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Australian Cooking Measurements

 

Australian and North American recipe conversions. Handy tables for measuring dry and liquid ingredients, explanations of Aussie vs. American cooking terms, oven temperatures, Aussie vs. American common terms for ingredients.

 

Wherever you live in the world, you can use our recipes with the help of our easy-to-follow conversions for all your cooking needs. These conversions are approximate only. The difference between the exact and approximate conversions of liquid and dry measures amounts to only a teaspoon or two, and should not make a noticeable difference to your cooking results.

Measuring Equipment Notes

The difference between measuring cups internationally is minimal within 2 or 3 teaspoons difference. (For the record, 1 Australian measuring cup will hold approximately 250 ml.)

The most accurate way of measuring dry ingredients is to weigh them. When measuring liquids use a clear glass or plastic jug with metric markings.

1 Teaspoon = 5ml 1 Tablespoon = 20ml

NOTE: NZ, CANADA, USA and UK ALL USE 15ml TABLESPOONS.

All cup and spoon measurements are level.

Measuring Cups and Spoon Conversion Charts

In Australia measuring cups are of a slightly different size than their North American counterparts. Here is a handy chart to help convert between the different measuring amounts.

American Australian
1 cup 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons
1 teaspoon 5 milliliters
1 tablespoon 1 tablespoon plus 1 1/2 teaspoons
1 tablespoon 20 milliliters
1 cup 250 milliliters

Dry Measures

Metric Imperial
15g 1/2 ounce
30g 1 ounce
60g 2 ounces
100g 3 1/2 ounces
124g 4 ounces
155g 5 ounces
220g 7 ounces
250g 1/2 pound
280g 9 ounces
315g 10 ounces
345g 11 ounces
375g 12 ounces
440g 14 ounces
500g 16 ounces (1 pound)
1 kg 32 ounces (2 pounds)

Liquid Measures

Metric Imperial
30ml 1 fluid oz
100ml 3 fluid oz
125ml 4 fluid oz
150ml 5 fluid oz (1/4 pint)
150ml 1 gill
185 ml 6 fluid oz
250ml 8 fluid oz
300ml 10 fluid oz
300ml 1/2 pint
500ml 16 fluid oz
600ml One pint
750ml 24 fluid oz
1000ml 32 fluid oz
1 litre 1 3/4 pints
1200ml One quart (gallon)

Sydney Harbour Bridge from Circular Quay - by JJ Harrison 1

Ingredient Terms

Australian American
Aubergine Eggplant
Bacon Rashers Canadian Bacon
Biscuits Cookies
Boiling fowl Stewing fowl
Broad beans Fava beans
Cake mixture Cake batter
Castor sugar superfine sugar
Celery stick Celery stalk
Chipolata sausages mini sausages
Cornflour Cornstarch
Courgette Zucchini
Chips French fried potatoes
Castor Sugar Superfine Sugar
Capsicum Sweet or Bell Pepper
Copha 2 Coconut butter
Cornflour Cornstarch
Demerara sugar Light brown sugar
Desiccated coconut Flaked coconut
Digestive biscuits similar to Graham crackers3
Double cream Whipping cream
Essence Extract
Fats Shortening
Flaked almonds Slivered almonds
Flour (plain) All Purpose Flour
Flour (self raising) Self Rising Flour
Flour (wholemeal) Whole Wheat Flour
Frosting sugar Powdered sugar
Gelatine Unflavoured Gelatine
Ghee Clarified Butter
Glaced Candied
Glacé Cherries Maraschino Cherries
Golden syrup 4 Dark corn syrup
Icing Frosting
Jam Preserves
King Prawns Jumbo Shrimp
Little boys Cocktail weiners/frankfurts
Mince/mince meat Ground beef
Nut of butter Pat of butter
Paw Paw Papaya
Prawns Shrimp
Ratafia biscuits Almond flavoured cookies
Roast Potatoes Oven browned potatoes
Rockmelon Cantaloupe
Shallots Scallions
Sugar Granulated sugar
Swiss Roll Tin Jelly Roll Pan
Stock Cubes Boullion Cubes
Streaky bacon Bacon slices
Sultanas Golden Seedless Raisins
Icing Sugar Confectioners Sugar
Scone Shortcake
Self raising flour All-purpose flour including baking powder
Single cream Light cream
Soft brown sugar Light brown sugar
Spring onion Scallion or green onion
Stewing steak Braising beef
Stoned raisins Seedless raisins
Sultanas Seedless white raisins
Treacle 5 Molasses
Unsalted butter Sweet butter

