recipes, measuring, and menus

what is a recipe?

A recipe is a formula of ingredients and a list of instructions for creating prepared foods. It is used to control quality, quantity, and food costs in a foodservice operation. A recipe may be simple to complex based on the requirements of the operation and the intended user. For example, an experienced chef may need a recipe with only a few details, while a beginner cook may need more information about ingredients, preparation steps, cooking times and temperatures, visual cues, and equipment requirements.

about recipes

A recipe is a written record of the ingredients and preparation steps needed to make a particular dish. Recipes used at home can follow any format that helps the cook prepare the dish.

But recipes for institutional use, or standardized recipes, must follow a format that is clear to anyone who uses them. The standardized recipe lists the ingredients first, in the order in which they are used, followed by assembly directions or the method for putting the ingredients together.

A standardized recipe includes the following: Name, Ingredients, Yield, Portion Size, Temperature, Time, Equipment, Step-By-Step Directions, and Nutritional Information.

Recipes are formatted differently depending on the author and the intended use. Professional chefs record recipes in pocket notebooks, binders, or digital devices, using simple to complex details, depending on the type of recipe and the experience level of the chef.

Information might include ingredients, prep steps, kitchen notes, and hand-drawn plate presentations. Recipes for the general consumer must be written with the assumption that the intended user knows very little about food preparation.

When writing recipes that others will use in your kitchen, provide as much information so that anyone who is preparing, inexperienced or skilled, can easily understand. Include information on ingredients, prep steps for fabricating or measuring, cooking instructions, recipe yield, and required equipment.

recipe limitations

It’s not uncommon for two cooks when preparing the same recipe to end up with different results. There are many variables involved in the cooking process, and no recipe is foolproof. Ingredients, like fresh vegetables, often lack uniformity, and substitutions may be required that produce different results.

Tools and equipment vary from one kitchen to another, affecting cooking times and outcomes. For example, an oven that is not calibrated accurately may take a longer time when baking a cake, or sauté pans made of different metals (aluminum or stainless steel) may not cook as efficiently or produce the right browning effect.

Recipes cannot account for inaccurate measuring or misunderstanding of directions. Experience and proper judgment help to produce consistent results over time.

types of recipes

abbreviated recipes

Abbreviated Recipes – Some books, including Escoffier’s Le Guide Culinaire and Hering’s Dictionary of Classical and Modern Cookery, include minimal information of ingredients and directions, and assume the reader possesses a certain mastery of culinary skills. Personal recipes kept in a pocketbook by a cook or chef may simply include ingredients with a few preparation steps.

home recipes

Home Recipes – Based on small yields and quantities often measured by volume.

procedural recipes

Procedural (Prep) Steps – Used in professional kitchens for simple assembly of quantities of ingredients based on portion size; for example, a salad may call for 1 cup of lettuce, 3 wedges of tomatoes, ¼ cup of croutons, and 2 ounces of salad dressing.

standardized recipes

Standardized Recipes – Customized house recipes that include ingredients, precise quantities, detailed steps, portion sizes, and recipe yield. Some may include food cost information and required tools. Standardized recipes are often for large quantities of prepared food. Standardized recipes are important to foodservice operations because they provide consistency and uniformity in quality, yield, and food cost. Standardized recipes include information on quantity, yield, portion size, ingredients, portion cost, and menu price.

A standardized recipe is one that has been tested and evaluated to produce consistent quality and yield every time. This requires exact written procedures, equipment, and ingredients. When developing a standardized recipe, remember that weight is a more accurate measurement than volume and should be used whenever possible. List step-by-step preparations and cooking instructions, including equipment, oven temperature, and cooking time.

Some operations will include appropriate Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) including critical limits (time and temperature) and final product temperature as a part of the recipe. Yield and portion size should be determined by counting the portions or servings, not by estimating.

The recipe should also include a space to adjust the yield, depending on the production needs of the operation or station. Recipe testing and taste testing is done to evaluate the appearance, texture, flavor, and overall acceptability of the product, and the recipe is re-adjusted to yield a consistent product.

tips on using recipes

Read recipes from beginning to end, to understand the steps

Note information on ingredient prep, techniques, and other tips

If needed convert the volume of the recipe

Gather ingredients, equipment, and tools

Apply common sense when measuring ingredients to be sure you have the correct quantity and ratio

Use basic judgment when preparing; for example, do you understand the basic steps for preparing a stock? If not, read up on the steps and tips to preparing it before you start

Observe oven temperatures, cooking times, and specific equipment

Take written notes of any changes you made in measurements, cooking times and temperatures, or procedures so that you can reproduce the recipe with similar results

"A home cook who relies too much on a recipe is sort of like a pilot who reads the plane’s instruction manual while flying.” --- alton brown

Alton Crawford Brown Jr. (born July 30, 1962) is an American television personality, food show presenter, food scientist, author, voice actor, and cinematographer. He is the creator and host of the Food Network television show Good Eats that ran for 16 seasons, host of the miniseries Feasting on Asphalt and Feasting on Waves, and host and main commentator on Iron Chef America and Cutthroat Kitchen.

