Pinch (unit)

Last updated

A pinch is a small, indefinite amount of a substance, typically a powder like salt, sugar, spice, or snuff. [1] It is the "amount that can be taken between the thumb and forefinger". [2]

Some manufacturers of measuring spoons and some U.S. cookbooks give more precise equivalents, typically 1/16 US customary teaspoon; [3] some sources define it as 1/8 or 1/24 teaspoon. [4] There is no generally accepted standard.

1 US customary pinch =1/48 US customary tablespoon
=1/32 US customary dessert spoon
=1/16 US customary teaspoon
=1/8US customary coffee spoon
=1/2 US customary dash
=2 US customary smidgens
0·022 UK tablespoon
0·043 UK dessert spoon
0·087 UK teaspoon
0·17 UK salt spoon
0·35UK pinch
0·02 international metric tablespoon
0·015 Australian metric tablespoon
0·031 metric dessert spoon
0·062 metric teaspoon

In the United Kingdom, a pinch is traditionally 1/2 UK salt spoon, [5] the equivalence of 1/4 UK teaspoon. 1/2 UK salt spoon is an amount of space that can accommodate 15 British imperial minims (1/4 British imperial fluid drachm or 1/32 British imperial fluid ounce; about 14·41 US customary minims (0·24 US customary fluid dram or 0·03 US customary fluid ounce) or 0·89 millilitres) of liquid.

1 UK pinch =1/16 UK tablespoon
=1/8 UK dessert spoon
=1/4 UK teaspoon
=1/2 UK salt spoon
0·06 US customary tablespoon
0·09 US customary dessert spoon
0·18 US customary teaspoon
0·36US customary coffee spoon
0·72US customary salt spoon
1·44 US customary dashes
2·88US customary pinches
5·76 US customary smidgens
0·059 international metric tablespoon
0·044 Australian metric tablespoon
0·089 metric dessert spoon
0·18 metric teaspoon

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Teaspoon</span> Kind of spoon

A teaspoon (tsp.) is a small spoon that can be used to stir a cup of tea or coffee, or as a tool for measuring volume. The size of teaspoons ranges from about 2.5 to 7.3mL. For dosing of medicine and, in places where metric units are used, for cooking purposes, a teaspoonful is defined as 5mL, and standard measuring spoons are used.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tablespoon</span> Kind of spoon and unit of volume

A tablespoon is a large spoon. In many English-speaking regions, the term now refers to a large spoon used for serving; however, in some regions, it is the largest type of spoon used for eating.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United States customary units</span> System of units of measurement commonly used in the United States

United States customary units form a system of measurement units commonly used in the United States and most U.S. territories since being standardized and adopted in 1832. The United States customary system developed from English units that were in use in the British Empire before the U.S. became an independent country. The United Kingdom's system of measures evolved by 1824 to create the imperial system, which was officially adopted in 1826, changing the definitions of some of its units. Consequently, while many U.S. units are essentially similar to their imperial counterparts, there are noticeable differences between the systems.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cooking weights and measures</span> Specifications for quantities of ingredients

In recipes, quantities of ingredients may be specified by mass, by volume, or by count.

The minim is a unit of volume in both the imperial and U.S. customary systems of measurement. Specifically, in the imperial system, it is 160 of an imperial fluid drachm or 1480 of an imperial fluid ounce; in the U.S. customary system, it is 160 of a US customary fluid dram or 1480 of a US customary fluid ounce.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shot glass</span> Short tumbler used for serving spirits

A shot glass is a glass originally designed to hold or measure spirits or liquor, which is either imbibed straight from the glass or poured into a cocktail. An alcoholic beverage served in a shot glass and typically consumed quickly, in one gulp, may also be known as a "shooter" or “shot”.

The dram is a unit of mass in the avoirdupois system, and both a unit of mass and a unit of volume in the apothecaries' system. It was originally both a coin and a weight in ancient Greece. The unit of volume is more correctly called a fluid dram, fluid drachm, fluidram or fluidrachm.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dessert spoon</span> Spoon designed for eating dessert

A dessert spoon is a spoon designed specifically for eating dessert. Similar in size to a soup spoon but with an oval rather than round bowl, it typically has a capacity around twice that of a teaspoon.

