This site uses only a few technical cookies necessary for its operation. By continuing to browse, you accept their use.
To find out more...
To find out more...
How to divide a preparation evenly
It often happens in cooking: one makes a cream for 6 people in a saucepan, then the recipe says "divide the cream evenly between the glasses", which usually gets done by eye with varying degrees of success.
To divide out the preparation more precisely, here's a simple tip just using weighing scales.
To divide out the preparation more precisely, here's a simple tip just using weighing scales.
64 K 4.4/5 (18 reviews)
20 min.
Easy
1 preparationLast modified on: June 3rd 2011
Times for this recipe
Preparation: 20 min.
If you start now, at , you will finish around : ?.Change start time
To finish around 7pm, you'll need to have started before: .Change end time
Step by step recipe
Stage 1 - ⌛ 2 min.
Before you start cooking, weigh and make a note of the weight of the empty pan you are going to use. For instance, the pan you see in the photo weighs 552 g.
Stage 2 - ⌛ 2 min.
Then make the preparation as usual, and when it is finished, weigh the pan again full.
For example, the pan full of custard you see in the photo: 948 g.
Then calculate the weight of preparation you have made: 948 - 522 = 426 g.
For example, the pan full of custard you see in the photo: 948 g.
Then calculate the weight of preparation you have made: 948 - 522 = 426 g.
Stage 3 - ⌛ 2 min.
If you need to divide this between 6 glasses, you will need 426 g /6 = 71 g, rounded down to 70 g per glass.
Place a glass on the scales, reset to 0 g, and pour in enough cream to add 70 g.
Place a glass on the scales, reset to 0 g, and pour in enough cream to add 70 g.
Stage 4 - ⌛ 10 min.
Do this for all 6 glasses, and you will enjoy the satisfaction of scraping round the pan with a maryse or spatula to arrive exactly at the 70 g needed for the final glass!
Remarks
This is particularly useful if you need to divide out two different preparations evenly, like for coconut-vanilla cream for Elsa for example.
Don't hesitate to take 5 minutes of your time, to weight and make a note of all your pans. It will be very useful one day.
Don't hesitate to take 5 minutes of your time, to weight and make a note of all your pans. It will be very useful one day.
Source: Home made.
Other recipes you may also like
Natural leaven
Leaven is a natural raising agent, a fermented mixture of water, flour and the microscopic yeasts which are present in the air. It's a delicate living substance, sensitive to the external environment. The recipe is around 4000 years old and dates back to the Egypt of the Pharaohs, via a beautiful history...(note: the ancient Egyptians seem not to have had exclusive knowledge of the process: in Germany evidence of cooking a fermented dough has been found from 8000 BC (the Neolithic era). The... April 3rd 20201.73 M 304.0 7 days 15 min.
Spinach Croque-monsieur
A croque-monsieur is a French toasted sandwich. Here, the 2 slices of buttered bread are filled with bechamel sauce, hard-boiled eggs, blanched spinach and melted cheese. The assembled sandwich is popped in the oven to toast the bread and melt the cheese. May 24th 201580 K4.5 45 min.
Rice à la grecque
Rice cooked "à la grecque" (Greek-style) is enlivened with sautéed leeks and mushrooms, cream and feta, to which the cooked rice is added at the end. This is a hearty dish, usually served in its cooking pot in the centre of the table, so everyone can help themselves. October 28th 202062 K 50 min.
Clafoutis batter
Clafoutis is a cake from the Limousin region of France, made with a liquid batter similar to pancake batter, into which fruit is added before baking. Here's a recipe for clafoutis batter, which you can use with any fruit you like. August 27th 202540 K5 6 min.
Apple syrup
Here's how to make a simple, no-sugar-added apple syrup that can be used in other recipes, for its taste and/or to replace sugar. March 23th 202517 K 35 min.
News list of cooking-ez.com
Sign up to receive the latest recipes (next batch due to be sent on 2026-03-01)
Note: We'll never share your e-mail address with anyone else.
Post a comment or question
Follow this recipe
If you are interested in this recipe, you can "follow" it, by entering your email address here. You will then receive a notification immediately each time the recipe is modified or a new comment is added. Please note that you will need to confirm this following.
Note: We'll never share your e-mail address with anyone else.
Alternatively: you can subscribe to the mailing list of cooling-ez.com , you will receive a e-mail for each new recipe published on the site.