Category
Condiments & sauces
Viscous condiments like ketchup, BBQ sauce, or dips tend to cling stubbornly to measuring cups. This leads to waste and messy cleanup. Weighing directly into your dish or pan is the professional, clean, and accurate method.
Source: USDA FDC - condiment search
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Cluster composition
This category covers 91 ingredients. They cluster almost entirely as sticky spreads and pastes. 7 ingredients sit in a different cluster and behave outside the typical pattern.
- sticky spreads and pastes — 84 ingredients
- chopped or sliced produce — 3 ingredients
- sugary concentrates and syrups — 1 ingredient
- water-like liquids — 1 ingredient
Notable exceptions
Chocolate syrup sugary concentrates and syrups Kimchi, chopped chopped or sliced produce Margarine-Like, Vegetable Oil Spread, Fat Free, Liquid, With Salt water-like liquids Black olives, sliced chopped or sliced produce Green olives, sliced chopped or sliced produce Sauce, Peanut, Made From Peanut Butter, Water, Soy Sauce dairy variants (fat-driven density)
FAQ
How do I measure sticky sauces without the mess? Place your bowl on the scale, press 'Tare' (Zero), and squeeze/pour the sauce directly until you hit the target gram weight. No measuring spoons to wash!
Primer
These category tables convert volume to mass using ingredient-specific densities. Use weight for precision; volume varies with packing, cut, and temperature.
Methodology
- Density references are summarized from U.S. government sources (USDA FoodData Central, USDA FNDDS) and lab-standard data when available.
- Conversions keep higher-precision intermediates and round to practical kitchen values.
- Default volume is the US cup unless a page explicitly uses metric or UK standards.
Unit standards
- Mass: grams (g).
- Volume: mL, US cup, tbsp, tsp.
- Assumed temperature: room temperature unless stated otherwise.
Examples and edge cases
- High sugar sauces are denser than vinaigrettes (USDA FDC).
- Ketchup vs mayo differ in fat and water content (USDA FDC).
- Reduced sauces concentrate solids (USDA FDC).
Last updated: 2026-05-31