One tablespoon of rice flour weighs 8.9 g (spooned and levelled, King Arthur Baking). Rice flour is a fine, white flour ground from white rice, and its tablespoon weight sits between oat flour and wheat flour — denser than oat, lighter than wheat — because its particles are fine and pack together fairly well. The figure matters in gluten-free baking, where rice flour is the backbone of most flour blends, and in Asian cooking, where it is used for noodles, dumplings and tempura batter. It also matters for shortbread, where rice flour gives a distinctive sandy, melt-in-the-mouth texture. All weights on this page are approximate; white and brown rice flour differ slightly, so verify with a scale when precision matters.
How much does 1 tablespoon of rice flour weigh?
One level tablespoon of rice flour weighs 8.9 g, spooned and levelled, according to King Arthur Baking. That is the headline number, but a single tablespoon is rarely the whole story — most recipes use several spoonfuls, or a fraction of a cup, so the table below gives the weights you will actually reach for, from a teaspoon up to a full cup. Every figure is derived from the same source value of 142 g per cup, so the whole table is consistent. Treat all of these as approximate: spooned and levelled is a technique, not a machine setting, and two cooks measuring the same ingredient can differ by a gram or two per spoonful. When the recipe matters, weigh the ingredient on a kitchen scale instead.
| Amount | Weight (approx.) |
| --- | --- |
| 1 teaspoon | 3 g |
| 1 tablespoon | 8.9 g |
| 2 tablespoons | 17.8 g |
| 3 tablespoons | 26.6 g |
| 1/4 cup (4 tbsp) | 35.5 g |
| 1/2 cup (8 tbsp) | 71 g |
| 3/4 cup (12 tbsp) | 106.5 g |
| 1 cup (16 tbsp) | 142 g |
A useful rule of thumb: there are 3 teaspoons in a tablespoon and 16 tablespoons in a cup, so you can move between any of these measures by multiplying or dividing. If a recipe calls for 2 teaspoons and you only have a tablespoon measure, that is two-thirds of a tablespoon — about 5.9 g. If a recipe calls for a quarter cup and you only have a tablespoon, that is 4 level tablespoons. Keep the tablespoons to grams converter open while you cook and you will never need to do the arithmetic in your head.
Worked examples
Gluten-free shortbread
A gluten-free shortbread recipe uses 8 tablespoons of rice flour — about 71 g — blended with 8 tablespoons of potato starch and butter. The weight matters because shortbread is a ratio recipe — 1 part sugar, 2 parts butter, 3 parts flour by weight — and the rice flour's weight is what makes the ratio work. Seventy-one grams of rice flour against 50 g of butter and 25 g of sugar gives a dough that holds together and bakes into a crisp, sandy biscuit. Weighing the rice flour also lets you adjust the blend: more rice flour makes the shortbread crisper, more potato starch makes it softer, and the weights are what let you control that balance.
Tempura batter for two
A tempura batter for two uses 6 tablespoons of rice flour — about 53 g — whisked with an egg yolk and ice-cold sparkling water. The weight is useful because tempura batter must be thin: 53 g of rice flour in 100 ml of water gives a batter that coats the vegetables in a whisper-thin layer and fries into a crisp, lacy shell. A tablespoon too many makes the batter thick and doughy, and the tempura turns heavy. The rice flour is also what makes tempura different from a wheat flour batter — it has no gluten, so it cannot turn tough, and the coating stays delicate even if the batter is stirred a little too much.
Rice flour noodles for a stir-fry
A rice noodle dough uses 16 tablespoons of rice flour — about 142 g, or 1 cup — mixed with boiling water to form a dough that is rolled and cut into noodles. The tablespoon weight is the conversion that makes the recipe work in any batch size: a single serving needs 8 tablespoons (71 g), and a family batch needs 32 tablespoons (284 g). The dough is mixed with boiling water, not cold, because the heat gelatinises the rice starch and gives the dough enough strength to hold together without gluten. Weighing the flour keeps the water ratio exact — too much water and the dough is sticky, too little and it crumbles.
