Baking Pans

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Don't feel inadequate because you don't have every baking dish size and shape ever known to mankind just lying about on display in your kitchen. Just stock some standard shapes and sizes, and if a recipe writer calls for something really obscure or that you don't have, then tough luck on them -- they'll just have to settle for one of the ones that you do have.

Metric baking dishes are thought of in terms of how much volume they hold. This actually has one advantage over our way of measuring baking dishes in dimensions, which is that it makes substituting Baking Pans far easier. Only a few brain cells have to kick into gear to figure out that would fit into a 2 litre round pan would also fit into a 2 litre square pan. A great deal more brain cells may need to rouse themselves to realize that a 9 x 2 inch (23 x 5 cm) round cake pan holds the same amount of batter as a 8 x 8 x 2 inch (20 x 20 x 5 cm) square one.

It's odd that baking pans today still don't have their capacity and sizes imprinted right on them; you're reduced to hauling out measuring tapes and pouring water about like you're in a kid's water play centre.

To know how much volume your Baking Pans hold, use a measuring cup and pour water in (keeping track as you go, of course, and not letting your mind wander.) Or if you're lucky, it'll be one of the ones listed in a table below. You won't have to do this for casserole dishes -- we already think of these as being in volume by quarts.

When calculating a Baking Pan to use, bear in mind that recipe writers envision the recipe's batter filling the pan up only halfway, to allow cakes room in the pan to rise. So if you have 4 cups of batter, don't put it into a 4 cup Baking Pan. Once the cake started rising in the oven, you'd end up with 2 cups of batter cooked in the pan, and 2 cups cooked on the bottom of your oven. For 4 cups of batter, you want about an 7 or 8 cup pan to allow room for expansion.

Once you've identified a Baking Pan in your kitchen that will do the trick as far as volume is concerned, the final thing to take into account is whether you are using a Baking Pan shallower or deeper than what the recipe called for. If shallower, you will probably have to lessen the cooking time and raise the temperature just a smidge (as you don't want evaporation to dry the batter out); if deeper, more cooking time will probably be required and the temperature lowered just a smidge, so that it doesn't burn on top while the inside is still raw.) Ideally, you'll find a pan that's within 1/2 an inch (1cm) of the depth the recipe called for, and then no major adjustment in cooking time should be required at all.

With a chart such as the one provided below showing how much volume standard Baking Pans hold, then substituting becomes -- well, a piece of cake. The critical table for Baking Pan substitutions is the one below called "Baking Pans by Volume." The measurements of a Baking Pan are determined by measuring inside the pan, from edge to edge. Depth is measured inside as well.

Baking Pans by Dimension, Baking Pans by Volume, Casserole Dish Sizes


Baking Pans by Dimension



DimensionVolume
Round Cake Pans
6 x 2 inch (15 x 5)4 cups (1 L)
8 x 1.5 inch (20 x 4 cm)5 cups (1.2 L / 2 pints)
8 x 2 inch (20 x 5 cm)6 cups (1.5 L)
9 x 1.5 inch (23 x 4 cm)6 cups (1.5 L)
9 x 2 inch (23 x 5 cm)8 cups (2 L)
10 x 2 inch (25 x 5 cm)11 cups (2.6 L)
Round Cake Pans (Springform)
9 x 2.5 inch (23 x 6 cm)10 cups (2.5 L)
9 x 3 inch (23 x 8 cm)12 cups (3 L)
10 x 2.5 inch (25 x 6 cm)12 cups (3 L)
Round Pie Pans
8 x 1.5 inch (20 cm x 4 cm)4 cups (1 L)
9 x 1.5 inch (23 x 4 cm)5 cups (1.2 L / 2 pints)
10 inch x 1.5 inch 6 cups (1.5L)
Square Cake Pans
8 x 8 x 1.5 inch (20 x 20 x 4 cm)6 cups (1.5 L)
8 x 8 x 2 inch (20 x 20 x 5 cm)8 cups (2 L)
9 x 9 x 1 1/2 inches (23 x 23 x 4 cm)8 cups (2 L)
9 x 9 x 2 inch (23 x 23 x 5)10 cups (2.5 L)
10 x 10 x 2 inches (25 x 25 x 5 cm)12 cups (3 L)
Rectangular Cake Pans
11 x 7 x 1.5 inch (28 x 18 x 4 cm )8 cups (2 L)
13 x 9 x 2 inch (30 x 20 x 3 cm)15 cups (3.5 L)
Jelly Roll (Swiss Roll) Pans
15.5 x 10.5 x 1 inch (39cm x 27cm x 2.5cm)10 cups (2.5 L)
17.5 x 12.5 x 1 inch (44 x 32 x 2.5 cm)12 cups (3 L)
Loaf Pans
8 x 4 x 2.5 inch (20 x 10 x 6 cm)4 cups (1 L)
8.5 x 4.5 x 2.5 inch (21 x 11 x 6 cm)6 cups (1.5L)
9 x 5 x 3 inch loaf pan (23 x 13 x 7cm)8 cups (2 L)
Bundt Pans
7.5 x 3 inch (19 x 8 cm)6 cups (1.5L)
9 x 3 inch (23 x 8 cm)9 cups (2.1 L)
10 x 3.5 inch (25 x 9 cm)12 cups (3 L)
Tube Pans (Angel Food Cake Pans)
8 x 3 inches (20 x 8 cm)9 cups (2.1 L)
9 x 3 inches (23 x 8 cm)12 cups (3 L)
10 x 4 inches (25 x 10 cm)16 cups (4 L)
Muffin Tin Cups
1 3/4 x 3/4 inch (4.5 x 2 cm)2 tablespoons (30 ml)
2 3/4 x 1 1/8 inch (7 x 3 cm)4 tablespoons (60 ml)
2 3/4 x 1 1/2 inch (7 x 4 cm )8 tablespoons ( 1/2 cup / 120 ml)
3 x 1 1/4 inch (8 x 3 cm)10 tablespoons (5/8 cup / 150 ml)
Other
Heart shaped cake pan 8 x 2.5 inch (20 x 6 cm)8 cups (2 L)