Sydney Harbour Bridge from Circular Quay - by JJ Harrison 6

Odd Measures

Term Translation
10 eggs 1 pound
dash of pepper 3 good shakes
4 cups flour 1 pound
4 tablespoons liquid 1/4 cup
1 gill 1/2 cup
2 gills 1 cup liquid
2 gills 1/2 pint
4 gills 1 pint
2 pints 1 quart
4 tablespoons liquid 1/4 cup
1 even cup butter 1/2 lb
1 heaped teaspoon butter 2 ounces
2 cups granulated sugar 1 pound
2 1/2 cups icing sugar 1 pound
1 pint liquid 1 pound
1 spoonful heaped spoonfull
1/2 spoonful level spoonfull

Temperature Conversions

Refer to our Metric Conversion Chart for more detailed metric converstions including standard oven temperatures.

Reference Fahrenheit Celsius
Very cool oven 225°-250° 107°-121°
Cool oven 275°-300° 135°-149°
Very moderate oven 325° 163°
Moderate oven 350°-375° 177°-191°
Moderately hot oven 400° 205°
Hot oven 425°-450° 218°-233°
Very hot oven 475° 246°

Cooking Equipment

Australian American
Baking sheet or tray Cookie sheet
Case Pie shell
Frying pan Skillet
Girdle Griddle
Grate Shred
Greaseproof paper Wax paper
Grill Broil
Gut Clean
Knead Punch down
Lamington Tin 13" x 9" x 2" baking dish
Large pot Dutch oven or similar
Mince Grind
Polythene Plastic wrap
Pudding cloth Cheesecloth
Ring Tin Tube Pan
Roasting tin Roasting pan with rack
Sandwich tins Round-layer pans
Sieve Sift
Stewpan or pan Kettle
Whisk Beat/whip
Patty Cups Paper Cupcake Holders
Greaseproof Paper Wax Paper
Tea Towel Dish Towel

More Cooking Helpers

Scant = Not quite full measure

Tammy Cloth = A fine woollen cloth

Fats, dripping, lard, etc can be substituted with your selected oils

Clarified Fat = Melt fat then add raw potato cut in quarter-inch slices and allow the fat to gradually heat. When the fatceases to bubble and potatoes are browned, strain fat through double cheesecloth into a pan for use. Potato will absorb fat odours and sediment.

All oven temperatures are based on the standard wood oven, gas oven and electric oven.

Second Stock = Made from the meat and the bones that remain after the first stock is strained off. Fresh water and veges are added.

Flour = Unless otherwise stated, "flour" refers to plain flour.

Red or Green Pepper = Capsicum

Stewpan = Large frypan type utensil with lid used for stews and casseroles

Muslin Bag = Cloth bag used for holding additives and spices in for submerging in casseroles, soups, stews, etc. They allow you to flavour foods with whole spices and herbs without having to strain them out before serving.

Quantities for Catering

Three quarts of milk is the usual allowance for afternoon tea for 100 people.

One pound of sugar is usually ample for one hundred people.

One quart of ice cream will be enough for 18 small plates.

One quart of pudding or jelly is enough for 12 small servings at a party

One loaf of bread will cut into 36 slices, making 18 rounds of sandwiches which will cut into 72 small ones.

A half pound of butter creamed is sufficient to spread a loaf of bread for sandwiches or six dozen scones.

Three pounds of cocktail frankfurts will serve 40 people

Oddiments and Explanations

Level teaspoon = Draw a knife over edges.

Drop Dough = One measure of liquid to two measures of flour.

Stiff Dough = One measure of liquid to three measures of flour.

Cooking Broiling = Applying intense heat by a fire to sear the surfaces of fish or meat, then reducing heat until food is cooked.

Temperature is 375 to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. As in "bring the oven up to temperature"

Fats or cooking oils should be hot enough to prevent the cooking food from absorbing the oils.

Frying = Cooking in deep fats or oils

Poaching = Cooking at 160-180 degrees Fahrenheit

Stewing = Cooking at 186 degrees Fahrenheit

Braising = Cooking food in slow oven with moisture surrounding food in the pan.

Simmering = Cooking food in water below boiling point or about 185 degrees Fahrenheit

Milk is sterilized at 212 degrees Fahrenheit holding that temperature half an hour.

Milk is pasteurized at 165 Fahrenheit holding at that temperature twenty minutes.

Milk scalds at 196 degrees Fahrenheit when in double boiler.

Milk boils at 214 degrees Fahrenheit


  1. "Sydney Opera House at Sunset" by Hpeterswald - Own work. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons - link 

  2. Copha is mainly used to make chocolate confectionary but can be found in variety of products. Commonly called "Coconut Butter" in the U.S. The term "butter" is exclusive in Australia to the dairy industry, with a few minor exceptions such as peanut butter. Vegetable shortening can be a good substitution.  

