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How to Convert International Recipes to US Measurements
A step-by-step method for converting grams to cups, plus the oven temperatures, tin sizes and ingredient names that also need translating.
Por Ali RazaAtualizado em 8 min de leitura
A recipe from a British, French or Australian source needs more than its numbers changed. Units, temperatures, tin sizes and ingredient names all differ, and any one of them can sink the result. Here is the full checklist.
Step 1: Convert the weights
Work ingredient by ingredient. There is no universal factor, because the answer depends on density.
| Ingredient | Per cup | So 200 g = | So 500 g = |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-purpose flour | 120 g | 1⅔ cups | 4⅙ cups |
| Granulated sugar | 200 g | 1 cup | 2½ cups |
| Caster sugar | 225 g | 0.89 cup | 2¼ cups |
| Brown sugar (packed) | 220 g | 0.91 cup | 2¼ cups |
| Butter | 227 g | 0.88 cup | 2¼ cups |
| Cocoa powder | 85 g | 2⅓ cups | 5⅞ cups |
| Milk | 245 g | 0.82 cup | 2 cups |
Round to the nearest measurable fraction. 1⅔ cups is fine; 1.667 cups is not something you can execute.
Step 2: Convert the temperature
The formula is °F = (°C × 9/5) + 32, but the table is faster and lands on the settings ovens actually have.
| Celsius | Fan/convection | Gas mark | Fahrenheit |
|---|---|---|---|
| 150°C | 130°C | 2 | 300°F |
| 160°C | 140°C | 3 | 325°F |
| 180°C | 160°C | 4 | 350°F |
| 190°C | 170°C | 5 | 375°F |
| 200°C | 180°C | 6 | 400°F |
| 220°C | 200°C | 7 | 425°F |
| 230°C | 210°C | 8 | 450°F |
Step 3: Check the volume standard
If the recipe uses cups or spoons rather than grams, find out whose cups and spoons.
- British, European, New Zealand: 250 ml cup, 15 ml tablespoon.
- Australian: 250 ml cup, 20 ml tablespoon. The spoon is the problem.
- Japanese: 200 ml cup, 15 ml tablespoon.
- US: 236.6 ml cup, 14.79 ml tablespoon.
An Australian recipe calling for 2 tablespoons of butter means 40 ml, which is 2.7 US tablespoons. Getting this wrong understates the butter by a third.
Step 4: Translate the ingredient names
| British / other | US equivalent | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Caster sugar | Superfine sugar | Or pulse granulated briefly |
| Icing sugar | Confectioners' / powdered sugar | Identical |
| Plain flour | All-purpose flour | Identical |
| Strong / bread flour | Bread flour | Higher protein |
| Self-raising flour | Self-rising flour | Contains leavening |
| Bicarbonate of soda | Baking soda | Identical |
| Double cream | Heavy cream | UK version is slightly richer |
| Single cream | Light cream | Roughly equivalent |
| Golden syrup | Light corn syrup | Not identical; flavour differs |
| Cornflour | Cornstarch | Identical |
| Treacle | Molasses | Close enough |
Self-raising flour is the one to watch. If a recipe uses it and you only have plain, add about 1½ teaspoons of baking powder and ¼ teaspoon of salt per cup of flour.
Step 5: Check the tin size
| Metric | Imperial | Note |
|---|---|---|
| 20 cm round | 8 inch | Standard layer cake |
| 23 cm round | 9 inch | 27% more area than 8 inch |
| 23 × 33 cm | 9 × 13 inch | Standard sheet cake |
| 20 × 20 cm | 8 × 8 inch | Standard brownie tin |
| 900 g loaf | 9 × 5 inch | Standard loaf |
| 450 g loaf | 8 × 4 inch | Small loaf |
If you substitute a larger tin, the batter is shallower and bakes faster. Start checking at about 70% of the stated time.
Step 6: Write it down
Do the conversion once, annotate your copy with the converted figures, and note anything you adjusted. A converted recipe you can repeat is worth far more than a perfect conversion you have to redo from scratch next time.
And if you convert international recipes regularly, a scale removes step 1 entirely — you can simply use the original grams.