Measuring

Volume, Weight, and Fat

what is measuring?

Measuring tools are devices used in cooking to take the amount of an ingredient needed in preparing or assembling a dish. Measuring is usually done in weight or volume, but it may also be done by length in a few instances (such as cinnamon sticks.)

The term measurement refers to how much of something is being used in a recipe.

Ingredients can be measured in several ways. Most ingredients are measured by volume. Volume is the amount of space an ingredient takes up. A salad recipe might list 1 cup cooked pasta or 1/2 teaspoon of pepper. Some ingredients are measured by weight or heaviness, such as 1 pound of fish fillets or 2 ounces of butter. Other ingredients may be measured by the count, or number of items, such as 1 medium banana or three egg whites.

No matter how an ingredient is measured carefully, accurate measurements are necessary for quality and quantity control.

measuring by volume

Volume is not as accurate a measure as weight, particularly for solids because the character of the item creates major variations in the amount of space an item occupies.

For example 1 cup of water weighs 8 ounces, but 1 cup of flour weighs approximately 3.5-4 ounces, depending on whether or not it has been "packed". Volume is often used for amounts of dry ingredients such as herbs and spices that are too small to easily and accurately weigh.

Volume measurement is best used for liquids, but remember that even liquids can vary in weight in relation to volume. Always remember that the term "fluid ounce" is a volume measurement, not a weight.

Only with water or a water-like substance 1 cup (volume measurement) equal to 8 fluid ounces (weight measurement).

Examples of water-like liquids in the kitchen include milk, oils, thin liquids such as vinegar, and melted butter.

Dry ingredients are usually measured by leveling them off evenly at the rim of the spoon or cup using a straight-edged utensil.

Dry ingredient measuring tools usually come in a set of several sizes.

measuring by weight

Weight is the measurement of an item's resistance to gravity. Weight is expressed in ounces and pounds. Think of the difference between a cup of popcorn and a cup of water. Both take up the same amount of space, but they do not weigh the same. The water is heavier. To find out how much each cup weighs, use a kitchen scale, not a measuring cup.

Weight is often measured in ounces, while volume---as discussed earlier in this section , is measured in fluid ounces.

A food scale is helpful for measuring ingredients by weight. Scales are used to weigh ingredients for preparation and portion control. Both ounce/gram and pound/kilo scales are necessary.

types of scales

There are a few different types of scales available for weighing food:

spring scale

The scale the pressure placed on the spring.

baker's scale

The weight of the item is placed on one end and then product is placed on the other end until the beam balances.

electronic scale

This measures resistance electronically.

measuring fat

Fat such as butter, margarine, or shortening, can be measured in several ways: The Stick Method, Dry Measuring Cup Method, and Water Displacement Method.

the stick method

The stick method is used for fat that comes in 1/4 pound sticks, such as butter or margarine. The wrapper is marked in tablespoons and in fractions of a cup.

Dry measuring cup method

Fill measuring cup until it overflows.

Spoon flour or other light, powdery dry ingredient into your measuring cup until it domes over the top. (Don't scoop with the cup and shake off the excess, as this will cause the ingredient to become slightly packed, and you'll end up with more than the recipe calls for.)

water displacement method

This method involves combining fat with water in a liquid measuring cup. First do some math: subtract the amount of fat to be measured from one cup. Next, spoon the fat into the cup, making sure it all falls completely below the level of the water. When the water reaches the 1 cup level, you have the right amount of fat.

Pour off the water and remove the fat with a rubber scraper. Although this method may seem complicated, it is the most accurate when measuring solid fats.

restaurant menus

what is a menu?

In a restaurant, the menu is a list of food and beverages offered to customers and the prices. A menu may be à la carte – which presents a list of options from which customers choose – or table d'hôte, in which case a pre-established sequence of courses is offered. Menus may be printed on paper sheets provided to the diners, put on a large poster or display board inside the establishment, displayed outside the restaurant, or put on a digital screen. Since the late 1990s, some restaurants have put their menus online.

Menus are also often a feature of very formal meals other than in restaurants, for example at weddings. In the 19th and 20th centuries printed menus were often used for society dinner-parties in homes; indeed this was their original use in Europe.

a brief history of menus

Menus, as lists of prepared foods, have been discovered dating back to the Song dynasty in China. In the larger cities of the time, merchants found a way to cater to busy customers who had little time or energy to prepare an evening meal. The variation in Chinese cuisine from different regions led caterers to create a list or menu for their patrons.

