Units of Weight and Measurement

Translating and cooking a German recipe can be very tricky. In German cooking, the ingredients of a recipe tend to be measured by weight and not by volume like here in the United States.

German uses the metric system and the basic unit of weight is the gram - das Gramm - which equates to 0.0353 ounces. One ounce equals 28 Gramm. Note again here that the quantity is singular in German whereas we would say 28 grams in English. Just like the Euro: 1 Euro, 2 Euro, 100 Euro. It stays singular regardless of the amount!

The pound - das Pfund - is also used in German-speaking countries, but note that a German pound is slightly heavier than an English pound. One Pfund is equal to 500 Gramm, whereas one American pound equates to 454 grams.

When measuring flour and milk for example, German recipes will have the amount of flour in grams as opposed to cups or tablespoons/teaspoons and the amount of milk in milliliters instead of cups or ounces. Oven temperatures are also measured in Celsius instead of Fahrenheit.

Practice Activity

Read the Zutaten (Ingredients) for the Apfelstrudel and convert a few of the measurements from grams to ounces. Remember, 1 Gramm = 0.0353 ounces; 1 ounce = 28 grams.

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