One cup of rice flour weighs 142 grams when spooned and levelled, according to King Arthur Baking. That makes rice flour one of the heaviest flours in the kitchen — heavier than all-purpose flour at 120 grams, heavier than whole wheat flour at 113 grams, and far heavier than oat flour at 92 grams. A single tablespoon of rice flour weighs about 9 grams, and a quarter cup weighs about 36 grams. These are approximate figures, because the fineness of the grind varies — white rice flour, brown rice flour and sweet rice flour (glutinous rice flour) all weigh slightly differently — but 142 grams per cup is the reliable reference value for ordinary white rice flour, and you should verify with a kitchen scale whenever the amount matters.

Rice flour is the backbone of gluten-free baking. It is finely ground white rice, with a neutral flavour, a fine texture and no gluten, and it appears in almost every gluten-free flour blend, in shortbread, in tempura batter, and in Asian cooking from rice noodles to mochi. Its heaviness is its trap: because a cup of rice flour weighs so much more than a cup of wheat flour, swapping them cup-for-cup gives you far too much flour by weight, and the result is dry, gritty and crumbly. Weighing is not optional with rice flour; it is the only way to get the substitution right.

How much does rice flour weigh?

The table below gives the weight of white rice flour for the amounts you are most likely to meet, from a single tablespoon up to four cups. All figures come from the King Arthur Baking value of 142 grams per cup, spooned and levelled. Brown rice flour is very close to the same weight; sweet rice flour (also called glutinous rice flour or mochiko) is a little lighter, at about 130 grams per cup, because its starch structure is different.

Amount Weight (grams) Weight (ounces)
1 tablespoon 9 g 0.31 oz
1/4 cup 36 g 1.25 oz
1/3 cup 47 g 1.67 oz
1/2 cup 71 g 2.50 oz
2/3 cup 95 g 3.34 oz
3/4 cup 107 g 3.76 oz
1 cup 142 g 5.01 oz
1 1/2 cups 213 g 7.51 oz
2 cups 284 g 10.02 oz
3 cups 426 g 15.03 oz
4 cups 568 g 20.04 oz

A useful comparison: one cup of rice flour weighs 22 grams more than one cup of all-purpose flour (120 grams) — a difference of nearly a fifth. That means a recipe that calls for 2 cups of all-purpose flour (240 grams) needs only about 1 2/3 cups of rice flour by volume to give the same weight. Rice flour is also much heavier than oat flour (92 grams per cup) and almond flour (96 grams per cup), so it is the heaviest of the common gluten-free flours. If you are building a gluten-free blend from scratch, these differences are why blends are always specified by weight, never by volume.

For everyday baking, the half-cup and one-cup rows are the ones that matter. A batch of gluten-free shortbread uses about 1 cup (142 grams) of rice flour as part of a blend; a tempura batter uses 1/2 to 1 cup (71 to 142 grams); a batch of rice flour pancakes uses about 1 cup. If you are weighing ingredients, weigh the rice flour slowly: it is dense and fine, and it is easy to overshoot by 10 grams if you pour it quickly. Pour slowly and let the scale settle.

Worked examples

Example 1: The gluten-free shortbread that turns to sand

A shortbread recipe written for a gluten-free blend calls for 1 cup of rice flour — 142 grams — as part of the blend. You measure it by volume, scooping the cup into the bag, and the scooped cup holds 155 grams, because rice flour compacts when scooped. The shortbread comes out dry and crumbly, falling apart when you pick it up, because you have 9 percent too much flour and the butter cannot bind it. The fix is to weigh 142 grams, or to spoon the flour into the cup and level it. Once you do, the shortbread holds together and has the delicate, sandy texture it is supposed to have. Rice flour has no gluten to hold a dough together, so the margin for error is smaller than with wheat flour — and weighing is what keeps you inside it.

Example 2: Converting a wheat cookie recipe to a gluten-free blend

A cookie recipe calls for 2 cups of all-purpose flour — 240 grams. You want to make it gluten-free using a blend that is half rice flour and half tapioca starch. The correct approach is by weight: 120 grams of rice flour and 120 grams of tapioca starch, plus a little xanthan gum (about 1/2 teaspoon per cup of flour) to replace the gluten's binding power. If you swapped cup for cup — 1 cup of rice flour and 1 cup of tapioca — you would have 142 grams of rice flour and 128 grams of tapioca, or 270 grams total, which is 30 grams too much flour. The cookies would be dry and gritty. Weighing each component is the only way to build a blend that behaves like wheat flour.

Example 3: Making tempura batter for a dinner party

A tempura batter recipe calls for 1 cup of rice flour — 142 grams — mixed with 1 cup of ice-cold sparkling water. You are doubling the recipe for a party, so you need 284 grams of rice flour and 2 cups of water. Measuring 2 cups of rice flour by volume means two separate cupfuls, each with its own small error; weighing 284 grams once is faster and exact. It also matters that the batter is mixed lightly and used immediately: rice flour tempura is prized for its shattering crispness, but if the batter sits, the flour absorbs the water and the coating turns heavy. Weigh, mix, fry — in that order, without delay.

