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Original poster

to think there is something weird about regular cooks that measure oil for frying

42 replies

witchwithallthetrimmings · 27/09/2012 12:22

I can see if you have never fried an onion before you might need some guidance but if a recipie calls for you to sweat some onions and carrots in xx tbsp of oil would you really count them out precisely?

OP posts:
WilsonFrickett · 27/09/2012 12:23

I do if I'm on WeightWatchers shudder

OneOfMyTurnsComingOn · 27/09/2012 12:24

It depends in your pan, surely? If your pan has a tendency for things to stick then you'd need more oil.

I don't measure anything. Drives DP mad cos he can't copy my chilli!

Ephiny · 27/09/2012 12:24

I don't, I just put in what 'looks about right'. DH would measure precisely though. Just different personality types, maybe?

SammyTheSwedishSquirrel · 27/09/2012 12:24

I do.

Ephiny · 27/09/2012 12:25

DH would also time it for exactly 10 minutes if that's what the recipe said Hmm, whereas I would just cook until the onions looked the right colour/softness.

Tee2072 · 27/09/2012 12:27

Depends on what it is. Sometimes I bung, sometimes I measure.

KnockKnockPenny · 27/09/2012 12:28

Nope, I glug!

GetOrfAKAMrsUsainBolt · 27/09/2012 12:28

I would never measure oil, just go by what it looks like.

rarely measure anything actually, and I don't bake (where it presumably matters a bit more).

WilsonFrickett · 27/09/2012 12:29

Oh Ephiny my DH does that too. Which is fine, unless the thing he's cooking is still raw after the requisite time, when he'll just serve it up anyway.

Me: This is cold in the middle
DH: Can't be, I heated it for exactly 10 minutes.
Me: But it's still cold in the middle
DH: But I heated it for 10 mins

gaaaaah!

gallifrey · 27/09/2012 12:45

omg my DH is exactly like that too, he times everything to the last second, weighs everything on digital bloody scales and yes if a recipe said to use a table spoon of oil that is what he would do.

It must be a man thing!

MsVestibule · 27/09/2012 12:46

I measure, almost every time. Think this may say something about my personality, but don't know what...

Ephiny · 27/09/2012 12:49

It's infuriating to watch, isn't it? :)

MsVestibule · 27/09/2012 12:51

Gallifrey think I must be a man, then. But surely I can't be the only woman to weigh and measure accurately? In my defence, I've had an Aga for two years, and huge amounts of guesswork are needed for that!

Inneedofbrandy · 27/09/2012 12:52

Very infuriating! My dp weighs pasta ffs, doesn't matter how many times I say I handful per person plus a smallish handful at end he insists on getting the scales the bowl ect and weighing it out. Its always slightly short of what we all want to.

Tee2072 · 27/09/2012 13:04

Oh I weigh pasta, because I have very small hands.

Also measure the first time I follow a recipe and then fling willy nilly after that.

whois · 27/09/2012 13:22

Inneedofbrandy pasta and rice are the only things I DO weigh (apart from baking) There a big difference between what I think looks the right portion of pasta, and 80g which is a standard portion.

gallifrey · 27/09/2012 16:03

The thing is he has got me doing it now, so I weigh and time things too, but not to the extent he does but then he is a bit of a geek!
I always weigh pasta and rice now because I either do loads too much or not enough then the smug sod says "well I always weigh it" grrr!

Inneedofbrandy · 27/09/2012 16:41

Well rice I do one cup per one and a half cups of water so my rice comes out soft and fluffy and perfect. But really pasta just needs a handful, if it's not enough put some more in, can't you just see!

WilsonFrickett · 27/09/2012 17:16

I weigh pasta and rice too Blush but again that's a weightwatchers thing.

JamesBexleySpeed · 27/09/2012 19:48

Me: This is cold in the middle
DH: Can't be, I heated it for exactly 10 minutes.
Me: But it's still cold in the middle
DH: But I heated it for 10 mins

oh my God, Wilson, mine too. It drives me utterly bat-shit. My oven is a bit crap and everything needs longer and at a higher temp, but he just doesn't get it.

MoreBeta · 27/09/2012 19:54

I glug oil but weigh pasta and rice so I dont get to much or too little.

I have digital scales for cake/pastry recipes as they do have to be precise or they just don't work.

WilsonFrickett · 28/09/2012 09:54

James Grin It's a PITA isn't it!

THETrills · 28/09/2012 09:56

"A handful" is a very silly thing for you to say to a different person brandy. They have different-sized hands and they might have a different idea of how full their hand should be.

wanderingalbatross · 28/09/2012 10:03

My DH measures exactly - oil, soy sauce, herbs and spices, vinegar, anything that can be measured! I, on the other hand, put in 'some' and see what it tastes like. Needless to say, we each think the other does it wrong and so have a long standing agreement not to interfere in each other's cooking.

GalaxyDefender · 28/09/2012 10:13

My mother uses her tried-and-tested "that much and a bit more" method for measuring such things as oil. Works every time Grin