rough idea of weight of-fmits
and vegetables and not the exact weight. For example weight and size figures for
onions of various sizes include the following - very small (15 g), small (25 g),
medium (40 g) and large (65 g) onion How will you measure 60 g onion using this
information ? You can take one large oniodtwo small onionslone medium and one
very small oniodfour very small onions. Note that these onions should be
approximately of the sizes indicated in the figures. In a similar manner using
information given in figures (Amexure 1 - Part B), you can find weight of other
vegetables and fruits also.
Let us now study how to use the information given in Charts 4 and 5 and size-weight
figures given in h e x u r e 1 - Part B. You can refer to Charts 4 and 5 for finding the
weight of some nuts and oilseeds and flesh foods. These charts are based *Jnthe
relationship between sizelnumber and weight. For example, if you want to add 10 g
almonds in a desert prepared by you, you can take 9 big almonds (Chart 4).
Similarly you can take 5 medium size pieces of mutton, if you need to add 100 g
mutton in a dish (Chart 5).
Now let us come back to Sita's problem. tVe have left her problem only half solved in
an earlier subsection. She needs to weigh 100 g peas, 100 g potato, 50 g tomato, 50 g
onion, and 160 g apple for her lunch Refer to weight and size figures and answer the
following
ACTIVlTY 4 (b)
@ HOW WILL YOU MEASURE 100 g PEAS ?
As indicated in the figure for peas, 12 to 14 small peapods are 50 g So, you can
take around 24-30 small peapods.
 @ HOW WILL YOU MEASURE 100 g POTATO ?
Refer to the figure for potatoes. You can take one small potato or three fourth of
a medium potato or half (a little more than half) of a large potato.
HOW WILL YOU MEASURE 50 g TOMATO?
Refer to the figure for tomatoes. You can take one medium size tomato.
0 HOW WILL YOU MEASURE 50 g ONION ?
Refer to the figure for onions. You can take two small onions or one medium and
one very small onion or three fourth of a large onion
0 HOW WILL YOU MEASURE 160 g APPLE ?
I
Refer to the figure for apples You can take two medium size apples. .
Note :In all these cases match the size of vegetables and fruits with the sizes given in
figures.

us to tell you the weight of leafy

vegetables according to the quantity needed.

6.4 RELATING HOUSEHOLD MEASURES TO

STANDARD MEASURES
I
When you plan meals for yourself or for family members the meal plan indicates
I
food items in grams/li&es/millilitres. You can measure the ingredients according to
the meal plan using your kitlstandard measures. However, you may be more used to
using household measures like cup/katoriltumbler/plate in your kitchen. You may not
want to bother yourself using the standard measures in your day-@day cooking. In
such a situation, you can work out a relationship between standard measures and
household measures, so that if you cook a katori of dal for your family, you know
how much dal (grams) it contains. In other words, you can standardize your
household measures using the standard measures. For understanding this do the
following interesting activity. This exercise will help you in knowing the approximate
weight'volume of foodstuffs that can be measured with the household measures you
have on your kitchen shelf.
ACTIVITY 5
Part A: Flndlng the volume of llqutd that can be contained In the ufendl8 on
your kitchen l e l t
e TAKE GLASSES, STEEL TUMBLERS AND CUPS OF DIFFERENT
SIZES FROM YOUR KITCHEN SHELF.
CLASSIFY THEM INTO THREE CATEGORIES - LARGE. MEDIUM
AND SMALL
TAKE ONE SAMPLE FROM EACH
0 FILL IT UP WITH WATER (Yon should fill it ap till the level you usually put
water1milWtea for drinking)
NOTE DOWN THE VOLUME
SIMILARLY, FIND THE VOLUME OF WATER THAT CAN BE
CONTAINED IN OTHER SAMPLES
RECORD YOUR RESULTS
 - Part I -------- -- - - _ _ - - _ _ - _ _ _ _ _ ____-
Practical Manual
Glass tumbler
11 large
medium
.......................................
.......................................
small .......................................
CUP large .......................................
I medium .......................................
I small .......................................
Part B : Finding the weight of foodstuffs-cereals/pulses/fats/oils/sugar - that
can be contained in utensils on your kitchen shelf
STEP I TAKE A KATOWBOWUCUP OR ANY OTHER UTENSIL
WHICH YOU USUALLY USE FOR MEASURING CEREALS1
PULSES/FATS/OILS/SUGAR.
STEP I1 TAKE ANY O F THESE FOODSTUFFS SAY A CEREAL,(RICE)
OR PULSE (MOONG DAL), IN THE AMOUNT YOU USUALLY
COOK (It can be half katorifone katoritone glass/two glasses)
STEP I11 TRANSFER THIS AMOUNT T O MEASURING CUPS AND FIND
OUT WHICH O F THE CUP MEASURES CAN ACCOMMODATE
THAT AMOUNT. ONCE YOU HAVE THE AMOUNT IN TERMS
OF MEASURING CUPS YOU CAN ALSO ESTIMATE THE
WEIGHT (USING CHARTS 1 . 2 AND 3). RECORD YOUR
OBSERVATIONS IN THE SPACE PROVIDED HERE.

