Kitchen scale

How To Check The Accuracy Of Your Kitchen Scale

Kitchen scale

I’ve had a few questionable moments weighing out my ingredients with my kitchen scale lately. Moments, where I’ve wondered, if my scale is correct or if the food company is messing with me. You know what I mean. The package says there are 250 grams of butter but when I weighed it, it was only 245 grams. Those types of moments.

I thought about purchasing scale weights but after doing some checking around online, I decided I didn’t want to spend the money. There are inexpensive sets of weights, but then I would wonder if the weights were correct if it showed my scale was wrong. Plus, what would I do with the weights after? So then I was thinking, what do I have access to that I know will be the correct weight?

Money.

Coins to be exact.

After a quick check with my old friend Google, I decided to go with Canadian dimes. Two reasons: I only have access to Canadian coins and second, my scale does not weigh to the decimal places. A Canadian dime is 1.75 grams. If I use 4 of them, my scale should read 7 grams.

I looked for shiny, new Canadian dimes in my change purse. I found ones that are not all warn down or dirty. But to be honest, I’m not weighing out gold for resale. It’s baking. And my scale doesn’t go down to the decimal place anyway. Just try to not use coins that are crusted and completely worn out since that may have an effect on the weight.

As you can see from the picture, 4 Canadian dimes and my scale is showing 7 grams.

Kitchen scale with 4 dimes showing 7 grams
kitchen scale showing 7 grams

I purchased this scale from a restaurant supply company. It wasn’t cheap but it also wasn’t thousands of dollars.

For my American friends, a US nickel weighs 5.0 grams.

I am careful when I store my scale. Nothing is placed on top and it has its own special spot in a kitchen drawer so it’s protected. I feel confident that my scale is working correctly and I will continue to use it for my baking. And, most importantly, I’ll be double-checking that the package of butter is actually 250 grams from now on!


Interested in individual desserts that look amazing? Check out these Mile High Mini Victoria Sandwich Cakes.