If you have one digital scaleyou probably know the benefits it brings to your baking. With a scale, you can measure your ingredients more accurately and save on cleanup (no measuring cups and spoons required!).
But there is another, less well-known way to use this useful tool, using a method called reverse taring.
Here's what this means: When using a scale normally, you start by placing an empty bowl on the scale, going down to zero, then adding your ingredient, such as flour, until it reaches the desired weight. But with reverse taring, you do things the other way around: you start by taking a bag of flour (or whatever ingredients you're still using in its container, like a bag of sugar, carton of milk, etc.) and put it on the scale, then reduce it to zero. Now, you can scoop the ingredient right out of its container and into your mixing bowl, and as you do so, the scale will measure the amount you've removed in negative grams. Simply remove the desired amount until it reaches the weight required in the recipe, shown as a negative value. (For example, if your recipe calls for 100g of flour and you turn the tare, the scale will show -100g to show that you have removed 100g of flour from the bag.)
This method seems almost like a baker's secret, although he has already done it rounds on TikTok with bakers swearing by it. And it's not just a novelty: it gets the bowls dirty less AND can save some time (instead of measuring each ingredient into a bowl or ramekin before adding to the mixing bowl).
@ana_calderone Bakers: Did you all do this and no one told me?? #fyp #bakingtips #bakinghack ♬ Paint – Tree and Lucy
There's also a real practical benefit when you need to divide larger groups of ingredients evenly, such as in cake layers for cake batters, fillings and dips. This method can be used in something like this Princess Cakewhich requires many precise layers of diplomatic cake dipping, jam and frosting. You can whisk each of these ingredients directly from their bowl when building a layer cake to ensure uniformity. Of course, you can squint and hope for the best, but the reverse oscilloscope gives you precision down to the gram. Lately, I've found it most useful when you need to evenly divide a dough, as in the case of Italian Rainbow Cookies AND coffee cake.
Photography by Rick Holbrook; food styling by Kaitlin Wayne
Reverse taring is also useful when you need to gradually add ingredients to a recipe. If you are adding FLUID cake batter or sugar buckram while the mixer is running, the reverse taring allows you to measure directly from the bowl of ingredients and keeps the process running smoothly.
Plus, reverse taring is useful for ingredients that span a range, such as the amount of chocolate chips mixed into the cookie dough OR dried fruit added to granola. That way, you can start by adding the smallest amount, then decide if you want to continue adding more.
However you decide to change the tare, the technique is sure to elevate your baking.
If you're not baking with a scale yet, we highly recommend it for the best baking. our Essential digital scale it's a great place to start.
Cover photo by Patrick Marinello; food styling by Kaitlin Wayne.