Name of foodstuff Amount in terrns Amor~ntin t c r ~ ~ i s Wc~gllt

of household of s t a n h ~ d (I!)
measures n1c;lsures
( g) (P)
- ~

Rice small glass -C I!

-- . .

Atta

Pulse

Fatloil

Sugar
I
1.5 FINDING THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN
THE AMOUNT OF COOKED FOODSTUFFS
AND RAW FOODSTUFFS
%
*
So far, you have learnt how to measure the raw foodstuffs for preparing a diswsnack
according to a recipelmeal plan. As a matter of fact weighing and measuring raw
ingredients before preparing a dish is the right step towards meal planning. However,
sometimes you may find yourself in a reverse situation. A cooked dishlsnack is
placed before you and you are asked to find out the amount of raw foodstuffs1
ingredients taken for its preparation. For example, if your sister had a katori of dal,
half plate rice and two chapatis in lunch at her friend's place, can you tell her how
much raw dal or atta she has consumed ? It is a difficult situation. Isn't it ? But let us
try to find the easy way out. In this subsection we will try to establish the relationship
between a cooked diswsnack and the raw ingredients used in its preparation. In the
case of cooked foodstuffs, you will have to consider the size of the katorilplate in
which food is served/consistency or thickness of the cooked preparatiodsize of served
food item e.g. chapati or poori. Let us consider some cooked dishes. You will find -'
that usually cereal, pulse and vegetable preparations are part of our main meals (to
whichever region of India we may belong to). We will here discuss each one of them
separately.
 ,1 Cereal preparations: As you know, cereals (in one of those forms-atta, maida., suji Weights and Measures

i
I
or rava, jowar, bajra, etc.) always find a place in our main meals.
One of the most commonly used cereal preparations is chapati/phulka/roti prepared
from whole wheat flour or atta (Although you can find chapatis made from jowar,
bajra or maize flour). You might have observed that size and thickness of chapati is
not the same in every household. In fact it is characteristic of each household. One
can have small-thin, small-thicwmedium-thin, medium-thickllarge-thin,large thick
C
chapatis. In size-thickness figures, Annexure I Part C, we have given various s ~ z e sof
chapatis (along with the amount of raw atta used in its preparation). What you can do
I is - find among these which figure represents the size and thickness of chapati usually
prepared in your home and accordingly decide the amount of atta used per chapati.
I However, if you find significant variations in the size of chapatis eaten at your home
! (to the sizes mentioned in figures), you can perform the following activity. This
activity is not only applicable for chapatis but for any other cereal preparation like
I
parantha, poori, idli, dosa etc.
ACTIVITY 6
TAKE T H E KNOWN AMOUNT O F CEREAL (ATTA, MAIDA, SUJI,
JOWAR, BAJRA ETC.) YOU CAN USE THE STANDARD MEASURING
CUP FOR THIS PURPOSE.
MAKE THE DOUGHIBATTER ACCORDING TO THE RECIPEIDISH.
MAKE THE DISH (CHAPATVPOORVIDLUDOSNOTHER CEREAL
PREPARATION) IN T H E AMOUNT YOU USUALLY CONSUME.
COUNT THE NUMBER O F SERVINGSIPIECES PREPARED FROM
THE DOUGWBATTER
DIVIDE THE AMOUNT O F TOTAL CEREAL TAKEN BY THE
NUMBER O F SERVINGS PREPARED. IT WILL GIVE YOU AN IDEA
O F THE AMOUNT O F CEREAL TAKEN PER SERVING.