The word "menu", like much of the terminology of cuisine, is French in origin. It ultimately derives from Latin "minutus", something made small; in French, it came to be applied to a detailed list or résumé of any kind. The original menus that offered consumers choices were prepared on a small chalkboard, in French a carte; so foods chosen from a bill of fare are described as "à la carte", "according to the board".

The earliest European menus, several of which survive from 1751 onwards, appear to have been for the relatively intimate and informal soupers intimes ("intimate suppers") given by King Louis XV of France at the Château de Choisy for between 31 and 36 guests. Several seem to have been placed on the table, listing four courses, each with several dishes, plus dessert.

During the second half of the 18th century, and especially after the French Revolution in 1789, they spread to restaurants. Before then, eating establishments or tables d'hôte served dishes chosen by the chef or proprietors. Customers ate what the house was serving that day, as in contemporary banquets or buffets, and meals were served from a common table. The establishment of restaurants and restaurant menus allowed customers to choose from a list of unseen dishes, which were produced to order according to the customer's selection. A table d'hôte establishment charged its customers a fixed price; the menu allowed customers to spend as much or as little money as they chose.

economics of menu production

As early as the mid-20th century, some restaurants have relied on "menu specialists" to design and print their menus. Prior to the emergence of digital printing, these niche printing companies printed full-color menus on offset presses. The economics of full-color offset made it impractical to print short press runs. The solution was to print a "menu shell" with everything but the prices. The prices would later be printed on a less costly black-only press. In a typical order, the printer might produce 600 menu shells, then finish and laminate 150 menus with prices. When the restaurant needed to reorder, the printer would add prices and laminate some of the remaining shells.

With the advent of digital presses, it became practical in the 1990s to print full-color menus affordably in short press runs, sometimes as few as 25 menus. Because of limits on sheet size, larger laminated menus were impractical for single-location independent restaurants to produce press runs of as few as 300 menus, but some restaurants may want to place far fewer menus into service. Some menu printers continue to use shells. The disadvantage for the restaurant is that it is unable to update anything but prices without creating a new shell.

menu final thoughts

During the economic crisis in the 1970s, many restaurants found it costly to reprint the menu as inflation caused prices to increase. Economists noted this, and it has become part of economic theory, under the term "menu costs". In general, such "menu costs" may be incurred by a range of businesses, not just restaurants; for example, during a period of inflation, any company that prints catalogs or product price lists will have to reprint these items with new price figures.

To avoid having to reprint the menus throughout the year as prices changed, some restaurants began to display their menus on chalkboards, with the menu items and prices written in chalk. This way, the restaurant could easily modify the prices without going to the expense of reprinting the paper menus. A similar tactic continued to be used in the 2000s with certain items that are sensitive to changing supply, fuel costs, and so on: the use of the term "market price" or "Please ask the server" instead of stating the price. This allows restaurants to modify the price of lobster, fresh fish and other foods subject to rapid changes in cost.

The latest trend in menus is to display them on handheld tablets; customers can browse through these and look at the photographs of the dishes.

in conclusion

Measuring spoons are available in a variety of sizes and materials. The smallest sets of spoons measure a smidgen, a pinch, and a dash. Other sets contain teaspoon (tsp) and tablespoon (tbsp) measures of 1/8 tsp, 1/4 tsp, 1/2 tsp, 3/4 tsp, 1 tsp, 1-1/2 tsp, 2 tsp, 2-1/2 tsp, and 1 tbsp in U.S. measures or milliliters (ml) of .6 ml, 1.25 ml, 2.5 ml, 3.75 ml, 5 ml., 7.5 ml, 10 ml, 12.5 ml, and 15 ml in metric measures.

Measuring cups are available as either dry or liquid measures. Cups for dry measures generally include 1/8, 1/4, 1/3, 1/2, 1, and 2-cup sizes in U.S. measures or 30 ml, 60 ml, 80 ml, 120 ml, and 240 ml in metric. The liquid measuring cups can range in sizes that measure from 1 teaspoon or 5 milliliters to 8 cups or 2 liters. The smallest cup measures 1 to 6 teaspoons in U.S. measures or 5 to 30 milliliters (ml) in metric. Medium sized cups hold U.S. measures of 1 to 2 cups, 1 to 4 cups, or 1 to 8 cups. For metric measures the sizes come in 100 to 500 ml, 100 ml to 1000 ml (1 liter) or 100 ml to 2 liters.

A variety of special utensils are also available that are designed to measure ingredients in other ways. Measuring spoons and cups can be single slide measures. Measuring cups for semi-soft ingredients, such as butter or shortening can be measured with sliding canisters. Each item is typically created to assist the measuring process in a unique and efficient manner.

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