standard volume to weight conversions

[Jack]

I’ve been spoiled by my digital scale and really like working with Bakers percentages.  I’ve run into a wall though, as I am stumped on how to convert a few volume measurements into grams.  Yes, I can measure and weight, and likely will eventually, but are there any “standard” conversions anywhere?

I’m trying to convert the following to weight (grams):

2 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon oil
1 ½  teaspoons instant yeast or active yeast

Hmmm, I'll bet there is a measurable difference (volume vs. weight) between a coarse salt (Kosher) and a fine salt.

Also, when substituting a liquid sweetner (honey, maple syrup) for a dry sugar, should there be any correction? 

Thanks,

Jack

[Pete-zza]

Jack,

This thread may help: http://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php/topic,82.msg579.html#msg579.

Not only is there a difference between Kosher salt and other salts, there is also a difference between brands of Kosher salt, such as Morton's and Diamond Crystal.

November may be a better one to respond to your last question but liquid sweeteners include some water, thereby requiring an increase in the amount of the liquid sweetener on a weight basis to be equivalent from a sweetness standpoint to the dry sweetener it replaces. Technically, if one is replacing a dry sweetener with a liquid one, the hydration of the formulation perhaps should also be adjusted, but in my experience the amount of that adjustment is usually quite small, particularly since I use little sugar to begin with. I have, however, made such adjustments when using dough formulations calling for a lot of sugar.

Peter

[Jack]

http://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php/topic,82.msg579.html#msg579.

Perfect!

Sorry, but I really need to work on my "advanced" search skills.

Thanks Peter,

Jack

[tonymark]

I use this bookmark regularly http://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=2811.0;id=3756;image.

Alton Brown stated that honey is 20 % sweeter than table sugar in Comb Alone and therefore less honey is required for equivalent sugar!  That is if you trust Alton Brown. . . his pizza recipe does sucks.

TM

[November]

Jack,

First, this may interest you:

http://tools.foodsim.com/

There is a weight difference between coarse kosher salt and fine table salt.  As a rule, there is always a difference between pretty much everything that isn't the same as something else.  Yeah, I know that sounds obvious, but a lot of people either choose to ignore that fact, or it never occurs to them.  The decision you make on how particular you want to be about your measurements is up to you.  If you're looking for SkyLab science experiment level precise measurements, you'll be spending a lot of time measuring.  My advise (and this may seem unusual coming from me, but I am practical if nothing else) is to measure out an amount that's convenient to duplicate over and over again, and if you like the results, keep it.  In other words, disregard for a moment the difference in weight per volume between coarse and fine salt and try 5 grams of whichever salt you want to use.  Adjust based on flavor from there.  If in fact you are trying to duplicate someone else's recipe exactly, good luck with that.  There are noticeable differences between even two brands of coarse kosher salt.  They should have been using weights to begin with.  You'll find many more controllable opportunities for variance in a recipe through its process than any single ingredient.

Second, the sweetness factor between sugars in general, and between dissolved and undissolved sugars is a little complicated.  Just out of the three main sugars most people add to dough, fructose is sweeter than sucrose which is sweeter than glucose.  Also, if you're trying to duplicate a specific fermentation rate, it's important to know that yeast like, glucose more than sucrose, and sucrose more than fructose.  It becomes a nifty little algebraic problem when you want to add something like honey or maple syrup to a dough, and want the sweetness and fermentation to be same as what you're substituting, as well as ensuring you compensate for additional moisture by using less water in your batch.  Experimentation is tedious if you're trying to be exact.  There are rules of thumb to go by for many common sweeteners, but you first have to decide how exact do you want the sweetness to be to what you're substituting.  If you're not necessarily substituting anything, you can use just about what ever amount you want.

I have been planning a major post about sweeteners that will include all the substitution values and nutritional values (for both human and yeast), but until then I can answer specific conversion questions.

- red.november

[November]

Jack,

Since you mentioned honey and maple syrup as examples, I'll go ahead and provide some information on those two.  If you have any others in mind, let me know.  When I get around to posting my complete list of dough sweeteners, I'll also include the nutrient values.  The sweetness and fermentation rates bellow are based on dry weights.