Method and source

The figure of 142 grams per cup comes from King Arthur Baking's ingredient weight chart, measured spooned and levelled: the flour is spooned lightly into the cup and the top is levelled off with a straight edge, without tapping, shaking or packing. King Arthur lists the value with high confidence. There is no serious dispute about this figure for white rice flour, though the different types of rice flour vary slightly: brown rice flour is essentially the same weight, sweet rice flour (glutinous rice flour) is a little lighter at about 130 grams per cup, and stone-ground rice flour can be a few grams heavier because the grind is coarser and packs more densely.

The comparison with other flours is worth remembering, because it is the source of most rice flour failures. All-purpose flour is 120 grams per cup, whole wheat flour is 113 grams, oat flour is 92 grams, almond flour is 96 grams, and rice flour is 142 grams. No two flours weigh the same per cup, and none of them can be swapped cup-for-cup. The only safe way to substitute one flour for another is by weight: weigh the flour the recipe calls for, then weigh the same weight of the flour you are using. If the recipe was written in cups, convert the original flour to grams first — 120 grams per cup for all-purpose — and then weigh out that many grams of rice flour.

Rice flour is naturally gluten-free, and it is one of the few flours that is reliably gluten-free even without certification, because rice is not usually grown or milled alongside wheat. Even so, if you are baking for someone with coeliac disease, buy rice flour labelled certified gluten-free, and check that your baking powder and other ingredients are certified too.

Practical guidance

Rice flour behaves very differently from wheat flour. It has no gluten, so it cannot form the elastic network that gives bread its structure — rice flour on its own makes bread that is dense and crumbly, which is why it is almost always used in a blend with other gluten-free flours and a binder like xanthan gum or psyllium husk. Where rice flour shines is in recipes where tenderness and crispness matter more than structure: shortbread, tempura batter, rice noodles, and the crumb coating on fried foods. It also gives gluten-free cakes a fine, even crumb, though the crumb can be slightly gritty if the flour is coarsely ground — buy finely ground rice flour for baking, and save coarse rice flour for breading.

The most common mistakes are swapping rice flour for wheat flour cup-for-cup; using it on its own in a bread recipe and expecting it to behave like wheat; and storing it badly. Rice flour keeps for up to a year in an airtight container in a cool, dry place — longer than oat flour or whole wheat flour, because white rice flour has little oil to go rancid. Brown rice flour, which still contains the bran, keeps for only about 6 months and should be refrigerated for longer storage. If rice flour smells stale or musty, replace it. Another common mistake is confusing white rice flour with sweet rice flour: sweet rice flour (mochiko) is made from glutinous rice and behaves completely differently — it makes things chewy and sticky, which is perfect for mochi and terrible for shortbread. Check the label.

If you are out of rice flour, the best substitutes by weight are a gluten-free flour blend (120 grams per cup — use the same weight), oat flour (92 grams per cup, similar tenderness, nuttier flavour), or tapioca starch (128 grams per cup, but much starchier, so use it as part of a blend rather than on its own). All-purpose flour also works by weight in recipes where gluten is not essential, but the result will contain gluten. Do not substitute rice flour for wheat flour in a yeasted bread recipe — the bread will not rise properly without gluten.

Frequently asked questions

How many grams is 1 cup of rice flour?

One cup of white rice flour weighs 142 grams, spooned and levelled, according to King Arthur Baking. Half a cup is 71 grams, and a quarter cup is about 36 grams. Sweet rice flour (glutinous rice flour) is a little lighter, at about 130 grams per cup, so check which type your recipe means.

Can I substitute rice flour for all-purpose flour cup for cup?

No. One cup of rice flour weighs 142 grams, while one cup of all-purpose flour weighs 120 grams — a difference of 22 grams per cup. A cup-for-cup swap gives you nearly a fifth too much flour by weight, and the result will be dry and gritty. Substitute by weight instead, and remember that rice flour has no gluten, so you will also need a binder like xanthan gum (about 1/2 teaspoon per cup of flour) in recipes that rely on gluten for structure.

What is the difference between rice flour and sweet rice flour?

White rice flour is made from ordinary long-grain rice and behaves like a neutral, fine flour. Sweet rice flour, also called glutinous rice flour or mochiko, is made from glutinous (sticky) rice and is much higher in amylopectin starch, which makes things chewy and sticky. Sweet rice flour is essential for mochi and some Asian desserts, but it will ruin a shortbread or a cake if used in place of ordinary rice flour. They are not interchangeable.

Is rice flour gluten-free?

Yes, rice flour is naturally gluten-free, because rice contains no gluten. It is one of the most reliable gluten-free flours, though for coeliac baking you should still buy flour labelled certified gluten-free to rule out cross-contamination in the mill. Rice flour on its own does not behave like wheat flour — it needs to be blended with other flours and a binder to replace gluten's structure.

Why is my gluten-free baking gritty?

Usually because the rice flour is coarsely ground, or because the recipe uses too much rice flour relative to the other flours in the blend. Buy finely ground rice flour for baking, and use a blend rather than rice flour alone — a typical blend is roughly equal parts rice flour, tapioca starch and potato starch, plus xanthan gum. Letting the batter rest for 20 to 30 minutes before baking also helps, because it gives the rice flour time to hydrate, which reduces grittiness.

How should I store rice flour?

Keep white rice flour in an airtight container in a cool, dry place for up to 1 year. Brown rice flour keeps for only about 6 months because the bran contains oils that go rancid — refrigerate it for longer storage. If rice flour smells stale, musty or oily, replace it. Keep it sealed, because fine flour absorbs moisture and odours from the air.

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