Category
Dairy
Dairy products (milk, cream, yogurt, cheese) have different fat and water percentages. Volume hides these differences; weight keeps sauces, batters, and doughs consistent.
Source: USDA FDC - dairy search
Blue cheese cheese blue Cheddar cheese, block cheddar block Cheddar cheese, shredded cheese cheddar shredded Cheese, Cream cheese cream Cheese, Mexican, Queso Cotija cheese mexican queso cotija Cheese, Parmesan, Dry Grated, Reduced Fat cheese parmesan dry grated reduced fat Cheese, Parmesan, Shredded cheese parmesan shredded Colby cheese, shredded cheese colby shredded Cottage cheese cottage cheese Cottage cheese, lowfat cottage cheese lowfat Cream Cheese cream cheese Cream cheese spread cream cheese spread Cream cheese, reduced fat cheese cream reduced fat Cream, Fluid, Half And Half cream fluid half and half Cream, Fluid, Heavy Whipping cream fluid heavy whipping Evaporated milk evaporated milk Feta cheese, crumbled feta cheese crumbled Goat cheese, soft goat cheese soft Gouda cheese, sliced cheese gouda sliced Greek Yogurt (Plain) yogurt greek plain Greek yogurt, nonfat yogurt greek nonfat Half and half half and half Kraft Cheez Whiz Light Pasteurized Process Cheese Product kraft cheez whiz light pasteurized process cheese product Mascarpone cheese mascarpone Milk powder (nonfat dry) milk powder Milk, 2% milk 2 percent Milk, Buttermilk, Dried milk buttermilk dried Milk, Buttermilk, Fluid, Cultured, Lowfat milk buttermilk fluid cultured lowfat Milk, Canned, Condensed, Sweetened milk canned condensed sweetened Milk, skim milk skim Monterey Jack cheese, shredded cheese monterey jack shredded Mozzarella cheese, shredded cheese mozzarella shredded Parmesan cheese, grated cheese parmesan grated Parmesan cheese, shredded parmesan shredded Protein Supplement, Milk Based, Muscle Milk, Powder protein supplement milk based muscle milk powder Provolone cheese, sliced cheese provolone sliced Ricotta cheese ricotta cheese Swiss cheese, sliced cheese swiss sliced Whey, Acid, Dried whey acid dried Whey, Acid, Fluid whey acid fluid Whey, Sweet, Dried whey sweet dried Whey, Sweet, Fluid whey sweet fluid Whipped cream whipped cream Yogurt, flavored, lowfat yogurt flavored lowfat Yogurt, Fruit Variety, Nonfat yogurt fruit variety nonfat Yogurt, Fruit Variety, Nonfat, Fortified With Vitamin D yogurt fruit variety nonfat fortified with vitamin d Yogurt, Fruit, Low Fat, 10 Grams Protein Per 8 Ounce yogurt fruit low fat 10 grams protein per 8 ounce Yogurt, Fruit, Low Fat, 10 Grams Protein Per 8 Ounce, Fortified With Vitamin D yogurt fruit low fat 10 grams protein per 8 ounce fortified with vitamin d Yogurt, Fruit, Low Fat, 9 Grams Protein Per 8 Ounce, Fortified With Vitamin D yogurt fruit low fat 9 grams protein per 8 ounce fortified with vitamin d Yogurt, Fruit, Low Fat,9 G Protein/8 Oz yogurt fruit low fat 9 g protein 8 oz Yogurt, Greek, Strawberry, Lowfat yogurt greek strawberry lowfat Yogurt, plain yogurt plain Yogurt, Plain, Low Fat yogurt plain low fat Yogurt, Plain, Skim Milk yogurt plain skim milk Yogurt, Plain, Whole Milk yogurt plain whole milk Yogurt, Vanilla, Low Fat. yogurt vanilla low fat Yogurt, Vanilla, Non-Fat yogurt vanilla non fat
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Cluster composition
This category covers 57 ingredients. The dominant attribute clusters are dairy variants (fat-driven density) and chopped or sliced produce. 2 ingredients sit in a different cluster and behave outside the typical pattern.
- dairy variants (fat-driven density) — 44 ingredients
- chopped or sliced produce — 11 ingredients
- dry_powder — 2 ingredients
Notable exceptions
FAQ
Does fat percentage matter? Yes. A cup of heavy cream is heavier than milk; swapping without weight alters richness and texture.
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
- Whole vs. skim milk differ in solids and density (USDA FDC).
- Yogurt varies by fat and straining level (USDA FDC).
- Cheese type and moisture change grams per cup (USDA FDC).
Last updated: 2026-08-31