  3. "Sydney Harbour Bridge from Circular Quay" by JJ Harrison (jjharrison89@facebook.com) - Own work. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons - link 

  4. In recipes calling for digestive biscuits, it is common to substitute graham crackers in the United States. According to Charles Panati, the original graham cracker is called a "digestive biscuit" in the United Kingdom. - Digestive Biscuits 

  5. Golden Syrup is made from cane sugar and may only be similar to Corn Syrup. Australia's CSR Sugars - Golden Syrup 

  6. Treacle, or molasses, is any uncrystallized syrup made during the refining of sugar. ref: Treacle, Australia's CSR Sugars - Treacle 

 

 

Comments


Sydney, Australia
 over 9 years ago

Hi,
I'm Australian. I just wanted to let you know you have a lot of errors in your conversion of Australian Cooking Measurements page where you list conversion to American ingredients. For example, Golden Syrup is NOT corn syrup. Molasses is NOT treacle. We do not call all our sugar castor sugar. We have sugar, which is granulated, and castor sugar, which is superfine sugar. Chipolata sausages are not cocktail sausages - chipolatas are mini sausages, but the red cocktail sausages are basically mini hotdog sausages and we call them cocktail frankfurts or little boys! :)
There are quite a number of other errors, but I'm happy to help you out with these if you're interested in having your list more accurate. Sue in Australia


Sydney, Australia
 over 9 years ago

Sue from Australia again. I can be contacted on suebaxter11@gmail.com if you'd like help correcting your Aus vs American food list.

RW
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
 over 9 years ago

I would encourage the editor of this website to consult an Australian regarding what we call items here. There are even variations across Australia. Take up Sue's offer, this website needs help.

GTA, Ontario, Canada
 about 9 years ago

The editors did email Sue and did not receive a response.

Please feel free to leave any corrections in the comments here and we're more than happy to update straight away.

Mair
Bermuda
 over 8 years ago

So how do we know if it has been updated?


Beaverton, United States
 over 8 years ago

What measure is a "Bottle top"?



 about 8 years ago

Yeah - lots of mistakes here. Broad Beans are Favas - not Limas. Digestive Biscuits are NOT Graham Crackers.

sean - home chef GTA, Ontario, Canada
 about 8 years ago

@Mair - last updated date appears at the end of the article

sean - home chef GTA, Ontario, Canada
 about 8 years ago

@anonymous: broad beans updated to Fava beans. According to all sources we could find it is quite common for Americans to substitute Graham crackers for Digestive biscuits - added a reference for more information. Having used both Digestives and Graham crackers they are indeed very similar although not exactly the same.



 almost 8 years ago

How much is a stick of butter

1 stick = 4 oz or 113 grams

Home chef
Wendy
, United States
 almost 2 years ago


 almost 8 years ago

Anne, Mebourne, Australia. How many gms in a stick of butter



 almost 8 years ago

What is the Australian gm equivalent to in the metric or imperial system
Joan Faulkner
Dartmouth, Nova Scotia
jmfaulkner@eastlink.ca

Erskineville, Australia
 almost 7 years ago

Zucchini is zucchini in Australia too. Courgette is European .

Thanks for trying. Still a little way to go.

, Australia
 almost 7 years ago

Not sure how accurate most of this is because half of the Ingredient Terms are wayyy offfpr Aus so it makes me think that the measurements are wrong too

, Australia
 almost 7 years ago

Australia has baking paper not Greaseproof paper
Australia has baking dish not Lamington Tin
Australia has Plastic wrap not Polythene
Australia has Sift not sieve
Australia has kettle not Stewpan
Australia has eggplant not Aubergine
Australia has way more then just Bacon Rashers (no 1 like the rashers)
Australia has Cornstarch
Australia has zucchini not Courgette
Australia has Copha and Coconut butter
Australia has brown sugar not Demerara sugar
Australia has Whipping cream
Australia has Essence and Extract
Australia has Shortening
Australia has powered sugar and Frosting sugar
Australia has frankfurts nor Little boys
Australians call Paw Paws Papaya
Australia has Prawn & Shrimp (why else would we say shrimp on the BBQ)
Australia has Rockmelon and Cantaloupe
Australia has Sugar and Granulated sugar
Australia has Icing Sugar and Confectioners Sugar
Australia has Scones and Shortcake
Australia has light cream not Single cream

You've never been in Australia have you? Can you not post about Australia if you don't even know anything about it or what's in it

This is really rude. As an Australian, I found it reasonably accurate for information I need - except for 1 cup (250ml) in Australia is 1 US cup (240ml) + two teaspoons (5ml each), not tablespoons.

