Knowledge Base > Eric Wynkoop - Ask Me Anything (Office Hours)

Eric Wynkoop - Ask Me Anything (Office Hours)
This event was on
Tuesday, April 08, 2025 at 11:00 am Pacific, 2:00 pm Eastern
Join Chef Eric Wynkoop in his virtual office as he welcomes all of your questions. This event was created for you and we encourage you to Ask Anything – from cooking techniques to co… Read More.
Question:

Is there a simple formula or method to follow to scale liquid or solid when cooking a larger meal?
— Linda Clucas
Answer:
So the, the, the first stage, right, if you're going to increase the quantity, uh, a little bit, and when I say a little bit, I'm, I'm talking about maybe three times or so, uh, you can very simply use three as you're multiplying factor, uh, against each of the ingredients, and create a recipe that is three times larger than the original. Okay? And, uh, you know, here, I'm, I'm thinking about, uh, recipes that are home size, recipes that might feed a half a dozen, uh, people or so. Um, as you get into, uh, larger, um, you know, increases in recipes, say 10 times or, or more, then you can take your factor of 10 and apply it to the main ingredients, the main liquids and solid ingredients, and bring that up. But when it comes to those more intensely flavored ingredients like spices and, um, salt, any of these seasonings go smaller first, because, uh, very often we don't need 10 x of those ingredients. That's often just how it works out. Now, you, and that's not saying you will not need that, um, but I'm saying you might not need it, and it's certainly easier to add ingredients if you need them, rather than deal with too intensive a flavor from too much salt, for example. So you would increase your, your main ingredient, your liquids and solids by 10 x, and then approach these other more, uh, intense flavorings and, and seasonings, um, at a smaller rate, you know, maybe it's, uh, two thirds or so. And then make adjustments from there. And here again, you're gonna need to take notes, uh, because depending on what you're making, depending on, um, these ingredients in question, uh, as well as the freshness of those ingredients in question, how much adjustment you need to make, um, could, could vary. And I don't necessarily have that answer for you. So you'll need to taste, um, as you make the adjustments and take notes as you make the adjustments, and you're gonna find a balance that's gonna work for you. And then moving forward based upon the consistency of the product specifications, right? Or the details around each ingredient that you use, meaning the brand and the, the, the variety of that ingredient and the freshness of the ingredient, including the freshness of the spices that you use. You can come up with a consistent recipe at this larger 10 x, um, volume. Okay? So there, there could be a bit of a process that's involved, um, to do that, but, uh, you're gonna come up with a, a recipe that's gonna be unique to your situation, okay? And, uh, so be open to some experimentation along the way.
