Most recipes make use of grams, tablespoons, cups, ounces or similar. However, it is not always clear how to convert between them. In this article we provide an estimate for how many table spoons you need to replace a cup of either dry ingredients or wet ingredients. For most things, the conversion is quite similar, but sometimes it can be hard to convert between different measurements. If possible, try to use whatever is mentioned in the recipe you are using (i.e. cup, tablespoons).
How Many Table Spoons Are In a Cup of Dry Ingredients?
Need a quick converison for dry ingredients? Use the table below
Dry ingredients such as sugar and flour are quite easy to convert because it is so fine, but other dry ingredients are a bit harder, because it is usually not as small or fine as sugar. For example, chocolate chips are not always easy to get the same amount on a tablespoon each time. To account for this we have provided the conversion for most common dry ingredients below. If you are in a hurry this rough estimate will help you. There are around 15 tablespoons in a cup. In general though, it is easier to measure dry ingredients by weight.
How many tablespoons are in 1/3 cup: 1/3 cup is equal to roughly 5 tablespoons of a dry ingredient.
How many tablespoons are in 1/2 cup: 1/2 cup is equal to roughly 7 or 8 tablespoons of a dry ingredient.
How many tablespoons are in 2/3 cup: 2/3 cup is equal to roughly 10 tablespoons of a dry ingredient.
How Many Tablespoons In a Cup of Sugar
Normal sugar, granulated sugar, brown sugar and similar are all so small that it fits the above conversions, meaning there are 15 tablespoons of sugar in one cup.
How Many Tablespoons In a Cup of Baking Soda
Baking soda is so fine, that there is no ”wasted” space on the tablespoon. This means that 15 tablespoons of baking soda is equal to one cup.
How Many Tablespoons In a Cup of Flour
Similar to sugar, flour is also one of those ingredients that fit the standard measurements, such that there is 15 tablespoons of flour in one cup.
How Many Tablespoons In a Cup of Cheese
Cheese can be a bit difficult to convert from tablespoons to cups depending on the type. Hard cheeses like gouda, parmesan, and cheddar can be grated, so they follow the usual measurements, meaning 15 tablespoons is equal to one cup of hard grated cheese.
Some of the softer cheeses like brie, feta, and blue cheese are a bit harder to make a conversion with. Therefore depending on your tablespoon, you should use somewhere between 12-17 tablespoons for one cup of soft cheese.
How Many Tablespoons In a Cup of Cornstarch
Cornstarch has the exact same conversions as flour, so there is 15 tablespoons of cornstarch in one cup.
How Many Tablespoons In a Cup of Garlic
It is not obvious how many tablespoons of garlic there is in one cup, since it depends on how fine you cut it. If you cut it so small that there isn’t much ”wasted” space on the tablespoon, then there is around 15 tablespoons in one cup. However, if you use larger pieces, it will probably be somewhere around 15-20 tablespoons, depending on the size of your garlic pieces.
How Many Tablespoons In a Cup of Ginger
Ginger is similar to garlic in the sense that the conversion depends on the size of your ginger pieces. This means that there is 15-20 tablespoons of ginger in one cup, depending on the size of your ginger pieces.
How Many Tablespoons In a Cup of Chia Seeds
When using small chia seeds, you should use 15 tablespoons for one cup.
How Many Tablespoons In a Cup of Rice
With rice, you need to account for the larger size compared to, say, sugar, meaning that it is probably a good idea to use 16 tablespoons of rice for one cup.
How Many Tablespoons In a Cup of Chocolate Chips
Since chocolate chips are usually even larger than rice, they also have more wasted space on a tablespoon. To account for this, use 17 tablespoons of chocolate chips for one cup. This can be adjusted depending on the size of the chip. Larger means using slightly more tablespoons.
How Many Tablespoons In a Cup of Cilantro
Cilantro is one of those things that wastes a lot of space in a cup, unless you compress it. This means that to truly fill up a cup (such that it is tightly packed), you will need 25-30 tablespoons of cilantro for one cup.
How Many Tablespoons In a Cup of Wet Ingredients
Wet ingredients are different from dry since they melt and fill out the cup more, compared to the drier ingredients. Therefore it is usually only necessary to use a bit fewer tablespoons and let it melt. Therefore it is often enough to use 13 tablespoons for one cup. Although, in general, it is a lot easier to measure these ingredients by weight, but below are som rough estimates.
How Many Tablespoons In a Cup of Greek Yogurt
Greek yogurt doesn’t really change volume due to temperature and it is therefore fine to use 15 tablespoons for one cup of greek yogurt.
How Many Tablespoons In a Cup of Butter
Butter will melt at room temperature and use more space. If you are using butter from the fridge, then you only need 13 tablespoons for one cup of butter. If it is already melted, then most likely around 15 is needed.
How Many Tablespoons In a Cup of Peanut Butter
Unlike normal butter, peanut butter does not melt to the same degree. You should therefore use 15 tablespoons for one cup of peanut butter.
How Many Tablespoons In a Cup of Almond Butter
With almond butter, the situation is the exact same as with peanut butter. Use 15 tablespoons for one cup of almond butter.
How Many Tablespoons In a Cup of Coconut Oil
Coconut oil will also melt at room temperature. If you are using cold (meaning solid) coconut oil, then use 13 tablespoons for one cup of coconut oil. If it is already liquid, then use 15
How Many Tablespoons In a Cup of Water
There are 15 tablespoons in a cup of water.
A point of reference
Hopefully by now you have some idea of how to convert between tablespoons and cups. Although our lists are not exhaustive they also provide a point of reference if you have some ingredients that are similar to those above. In general, you can’t go too wrong by using 15 tablespoons for one cup, no matter the ingredient.