Another commonly used cereal preparation is cooked rice (either boiled or fried).
Cooked rice is usually served in plates. Are you familiar with the plate sizes ? These
are full plate, half plate, quarter plate and saucer. A full plate of
cooked rice (levelled, not heaped) contains approximately SO g raw rice.
A half plate of cooked rice contains 6 0 g raw rice. While a quarter plate
of cooked rice actually has 40 g raw rice. If you use similar kind of plates, you can
use the above mentioned information for the purpose of meal planning. However, if
you find some differences in plate sizes at your home, you can perform an activity
based on the same steps mentioned in Activity 6. ,

Pulse preparation : Usually a pulse preparation in the form of dallsambarlrasam also

finds a place in our meals. In the case of dal, it is the consistency which varies. You
can have a katori of thick dal preparation to thin liqujdy dal preparation like sambar
or rasam. Dal is usually served in katories. So the size of the katori is also important,
Consider a 150 ml katori (it means it can hold 150 ml. of liquid in it). A medium
consistency cooked dal placed in this katori (full) is actually made from 30 g raw dal.
The same katori (full) of thin consistency dal like rasam contains just 10 g of raw dal.
You can find a katori of similar volume from your house (though shape or size may
be different) using a standard measuring glass. However, if you can not find the katori
of 150 ml or the consistency of dal used in your house is not same as mentioned here,
you can perform an activity by repeating the steps mentioned in Activity 6.
Vegetable preparations: There is a lot of variation in the method of preparation of
vegetables from one region to another and within the same region from one house to
another. So, it is difficult for us to tell you the amount of raw vegetable contained in a
katori or plate of cooked vegetable preparation. You can take the &own amount bf
raw vegetable and prepare it according to your method. Now you can determine the
Pr~ctlcalManual - Part I
1.6 SUMMING UP

The section prctvides you with a solution to the problem of weighing and measuring at
household level. You have learnt about the household weighing bdance, household
measures and standard measures and their use.
After reading this section you would have realized that a household weighing balance
is essential for finding the weight of foodstuffs at the household level. However, using
a weighing balance and set of standard measures one can find a relationship between
the two. Such a relationship can be used far finding the weight of foodstuffs at home.
You have been provided with a set of standard measures and additional information in
the form of relationship between weight and standard measures for foodstuffs like
cereals and pulses ; fats and oils ; sugar and groundnuts (nuts and oilseeds) in Charts
1, 2 and 3 respectively. Other foodstuffs like fruits and vegetables ; flesh foods ;some
nuts and oilseeds can be quantified using the relationship between weight and
sizelnumber.
You can simplify things further by standardizing household equipment (measures) on
your kitchen shelf with the help of standard measures.
 ANNEXURE 1 Weights end Measures

PART A

CHART I. Approximate weight of cereals and pulses

according to standard measuring cups

Aua (whole wheat flour)

Chiwa (r~ceflakes)

Kabuli chana

Whole masoor
Masoor washed

Source : Based on the work done by faculty, IGNOU.

Note :The values are rounded off to the nearest whole numbers.

CHART 2. Approdmate weight of FatdOildSugar according

to standard measuring cups

cups in grams

Source: Based on the work done by facutty. IGNOU.

Note :The values are rounded off d t h e nearest whole numbers.

CHART 3. Approximate w e i e t of nuts and oilseeds

(groundnut) according to standard measuring cups

Source: Based ap the d m d o n e hy faculty, IGNOU.

Note :The valueh we towed off to the nearest whole numbers.
Practical Manual - Part I CHART 4. Approximate weight of nuts and oilseedsaccording to number

Foodstuff Measure Weight (g)

Almond ' 9 big 10

Cashewnut 6 large 10
Walnut 4 halves 10
Pistachio 18 big 10

Source: These values are taken from a book titled 'Basic Food Preparation' by Department of Food and
Nutrition, Lady Irwin College, Published by Orient Longman (1986).

CHART 5. Approximate weight of meat/fish/poultry according to size

and number

Foodstuff Measure Weight (g)

Egg 1 medium 55
Mutton 5 pieces (medium) 100
Chicken I leg 100
Pomfret 1 medium 500
---
Source: These values are taken from a book tltled 'Baslc Food Preparation‘ by Depanment ol Fcx>dand
Nutrn~on.Lady lnvln College, Publ~shedby Orlent Longman ( 1986)
 Weights and Measures

ANNEXURE 1
PART B WEIGHTS AND SIZES OF SELECTED FOOD ITEMS
Practical Manual - Part I
PraCtical Manual - Part I
Weights and Measurer
 0

Practkal Msnunl - Part I

ANNEXURE 1

PART C

RELATION OF CHAPATI SIZES TO AMOUNT OF FLOUR