Q: When a recipe calls for a sticky ingredient such as molasses or honey, is there any leeway in the measure for what sticks to the measuring cup? Should I add an extra teaspoon or so to compensate for what I can’t get out? A: Here’s whether it matters if some of the sticky ingredient gets left behind and how to measure honey, corn syrup, molasses and more to get the full amount. To answer the first part of the question, I conducted a rough experiment to see how much of a sticky ingredient you might typically be leaving behind in a measuring cup. I poured 1/2 cup of honey (170 grams) into a glass measuring cup, scraped it out with a rubber spatula and then weighed it again to see how much honey remained.
After my first, admittedly lackadaisical attempt, there was 14 grams (2 teaspoons) of honey still clinging to the measuring cup. Spending a little more time and care, I was able to get that number down to 6 grams (a little less than 1 teaspoon). I stopped there, as going back in with my spatula a third time felt like overkill.
So, to answer the second part of the question, yes, you could add an extra teaspoon or so to compensate for what remains in the cup. That said, I don’t believe such a small amount would have much of an impact on the finished product, so you most likely don’t need to worry about it. But for recipe measurement sticklers, there’s a better way! As Washington Post recipes editor Becky Krystal explained, the easiest solution is to “lightly grease .
