---
title: "Ingredients"
description: "One ingredient per line — how Scrumptious reads amounts, units and notes, plus ranges, fractions and groups."
url: https://scrumptiouswp.com/help/ingredients/
site: "ScrumptiousWP"
---

# Ingredients

Type or paste your ingredients into **One ingredient per line**. You don’t fill in separate amount, unit and name boxes: Scrumptious reads each line and splits it for you. Under the box you’ll see how each line was read, with the amount and unit highlighted. If a line looks wrong there, reword it.

## How a line is read

`2 1/4 cups (280 g) all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled`

| Part | Read as |
| --- | --- |
| `2 1/4` | Amount (2.25) |
| `cups` | Unit (cup) |
| `all-purpose flour` | Ingredient |
| `(280 g)`, `spooned and leveled` | Notes (shown in lighter text after the name) |

The rules:

1. **Amount** — the number at the start of the line.
2. **Unit** — the word right after the amount, if it’s a unit Scrumptious knows (list below).
3. **Notes** — anything after the **first comma**, and anything in **brackets at the end** of the line.
4. Everything else is the **ingredient name**.
5. Bullets and list numbers at the start (`-`, `*`, `•`, `1.`) are removed.

## Amounts it understands

| You type | Read as |
| --- | --- |
| `2`, `1.5`, `1,5` | Whole numbers and decimals (comma decimals work too) |
| `1/2`, `1 1/2` | Fractions and mixed numbers |
| `½`, `1½`, `¼`, `⅓`, `¾`, `⅛` … | Unicode fractions |
| `1-2`, `1–2`, `2 to 3` | Ranges. Both ends scale when readers change servings. |
| `1 (14 oz) can tomatoes` | A package size in brackets straight after the amount is kept with the unit: *1 (14 oz) can*. |

A line with no number (`salt and pepper to taste`) is kept as written and isn’t scaled.

## Units it recognises

Singular, plural and common abbreviations all work.

| Unit | You can type |
| --- | --- |
| cup | cups, cup, c., c |
| tablespoon | tablespoons, tablespoon, tbsps, tbsp., tbsp, tbs., tbs, tbl, **T** (capital) |
| teaspoon | teaspoons, teaspoon, tsps, tsp., tsp, **t** (lower case) |
| fluid ounce | fluid ounces, fluid ounce, fl. oz., fl. oz, fl oz |
| ounce | ounces, ounce, oz., oz |
| pound | pounds, pound, lbs., lbs, lb., lb |
| gram | grams, gram, gr, g |
| kilogram | kilograms, kilogram, kgs, kg |
| milligram | milligrams, milligram, mg |
| millilitre | milliliters, millilitres, milliliter, millilitre, mls, ml |
| litre | liters, litres, liter, litre, l |
| quart / pint / gallon | quarts, quart, qts, qt. / pints, pint, pts, pt. / gallons, gallon, gal. |
| pinch, dash | pinches, pinch, dashes, dash |
| clove, can, jar, package | cloves, cans, jars, packages, packets, pkg |
| stick, slice, sprig, bunch, head, handful, piece | and their plurals; pieces also as pcs, pc |

**Note:** Capital **T** means tablespoon and lower-case **t** means teaspoon, as in most cookbooks.

Words that aren’t in the list (`2 large eggs`) stay part of the ingredient name. That’s fine: the amount still scales.

## Groups (“For the frosting”)

Long recipes read better in groups.

1. Click **+ Add ingredient group**.
2. Give each group a name in **Group name** (e.g. *For the sauce*).
3. Put that group’s ingredients in its own box.

Group names appear as small headings on the card. A recipe with one group doesn’t show a heading unless you name it. **Remove group** deletes a group and its lines.

## What readers can do with your ingredients

- **Scale servings** — amounts change, rounded to kitchen-friendly fractions (½, ⅓, ¼, ⅛) instead of decimals like 1.04. Unit words change between singular and plural (*1 cup* → *2 cups*).
- **Switch US / Metric** — amounts with a recognised unit convert. Ingredients without a convertible unit (eggs, cloves, a pinch) stay as written.
- **Tick off** ingredients as they go.

See [Reader features](https://scrumptiouswp.com/help/reader-features/).

## Tips for clean results

- Put the amount first: `2 cups flour`, not `flour, 2 cups`.
- Put preparation notes after a comma: `1 onion, finely diced`.
- Put alternatives in notes: `1 cup butter (or margarine)`.
- To stop a line being read as an amount, start it with a word: `About 2 cups broth` keeps *About 2 cups broth* as the name.

## Related

- [Instructions](https://scrumptiouswp.com/help/instructions/)
- [Paste & Parse](https://scrumptiouswp.com/help/paste-and-parse/)
- [Servings scaling and unit conversion](https://scrumptiouswp.com/help/reader-features/)