US and UK recipe terms explained – in plain Australian!
Half and half
Half and half milk is a mixture of half milk and half cream. It has 10-12% milk fat and cannot be whipped.
Double cream and single cream
In Australia, the labels “single” and “double” cream are mostly irrelevant. You need to read the fat content on the label to see which is which. Single cream (often labelled “pouring cream”) contains 33-35% fat, double cream has 60-66% fat, and thickened cream is single cream with a thickening agent added.
A stick of butter
1 stick (4oz) butter is equivalent to 125g.
A gill
A gill is a liquid measure sometimes seen in old recipes. In the U.S. Customary system it’s equal to 4 fluid ounces – which roughly equals 125ml in our (metric) measures. However, in the British Imperial system, 1 gill equals 5 fluid ounces (about 150ml). So check which country your recipe is from!
A pint
The British Imperial pint is 20 fluid ounces (or 600ml in the metric system) and the U.S. Customary pint is 16 fluid ounces (or 500ml in the metric system).
A dessert spoon
A dessertspoon measuring is roughly equivalent to 2 level metric teaspoons.
Shortening
Shortening is a generic term for a solid fat, and the American shortening used for most baking is a type of cooking margarine. Either butter or cooking margarine can be used, and one can be substituted for the other.
All-purpose flour
American recipes often call for “all-purpose” flour. This is the same as plain flour.
Baking soda
Baking soda is the American term for bicarbonate of soda, also known as bi-carb soda or carb soda.
Cornstarch
This is the American term for cornflour. Corn will also sometimes be referred to as maize.
Strong flour
Strong flour, or bread flour, is produced from a variety of wheat that has a high gluten (protein) content and is best suited for pizza and bread making. Look for it – sold as strong, gluten-enriched baker’s flour or bread-mix flour – at your supermarket or in health-food stores.
Soft flour
Soft, or plain (all-purpose), flour is made from wheat varieties that have a lower protein content, and is used mainly for making cakes and biscuits of a lighter texture.
Golden caster sugar
Golden caster sugar is the UK term for raw caster sugar. It’s a fine raw sugar that gives desserts a golden colour and is ideal for cooking as it dissolves more quickly. Australian raw caster sugar is available in larger supermarkets and imported golden caster sugar is available from specialist food stores.
Powdered sugar
Powdered sugar is simply icing sugar.
Corn syrup
Corn syrup is common in the US, but not so common in Australia. A good substitute is glucose syrup (also known as liquid glucose). It’s available in most supermarkets, delicatessens, health-food stores and cake decorating suppliers.
Allspice
Allspice is a common ingredient in American recipes. It isn’t a combination of spices (liked ‘mixed spice’), but rather a single spice taken from a small berry, also known as Jamaican pepper, that tastes like cinnamon, nutmeg, cumin and cloves combined.
Mace
British recipes often call for mace. It’s the fine, bright red membrane that covers the nutmeg seed. It is very similar in flavour, though is slightly more pungent. Ground nutmeg can be substituted for ground mace.
American cup and spoon measurements
The difference between an American and an Australian measuring cup is so small (less than a tablespoon) it’s irrelevant.
It’s important to note that Australia is the only country in the world that has a 20ml tablespoon measure, the rest are 15ml.
1 American cup = 237ml (Australia = 250ml)
1 American tablespoon = 15ml (Australia = 20ml)
1 American teaspoon = 5ml (same as Australia)
Imperial to metric
Liquid measures
30ml = 1 fluid oz
60ml = 2 fluid oz
100ml = 3 fluid oz
125ml = 4 fluid oz
150ml = 5 fluid oz (¼ pint/1 gill)
190ml = 6 fluid oz
250ml = 8 fluid oz
300ml = 10 fluid oz (½ pint)
500ml = 16 fluid oz
600ml = 20 fluid oz (1 pint)
1000ml (1 litre) = 1¾ pints
Dry measures
15g = ½oz
30g = 1oz
60g = 2oz
90g = 3oz
125g = 4oz (¼lb)
155g = 5oz
185g = 6oz
220g = 7oz
250g = 8oz (½lb)
280g = 9oz
315g = 10oz
345g = 11oz
375g = 12oz (¾lb)
410g = 13oz
440g = 14oz
470g = 15oz
500g = 16oz (1lb)
750g = 24oz (1½lb)
1kg = 32oz (2lb)
