How Many Ounces In A Pint of Sour Cream – How to Measure Sour Cream?
With so many recipes circulating over the internet about making sour cream. What’s so left behind is the accurate measurements of how many ounces of sour cream are in a pint.
If that’s what you need to know, you don’t want to spend hours browsing the internet to find out. You can simply get it right here.
I will go a little further and explore the different conversions in cups, gallons, and tablespoons. This should give you a clearer understanding of how many ounces in a pint of sour cream. And you can measure the appropriate amount using different tools in your kitchen.
In this article, I will talk about a few things related directly to measuring sour cream. This includes the exact measurement of the ounces in a pint of sour cream. And the ‘dos and don’ts’ of measuring sour cream for delicious recipes.
How Many Ounces In A Pint of Sour Cream?
The short answer to that question is 16. In a pint of sour cream, there are 16 fluid ounces.
A pint is 2 cups worth. And a cup of sour cream contains 8 fluid ounces. That would make 2 cups 16 fluid ounces which equals a pint of sour cream.
Did you notice how I wrote ‘fluid’ right before ounces? When I could have just as easily written 16 ounces and that would be that. But it’s not as straightforward as that.
This brings me to another important aspect of measuring ingredients.
Difference Between Dry & Fluid Ounces
You cannot measure a wet ingredient in the same way you can a dry ingredient. Take the difference between a dry ingredient like uncooked rice and a wet ingredient like milk. It’s silly to measure both ingredients in the same way. The volume, weight, and serving are not the same.
Dry Ounces
For measuring in dry ounces, you can take ingredients like sugar, flour, honey, etc. They are measured according to weight. If the recipe demands measuring according to weight, and not by volume, you must use dry ounces for accuracy. Or else whatever it is that you’re cooking will turn out inaccurate if you use fluid ounces to do the measuring.
Usually, in baking recipes, dry ingredients are calculated in ounces by weight rather than volume. Even for important ingredients like flour or sugar, you measure the weight of these ingredients rather than cups or measuring spoons.
You can weigh dry and wet ingredients using a measuring scale.
Fluid Ounces
For measuring in fluid ounces, you rely on the volume of the liquid ingredients such as water, milk, oil, and sour cream.
When you want to measure fluid ounces, you can use liquid measuring cups. That’s the best way to measure fluid ounces. Using a measuring cup or jar or jug with level markings that give you an exact reading of the ingredients you’re planning to use.
Dry vs. Fluid Ounces – Which Is Better?
So why is sour cream measuring by volume rather than weight? And can you switch between fluid to dry ounces when finding out how many ounces are in a pint of sour cream?
To get to the bottom of this, let’s look at two separate ingredients.
Say you have in front of you 2 measuring cups of the same size: a cup of ketchup and a cup of flour. Wouldn’t you agree that both the measuring cups, despite the different ingredients, have the same volume?
While the volume of tomato sauce and the flour is the same, what is not is the weight. A cup of baking flour weighs about 4 ounces. And a cup of ketchup or tomato sauce weighs about 7.9-8 ounces.
So wouldn’t it be easier to distinguish between dry ounces and fluid ounces when both measurements are not the same?
And for an ingredient that’s comparatively heavier, like sour cream, measuring by fluid ounces is more accurate. Hence converting fluid ounces to dry ounces is irrelevant.
Another reason why measuring fluid ounces is necessary is the mess you avoid. With ingredients like sour cream, yogurt, chicken stock, or water things are bound to spill out every once in a while. And the last thing you want is the measuring scale to spoil.
That is why stick to measuring by volume and not weight when finding out the correct quantity of sour cream.
How to Measure Sour Cream Properly?
There are different ways of measuring sour cream at home. You can use a jug and measuring spoons to do so. But, in my opinion, measuring my fluid ounces is the best way to do it.
As mentioned above…
1 pint = 2 cups
And in terms of measuring spoons:
1 pint = 30-36 tablespoons
1 pint= 90-108 teaspoons
As you can measuring a pint of sour cream by measuring spoons is not the best and most accurate way to do it. And I highly doubt you’ll waste time measuring out sour cream with a spoon because it’s tiresome and not appropriate. The only appropriate way to measure how many ounces in a pint of sour cream is by measuring cups (2) and fluid ounces (16 fl. oz.).
Before You Go
Sour cream is an interesting ingredient. You can eat it as a dip or add it to salads as dressing. There are low-sugar and low-fat types of sour cream that are available in most supermarkets. The pungency and tanginess of sour cream is something that most people love to add to salad recipes and even in sandwiches.
And measuring sour cream the right way is the only way to avoid adding extra. The perfect amount of sour cream can do wonders for your recipe. But if you overdo it and add more than is required, it can spoil everything you worked so hard to achieve.
Now since you know what goes into a pint of sour cream and how many ounces, you can never mess up. Plus, learning the basics of dry and fluid ounces is another great way to avoid making rookie mistakes in the kitchen.