To convert tablespoons of uncooked brown rice into grams, multiply by 11.875: one tablespoon comes to 11.875 grams. Every ingredient has its own figure here, because the units are measuring different things and only the density links them.
The density behind that figure is 0.80308 g per mL, against 1.00 for water. A cup of water weighs 236.6 g and a cup of uncooked brown rice weighs 190 g, so this ingredient is 80.31% as heavy as the same volume of water — the single fact the whole page rests on.
A level tablespoon of uncooked brown rice is 11.88 g, which puts a teaspoon at 3.958 g and a tablespoon and a half — the quantity recipes are fondest of — at 17.81 g. Levelling twice is where the error comes from, so the scale is the faster instrument once the quantity passes a couple of spoons.
Grams are the unit this conversion is really for. A domestic scale resolves to a gram, which is 0.526% of a cup of uncooked brown rice, so weighing gets an accuracy no measuring cup can reach. A 500 g pack of it is 2.632 cups, and a 1 kg pack 5.263.
The condition this weight assumes: The bran layer left on the grain makes it slightly heavier per cup than white rice of the same variety.
The formula
tablespoons- The amount of uncooked brown rice you are converting, in tablespoons
11.875- Grams per tablespoon for uncooked brown rice, from its density of 0.80308 g/mL
grams- The equivalent quantity in grams
How it works, step by step
- Enter the quantity in tablespoons.
- It is multiplied by 11.875, the grams-per-tablespoon figure for uncooked brown rice.
- The result appears in grams, with a second reading in oz beneath it.
- Use the measure table if you want a standard recipe quantity rather than a number you type in.
Worked examples
2 tbsp of uncooked brown rice in grams
A recipe calling for 2 tbsp of uncooked brown rice needs 23.75 grams on the scale. The arithmetic is 2 × 11.875 = 23.75, and halving the recipe halves the weight to 11.875 grams.
4 tbsp of uncooked brown rice in grams
4 tbsp of uncooked brown rice weighs out at 47.5 grams. Divide 47.5 by 11.875 and you get back to 4 tbsp, which is the quickest check that the factor is the right way up.
12 tbsp of uncooked brown rice in grams
A recipe calling for 12 tbsp of uncooked brown rice needs 142.5 grams on the scale. The arithmetic is 12 × 11.875 = 142.5, and halving the recipe halves the weight to 71.25 grams.
How to read your score
Frequently asked questions
How many grams are in 1 tbsp of uncooked brown rice?
One tablespoon of uncooked brown rice is 11.875 grams. Half that quantity is 5.9375 grams and double it is 23.75 grams, so the figure scales straight up and down — there is no offset in this conversion, only the factor.
Why is a cup of uncooked brown rice not 236 g like water?
Because weight per cup depends on what is in the cup. Uncooked brown rice has a density of 0.80308 g per mL where water has 1.00, so a cup of it weighs 190 g rather than 236.6 g. That is a difference of 46.6 g per cup, and it is the reason a single volume-to-weight factor cannot be applied to every ingredient.
Does how I measure it change the weight?
Yes, and by more than most people expect. Handling changes the weight of a cup of uncooked brown rice by roughly 20% — about 19 g either side of 190 g — because the bran layer left on the grain makes it slightly heavier per cup than white rice of the same variety. Weighing removes the question entirely.
Is a fluid ounce of uncooked brown rice the same as an ounce?
No. A fluid ounce is a volume — one eighth of a US cup, 29.57 mL — and an ounce is a weight. One fluid ounce of uncooked brown rice weighs 0.8378 oz, so the two readings differ by 16.2%. They coincide only for something with the density of water, and then only roughly.
Is this a US cup or a metric cup?
US customary: 236.59 mL, which is the cup every US recipe means. A metric cup is 250 mL, so the same cup of uncooked brown rice would weigh 200.77 g instead of 190 g — 10.8 g more, or 5.67%. Australian and some European recipes use the metric cup, and the difference is large enough to matter in baking.
Do I need a scale for this, or will measuring cups do?
A scale, if the result matters. Volume measuring carries a spread of about 20% for uncooked brown rice — roughly 38 g on a 190 g cup — while a domestic scale is accurate to a gram or two. For anything where the ratio of ingredients drives the outcome, bread and pastry above all, weigh it.
How many tablespoons of uncooked brown rice is 500 g?
500 g of uncooked brown rice is 42.105 tablespoons — 0.0842105 tablespoons to one gram, so 500 × 0.0842105 = 42.105. Going that way is a division by 11.875, or a multiplication by 0.0842105 if you prefer.
Uncooked brown rice in tablespoons and grams
| Tablespoons | Grams | Unrounded |
|---|---|---|
| 1/2 tbsp | 5.9375 g | 5.9375 |
| 1 tbsp | 11.875 g | 11.875 |
| 2 tbsp | 23.75 g | 23.75 |
| 3 tbsp | 35.625 g | 35.625 |
| 4 tbsp | 47.5 g | 47.5 |
| 6 tbsp | 71.25 g | 71.25 |
| 8 tbsp | 95 g | 95 |
| 12 tbsp | 142.5 g | 142.5 |
| 16 tbsp | 190 g | 190 |
Based on 190 g per cup of uncooked brown rice. One tablespoon of uncooked brown rice is 11.875 grams.
| Measure | Grams | Ounces | Millilitres |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 cup | 190 g | 6.7 oz | 236.6 mL |
| 1 tbsp | 11.88 g | 0.419 oz | 14.79 mL |
| 2 tsp | 7.917 g | 0.279 oz | 9.858 mL |
| 1 tsp | 3.958 g | 0.14 oz | 4.929 mL |
| 3/4 tsp | 2.969 g | 0.105 oz | 3.697 mL |
| 1/2 tsp | 1.979 g | 0.0698 oz | 2.464 mL |
| 1/4 tsp | 0.9896 g | 0.0349 oz | 1.232 mL |
| 1/8 tsp | 0.4948 g | 0.0175 oz | 0.6161 mL |
US customary measures: 1 cup = 236.59 mL, 1 tbsp = 14.79 mL, 1 tsp = 4.93 mL.
| Ingredient | Grams per cup | Ounces per cup | Density (g/mL) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Uncooked quinoa | 170 g | 5.997 oz | 0.7185 |
| Dry couscous | 170 g | 5.997 oz | 0.7185 |
| Uncooked white rice | 185 g | 6.526 oz | 0.7819 |
| Uncooked brown rice (this page) | 190 g | 6.702 oz | 0.8031 |
| Dried lentils | 192 g | 6.773 oz | 0.8115 |
| Granulated sugar | 200 g | 7.055 oz | 0.8454 |
| Arborio rice | 200 g | 7.055 oz | 0.8454 |
Ordered by weight. The spread across this group is why a single generic cups-to-grams factor cannot work.