The drop is an approximated unit of measure of volume, the amount dispensed as one drop from a dropper or drip chamber. It is often used in giving quantities of liquid drugs to patients, and occasionally in cooking and in organic synthesis. The abbreviations gt or gtt come from the Latin noun gutta ("drop").

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cup (unit)</span> Cooking measure of volume

The cup is a cooking measure of volume, commonly associated with cooking and serving sizes. In the US, it is traditionally equal to one-half US pint (236.6 ml). Because actual drinking cups may differ greatly from the size of this unit, standard measuring cups may be used, with a metric cup commonly being rounded up to 240 millilitres, but 250 ml is also used depending on the measuring scale.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Comparison of the imperial and US customary measurement systems</span>

Both the British imperial measurement system and United States customary systems of measurement derive from earlier English unit systems used prior to 1824 that were the result of a combination of the local Anglo-Saxon units inherited from Germanic tribes and Roman units.

Alcohol measurements are units of measurement for determining amounts of beverage alcohol. Alcohol concentration in beverages is commonly expressed as alcohol by volume (ABV), ranging from less than 0.1% in fruit juices to up to 98% in rare cases of spirits. A "standard drink" is used globally to quantify alcohol intake, though its definition varies widely by country. Serving sizes of alcoholic beverages also vary by country.

Dry measures are units of volume to measure bulk commodities that are not fluids and that were typically shipped and sold in standardized containers such as barrels. They have largely been replaced by the units used for measuring volumes in the metric system and liquid volumes in the imperial system but are still used for some commodities in the US customary system. They were or are typically used in agriculture, agronomy, and commodity markets to measure grain, dried beans, dried and fresh produce, and some seafood. They were formerly used for many other foods, such as salt pork and salted fish, and for industrial commodities such as coal, cement, and lime.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Salt spoon</span> Kind of spoon

A salt spoon is a miniature utensil used with an open salt cellar for individual service. It is a historical and nostalgic item from a time before table salt was free-flowing, as it is today. The spoon itself ranges from 2 to 3 inches long and has a circular bowl measuring approximately 0.5 to 0.75 inches. They can be found in a wide range of materials including glass, Sterling silver, plastic, wood, ivory, bone and shell.

The scruple () is a small unit in the apothecaries' system, derived from the old Roman scrupulum unit.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tumbler (glass)</span> Beverage container made of plastic, glass or stainless steel

A tumbler is a flat-floored beverage container usually made of plastic, glass or stainless steel.

Approximate measures are units of volumetric measurement which are not defined by a government or government-sanctioned organization, or which were previously defined and are now repealed, yet which remain in use.

The breakfast cup is a culinary measurement unit in the United Kingdom. It is named after a cup for drinking tea or coffee while eating breakfast. 1 breakfast cup is 8 British imperial fluid ounces.

The teacup is a culinary measurement unit in the United Kingdom. It is named after a typical teacup. 1 teacup is 5 British imperial fluid ounces.

The coffee cup is a culinary measurement unit in the United Kingdom. It is named after a small cup for the after‑dinner coffee served to aid digestion. 1 coffee cup is 21/2 British imperial fluid ounces.

References

  1. Oxford English Dictionary s.v. , definition 12
  2. Rowlett, Russ (December 2003). "Units: P". How Many? A Dictionary of Units of Measurement. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. recently kitchen supply stores... have begun selling sets of "minispoons" in which the spoon labeled "pinch" is designed to hold exactly 1/2 dash or 1/16 teaspoon, which is roughly 0.01 fluid ounce or 0.3 milliliter.
  3. Rowlett, Russ (December 1998). "Units: P". How Many? A Dictionary of Units of Measurement. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Archived from the original on December 3, 1998.
  4. "Size So Totally Doesn't Matter". OChef. Retrieved 28 October 2016.
  5. Page 14, Good Things in England (1932)