I really wish recipes would list dry ingredients before wet ingredients measured in the same way - tablespoon of oil, then a tablespoon, or even a teaspoon since the spoons are on a ring, of a dry spice.
(And don’t get me started on ingredients like “one eggplant” vs a cup of diced or 1 pound. )
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Never actually thought about it til you brought it up. I guess I kind of agree but sometimes steps do switch between dry and wet, then back to dry etc… Ultimately I don’t know how solvable this is. I do think the metric system is easier as a whole and that’s one of my pet peeves overall. 1 cup is a “rounded” unit but not always super accurate whereas recipes in metric feel way more dialed in
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I find it much easier than our old system of using pounds and ounces. And younger folk may not have a clue what pounds & ounces are.
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Nope. Not one bit.
Most recipes list the ingredients in the order they will be used, so that accounts for this inconsistency.
I usually pre-measure anything dry first into a separate bowl if I don’t have a second spoon or cup for this.
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I (usually) end up modifying a recipe to my liking. When I get it the way I want it (through trial and error), I type it up and into my recipe binder for future use.
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It’s kind of ironic that in the US, they’re still used. And yes I know there are differences in US liquid measurements and Imperial liquid measurements. 
I have an old fashioned balance kitchen scale. And brass weights both in pounds/ounces and grams. The scale doesn’t care. Win!!
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I’m currently reading an American cookbook published in 1960. All the measures are “cups”, rather than weight.
Yep. And dry and wet cups are different measuring tools. Both by volume.
Ah. I didnt know that. I’d assumed a cup was a cup. I must read up on the technicalties before I attempt any of these recipes.
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I prefer them in order of use but really don’t like the US way of using volume measurements or just numeric (e.g. 2 onions) when everything should be in grams, especially if you bake)
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Thanks for that link, Meekah. Very helpful
They repeated this episode of SNL probably anticipating this thread. 
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Imagine my surprise upon arriving in the US, and reading recipes with those “measurements.”
Like you, I assumed one used coffee cups and silverware to measure out ingredients. I thought it was rather quaint. Still kinda do 
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I greatly enjoyed that sketch when it was aired. Thank you for sharing it again 
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I enjoy reading recipes, no matter the order or measurements. I like thinking of the recipe’s creator and how it all came about. Some recipes are just too clinical for my simple mind.
I worry less about wet/dry and care more about consistency in the style of measurement throughout the recipe. Please don’t tell me “4 large tomatoes”, especially if the rest of the recipe is in metric. I mean, I can work around that, but the internet tells me a large tomato is somewhere between 150g and 250g. I feel like recipe testers and editors should kick these back to the authors and require more specificity.
I live in the US and am fine with cups, both dry and wet. But I can see where it is totally archaic. I don’t bake a lot, so it is even less of an issue for me than it may be for others. I’m fine with converting from ounces to grams and vice versa.
I think my favorite recipes have the ingredients grouped as I would need them in order of their appearance in the recipe. That makes prep and mise en place easier. For me.
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Yes, and please include any lengthy marinating times at the top of the recipe. Nothing worse than reading a recipe & maybe even starting in on it (yeah, I don’t always read everything at once 
), then seeing it has to marinate for X amount of time — time I didn’t account for.
Might be more of a ‘me’ issue, tho…
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I get listing the ingredients in order of use, but the recipe that instigated this post said to add a tablespoon of olive oil and then various dry spices and toss to combine. Why not the dry and then the wet?