Honey
Water: 17.1%
Sweetness: 83.0g = 100g sucrose (120.5% of sucrose)
Fermentation Rate: 144.3g = 100g sucrose (69.3% of sucrose)
Notes: Because the water content is so near the difference between honey's and sucrose's sweetness, you can use 100g of honey as a substitute for 100g of sucrose as long as you remember to subtract 17g of water from the recipe.

Maple Syrup
Water: 32.1%
Sweetness: 100g = 100g sucrose (100% of sucrose)
Fermentation Rate: 100.3g = 100g sucrose (99.7% of sucrose)
Notes: 147.3g total = 100g sucrose for sweetness, and subtract 47.3g water from the recipe.

- red.november

EDIT: Emboldened the names to stand out better for quick scanning reference.

[Jack]

November and Tonymark,

Thanks for the link and info. 

In terms of weight vs. volume, for stuff like salt, that can be noticeably different, I’m just going to weigh some product. 

For the sweetness side of the equation, the information provided is great.  While I have played around with honey and even maple syrup (it’s a little different) generally, I use (real) brown sugar, which translates in about the same or lower as white cane sugar in perceived sweetness, but much better in taste.  I’ve never accounted for the additional liquid in these sweeteners, but it’s a small enough volume that it’s not been an issue yet.

The bottom line, as I’ve discovered over time and by reading this forum, is that pizza dough ingredients are not rocket science.  I’ve made glaring errors in weights, i.e., sugar, salt or IDY for one pie, yet I’m making two dough balls, and the final product is still pretty good.  In this instance, I am trying to covert a volumetric recipe to a weight based recipe and I believe I’ll be close enough now with what I have to get started and I’ll fine tune it as I go along.

Thanks again everyone, I really appreciate your help.

Jack

Tonymark – I too agree that, while I love Alton Browns show, his pizza recipe is not up to par.  Just the salt content alone is a killer.
November - I look forward to your sweetener thread.  That will be illuminating.

[November]

Jack,

Do you use light or dark brown sugar?  Dark brown sugar contains about 6.5% molasses while light brown sugar contains about half that.  I can provide exact values for brown sugar as well.  I use it pretty often.

- red.november

EDIT:
"pizza dough ingredients are not rocket science"

Not rocket science, but science none the less.  What isn't science is the perception of the product.  You could give 100 people a bottle of distilled water and ask them what they think of the flavor, and half of them will give you a response as if there was actually a flavor to the water.  Just recently I read a scientific paper (from MIT) on perceived flavor of squid that was very interesting.  The research showed that there are a lot of psychological factors involved with how people associate pleasantness with various flavors.  I'll try to find the paper and post a link.

EDIT2: People who are bored easily by science may not want to read the following:

https://dspace.mit.edu/bitstream/1721.1/1936/1/SWP-0962-04207777.pdf

[November]

Molasses
Water: 21.9%
Sweetness: 123.8g = 100g sucrose (80.8% of sucrose)
Fermentation Rate: 114.4g = 100g sucrose (87.4% of sucrose)
Notes: 158.5g total = 100g sucrose for sweetness, and subtract 34.7g water from the recipe.

[Jack]

November,

Dark Brown - I use brown instead of white cane sugar for the flavor and the dark brown has a much nicer, more intense flavor, at least to me.

I did not made my thoughts clear.  What I meant was a bit more or less of an ingredient is not hugely critical, at least not for the pizza I make for my family and friends.  The quality of the ingredients is of the utmost importance, at least to me.

For this Enginerd, pizza making is a science, more than an art.  I've created various spreadsheets to track and predict the pizzas I have made and will be making.  I just find that almost whatever I make is very well received by my local circle of consumers (family & friends), which is the bottom line for me, hence the "it's not rocket science" line.  However, I still strive for the best pie I can produce and the scientific method is the best way to achive this goal.

Jack

Edit - Count me out for any Squid Chowder testing! <grin>