Home chef
Anna
North Sydney, Australia
 almost 2 years ago
, Australia
 almost 7 years ago

Yes we have cornstarch but it's called cornflour
Light cream is not single cream - single cream is normal thickened cream or whipping cream like Bulla - light cream is fat reduced.
Shrimps are really small prawns that we put in fried rice and are purchased without shells and tails. Prawns are the ones that we are supposed to "put on the BBQ" although I for one would not do such a thing.
Like someone said above - each state in Australia has different words for different things.
SA says "scallop" Vic says "potato cake" for example
Powdered sugar/confectioners sugar is our icing sugar (not icing mixture).
We do have Demerara sugar - I bought some today.

We call frankfurts "hotdogs" and little franks "little boys"
Our scones are your biscuits.

, Australia
 almost 7 years ago

All I was looking for was when a US cook says "a cup of butter" or "stick of butter" what is it in grams? Cause pushing butter into a cup is a little inefficient.

1 cup of butter = 8 ounces = 16 tablespoons = 226 grams

Home chef
Wendy
, United States
 almost 2 years ago
Stony Brook, United States
 almost 7 years ago

Hi, could someone help me? Someone recently posted a recipe and it called for 2 lots of sugar? What does that mean?

, Australia
 over 6 years ago

A stick of butter is 125g Australia

, Australia
 over 5 years ago

Could someone please tell me what 761grams of liquid would be for me in mls have an American recipe and can't work it out.

For water, 761g = 761 mL. For most things, just a straight swap will do.

Home chef
Reynella, Australia
 over 5 years ago
Reynella, Australia
 over 5 years ago

1 American cup is not 1 Australian cup plus two tablespoons. An Australian cup is 250 mL. An American cup is 225 mls.
WE generally speak of eggplant and zucchini not aubergine and courgette
As for shrimps v prawns, Australia exclusively used the term prawns, until the famous tourism advert featuring Paul Hogan went to air in North America. At that point he exhorted potential tourists to come down and throw a shrimp on the barbie. The word shrimp was chosen as it was thought that the average North American would probably ask "what the heck is a prawn?" as the word was not generally used in the Northern Hemisphere.

Reynella, Australia
 over 5 years ago

For water, 761g = 761 mL. For most things, just a straight swap will do.

, Australia
 about 5 years ago

Hi just want to know how much 0.6666 is in cups rice


 about 5 years ago

HOW MUCH IS 1 TUB OF TOMATO PASTE

, Australia
 about 4 years ago

Jamie Oliver's spinach pancake recipe calls for "a mug of flour".
Care to workshop that one for me?

Penshurst, Australia
 over 3 years ago

In Australia. Using dry ingredients. Does “teaspoon” mean it should be level or rounded. I really need this clarification when making plain flour into self raising. Same for rounded or level Tablespoon. It seems to vary a lot. Always understood level meant 1/2 a spoonful. Please help.

I've always understood level to mean flat at the top. Use the back of a knife, wipe it across the measuring spoon/cup to make it (the flour/sugar etc) flat across the top. Rounded would be a lazy spoon/cup - generally flat, but not perfectly and heaped would be a pile on the top.

Home chef
Anna
North Sydney, Australia
 almost 2 years ago
Montmorency, Australia
 about 3 years ago

these conversions are all wrong.

Aschaffenburg, Germany
 about 3 years ago

shallots is a different kind of onion, that scallions...
and much more...
this page should be revised



 over 2 years ago

Yes definitely needs some work.

Anna
North Sydney, Australia
 almost 2 years ago

I've always understood level to mean flat at the top. Use the back of a knife, wipe it across the measuring spoon/cup to make it (the flour/sugar etc) flat across the top. Rounded would be a lazy spoon/cup - generally flat, but not perfectly and heaped would be a pile on the top.

Anna
North Sydney, Australia
 almost 2 years ago

This is really rude. As an Australian, I found it reasonably accurate for information I need - except for 1 cup (250ml) in Australia is 1 US cup (240ml) + two teaspoons (5ml each), not tablespoons.

Wendy
, United States
 almost 2 years ago

1 stick = 4 oz or 113 grams

Wendy
, United States
 almost 2 years ago

1 cup of butter = 8 ounces = 16 tablespoons = 226 grams

Seg.
Brisbane, Australia
 5 months ago

Is that 8 ounces in weight or 8 fluid ounces in volume?