Kitchen scales? Do you have one? Do you have a recommendation?

mariadnoca

Moderator
Before that thread rolls off the top I saw Traca mention TJ's pound plus bars drove her to buy her first scale. I hear ya on that.

Funny, the internet pointed me someplace, as it does, and I found myself reading (wanting?) a kitchen scale. The idea I could dump items without measuring (and forgetting was that 3 or 4 cups) with less clean-up got my interest.

Can they measure down to tea/tablespoons too or do you still need those?

I have an old WW scale I've used for things like the pound plus bars, but it's a pain and I'm thinking upgrade.

The review at the link recommends the OXO...thoughts?

http://thesweethome.com/reviews/the-best-digital-kitchen-scale/

 
This is the one I have. I love it, and would buy it again.

My friend is a pastry chef that has worked at top restaurants around the country (including Alinea.) I sent her a link to kitchen scaled and asked her to pick one for me. Excellent choice.

This has a wide stainless steel top that is easy to clean, and it's not made of glass so I know it won't chip. smileys/smile.gif The wide surface area is key too. So many have a small surface area and I wonder why? Since I often make 20 pounds of sausage at a time, or whatever, this has been useful. (I weigh it in a bowl, but a very big bowl.)

Also, it tares back to zero and toggles to metric measurements with the touch of a button. I still use cups and measuring spoons, but this takes a lot of guesswork out of the equation. And now that I have a scale, I use it much more than I ever thought I would. For peace of mind and less hassle in the kitchen, it's would be worth it.

http://www.surlatable.com/product/PRO-658369/Salter-High-Capacity-Scale;jsessionid=06CD08855AC5CA9916FE4875946BAFB3.slt-app-01-p-app3

 
I spent $9 on a StarFrit (reg $20) and have been completely pleased with it. I tested its

accuracy before deciding to keep it and it is still bang on. I wanted something that easilly switched back and forth to and from the hated metric, that had a zeroing capacity and a small footprint for this closet of a kitchen. The scale I left behind would never have fit in here.

I don't make huge productions here so a small capacity at 11 lb. was fine.

http://www.shop.ca/c/starfrit-electronic-kitchen-scale-22331470?cm_mmc=Paid_Listings-_-google-_-Home-_-Products-Listings&medium=tsa&zmam=42273100&zmas=1&zmac=1&zmap=22331470&gclid=CMfSpZytqLkCFUfZQgodFzoAfA

 
I have a 6 lb. Terraillon that's been a real workhorse for over 10 years.

Googled and don't see it offered anymore. But there's an 11 lb. Terraillon and when mine dies I'll likely get an 11 lb. scale. This has been a great scale but there are times when I want it to weigh stuff more than 6 lbs (thus, I end up doing multiple batches -- no biggie).

This scale has been incredibly accurate and got me through culinary school classes where we were required to bring our own equipment/knives/etc. In fact, because other students would borrow my scale in patisserie and baking classes I got the idea to keep it stored in a clear ziplock bag. LOVED doing that because it kept my scale perfectly clean and it was easy to just pop a bowl or plate on top of the ziplocked scale to measure things, easily seeing the reading through the plastic. I still keep my scale stored in a ziplock bag on the kitchen shelf. Keeps it nice and clean at all times.

Had a WW scale long ago and found it to be off in accuracy, by several ounces. Sent that one bye-bye. smileys/wink.gif

Another thing I use my kitchen scale for is to weigh pieces of mail so I'll know how much postage to affix (when I want to mail from home vs stand in line at the post office).

 
Not a scale, but a great converter by Gourmet Sleuth for grams to TBS/tsp/cups of flour, etc.

This converter is pretty much on the money and I've double-checked it by manually measuring out my ingredients in order to cost-out my Blend de Provence that has nine ingredients. The herbs were the most difficult to measure out and this converter helped me a lot (grams to tsp./TBS).

Believe it or not, my Salter 18 oz. spring scale that I've had for years is very accurate and I'm able to weigh my 1 oz. blend to perfection!

http://www.gourmetsleuth.com/cooking-conversions/cooking-conversions-calculator.aspx?t=t&foodg=0&foods=oregano&fno=2027

 
I own 2--a Polder for weights up to 5 lbs & a Polaroid for above 5 lbs.They are both over 25 yrs old

and I couldn't last without either one.

 
I'm seeing they now have a 22 lb version

and I'm thinking it would allow one to measure into pots. Not sure how often I might want to do that, but it was a thought.

Yeah, I guess this would allow me to get rid of my postal scale too (it's not digital).

 
whatever brand you choose,

be sure you can see the display when your vessel is on the scale

 
Also, make sure it's easy to convert from ounces to grams. Some silly fools put the switch on the

bottom (underneath), which makes things complicated if you want to toggle between units while weighing something.

For instance: I keep a log of various bowls with ounces/grams so I can figure out the mass of the finished food item. My 5 quart KA weights 1 pound, 11.8 ounces or 787 grams. My new spare 5 quart KA bowl weights 1 pound 11.25 ounces / 772 grams (ie; cheaper made, I suspect). I weight the finished batter, bowl and all, then subtract the bowl...then I can decide how to divide up the batter.

If the switch was underneath, I'd be standing in my kitchen earning a "R for Restricted" rating from the Motion Picture Association of America.

Mine goes to 11 pounds.

http://www.oldwillknottscales.com/my-weigh-ibalance-5000.html?gclid=CMvHrfjFrbkCFVNo7AodVWQASQ

 
Back
Top