How to measure a tablespoon of rice flour correctly
Rice flour is measured spooned and levelled, and the method is the same as for any fine flour: spoon it into the tablespoon with a smaller spoon, letting it fall loosely, then sweep a knife across the top without pressing down. Never dip the tablespoon into the bag — dipping compresses the flour and can add 15 percent. The King Arthur figure of 8.9 g per tablespoon is for white rice flour; brown rice flour is slightly denser at about 9.2 g per tablespoon, because the bran adds weight. Sweet rice flour, also called glutinous rice flour, is a different product entirely — it is ground from sticky rice and weighs about 9.5 g per tablespoon, and it behaves very differently in cooking, giving a chewy, sticky texture. Do not confuse the two: a recipe calling for rice flour means white rice flour, and a recipe calling for sweet rice flour means glutinous rice flour. For baking, weighing is far more reliable than spooning, especially in gluten-free blends where the ratio of flours decides the result.
When the weight matters most
Rice flour's tablespoon weight matters most in gluten-free baking, where it is the main flour in most commercial blends and where the ratio of rice flour to starches decides whether the bake is tender or gritty. Rice flour on its own makes a crumbly, sandy bake, so it is almost always blended with potato starch, tapioca starch and a binder such as xanthan gum — and the blend's formula is written in grams, which is why the tablespoon weight is the bridge between the recipe and the scale. The weight also matters in Asian cooking, where rice flour is used for noodles and dumplings and where the dough's hydration is calibrated to the flour's weight. And it matters for shortbread and tempura, where rice flour's lack of gluten is the point: it gives a texture that wheat flour cannot, and the amount decides whether that texture is delicate or gritty.
Common mistakes to avoid
The most common mistake is confusing rice flour with sweet rice flour. They look identical, but sweet rice flour is made from glutinous rice and gives a sticky, chewy result — using it in a cake recipe will make the cake gummy and dense. Always check the packet. The second mistake is using rice flour alone in a gluten-free recipe and expecting it to behave like wheat flour: it has no gluten, so the bake will crumble. Blend it with starches and a binder. The third mistake is measuring rice flour by the cup in a recipe that was written in grams — a cup of rice flour can vary by 10 g depending on how it is spooned, and in a gluten-free blend that error changes the texture. Weigh it. Finally, do not store rice flour in a damp kitchen: it absorbs moisture and clumps, and clumped rice flour weighs more per tablespoon than the recipe expects.
Frequently asked questions
How many grams is 1 tablespoon of rice flour?
One tablespoon of white rice flour weighs 8.9 g, spooned and levelled, according to King Arthur Baking. One teaspoon weighs 3 g. These are approximate weights — brown rice flour is slightly denser, so weigh it for the most accurate result.
How many tablespoons of rice flour are in 100 g?
There are about 11 tablespoons in 100 g of rice flour (100 divided by 8.9 is 11.2). A standard 500 g bag holds about 56 tablespoons, which is roughly 3.5 cups.
Is rice flour the same as sweet rice flour?
No. Rice flour is ground from regular white rice and gives a light, sandy texture. Sweet rice flour, also called glutinous rice flour, is ground from sticky rice and gives a chewy, sticky texture. They are not interchangeable — check which one your recipe means.
Can I use rice flour instead of wheat flour?
Not on its own. Rice flour has no gluten, so a bake made with only rice flour will crumble. Use it in a gluten-free blend with potato starch, tapioca starch and xanthan gum, or as a partial replacement in shortbread and tempura where its texture is wanted.
How long does rice flour last?
About 1 year in an airtight container, cool and dry. Discard it if it smells musty or has clumped into hard lumps from moisture.
Related conversions
If you cook with this ingredient regularly, these pages will help: the tablespoons to grams converter for any amount, the cups to grams converter for larger quantities, and the full ingredient guide for storage, substitutes and the weight of a whole cup. You can also compare the cup weight on the Rice Flour cups to grams page or work backwards from a gram amount on the Rice Flour grams to cups page.
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