COOKING TO SCALE
Scaling is a great way to adjust the number of servings a recipe yields. It's a simple process with a few key points to keep in mind:
Cooking temperature:
Use the original cooking temperature as a reference point, monitoring closely for the results you are looking for. When cooking more than one dish in the oven at the same time, allow for more cooking time and raise the temperature by about 10-15 degrees.
Cooking time:
Stick with the original cooking time as a reference point for how long you should cook the altered recipe. In general, if you are baking half a recipe for cake, bread or pie, then the cooking time will be about two-thirds to threequarters of the original time.
Dish size:
Your best choice is a dish that comes closest to keeping the ingredients to the same depth as the recipe originally called for; so if you are halving or doubling a recipe, use a dish that has half or double the volume of the one called for in the original recipe. You can find the volume by multiplying the dimensions of the original pan.
Other adjustments:
If you cannot keep the pan contents to the original depth, then adjust the time, temperature and amount of liquid accordingly:
• When the contents are deeper for dishes that have a lot of liquid, increase the overall cooking time and use a little less liquid, without altering the consistency.
• When they are deeper for baked goods, increase the time and lower the temperature slightly.
• When the contents are shallower for dishes with a lot of liquid, shorten the cooking time and add a little more liquid.
• When they are shallower for baked goods, shorten the time and raise the temperature a bit.
Exceptions:
Recipes that do not scale well are delicate foods such as soufflés, baked items requiring yeast, and recipes that prepare a single large item that is meant to be divided into smaller portions, such as some cakes and large joints of meat.
Keep scaling to a minimum:
You should avoid scaling a recipe indefinitely. In fact, it's best to increase or decrease a recipe by multiplying or dividing by any number under four. If you must make a lot of a particular dish, it's best to cook it in separate batches following the original recipe.