Baking Pans by Volume

VolumeDimension
4 cups (1 L)6 x 2 inch (15 x 5) Round Cake Pan
4 cups (1 L)8 x 1 1/4 inch Round Pie Pan
4 cups (1 L)8 x 4 x 2.5 inch (20 x 10 x 6 cm) Loaf Pan
5 cups (1.2 L)8 x 1.5 inch (20 x 4 cm) Round Cake Pan
5 cups (1.2 L)9 x 1/2 inch (23 x 4 cm) Round Pie Pan
6 cups (1.5L)10 inch x 1.5 inch Round Pie Pan
6 cups (1.5L)8.5 x 4.5 x 2.5 inch (21 x 11 x 6 cm) Loaf Pan
6 cups (1.5L)7.5 x 3 inch (19 x 8 cm) Bundt Pan
6 cups (1.5 L)8 x 2 inch (20 x 5 cm) Round Cake Pan
6 cups (1.5 L)9 x 1.5 inch (23 x 4 cm) Round Cake Pan
6 cups (1.5 L)8 x 8 x 1.5 inch (20 x 20 x 4 cm) Square Cake Pan
8 cups (2 L)9 x 2 inch (23 x 5 cm) Round Cake Pan
8 cups (2 L)8 x 8 x 2 inch (20 x 20 x 5 cm) Square Cake Pan
8 cups (2 L)9 x 9 x 1 1/2 inches (23 x 23 x 4 cm) Square Cake Pan
8 cups (2 L)11 x 7 x 1.5 inch (28 x 18 x 4 cm ) Rectangular Cake Pan
8 cups (2 L)9 x 5 x 3 inch loaf pan (23 x 13 x 7cm) Loaf Pan
8 cups (2 L)Heart shaped cake pan 8 x 2.5 inch (20 x 6 cm)
9 cups (2.1 L)9 x 3 inch (23 x 8 cm) Bundt Pan
9 cups (2.1 L)8 x 3 inches (20 x 8 cm) Tube Pan (Angel Food Cake Pan)
10 cups (2.5 L)9 x 2.5 inch (23 x 6 cm) Round Cake Pan (Springform)
10 cups (2.5 L)9 x 9 x 2 inch (23 x 23 x 5) Square Cake Pan
10 cups (2.5 L)15.5 x 10.5 x 1 inch (39cm x 27cm x 2.5cm) Jelly Roll (Swiss Roll) Pan
11 cups (2.6 L)10 x 2 inch Round Cake Pan
12 cups (3 L)9 x 3 inch (23 x 8 cm) Round Cake Pan (Springform)
12 cups (3 L)10 x 2.5 inch (25 x 6 cm) Round Cake Pan (Springform)
12 cups (3 L)10 x 10 x 2 inches (25 x 25 x 5 cm) Square Cake Pan
12 cups (3 L)17.5 x 12.5 x 1 inch (44 x 32 x 2.5 cm) Jelly Roll (Swiss Roll) Pan
12 cups (3 L)10 x 3.5 inch (25 x 9 cm) Bundt Pan
12 cups (3 L)9 x 3 inches (23 x 8 cm) Tube Pan (Angel Food Cake Pan)
15 cups (3.5 L)13 x 9 x 2 inch (30 x 20 x 3 cm) Rectangular Cake Pan
16 cups (4 L)10 x 4 inches (25 x 10 cm) Tube Pan (Angel Food Cake Pan)

Casserole Dish Sizes

Imperial (British, Canadian, Australian, New Zealand, etc)AmericanSubstitute
1 quart5 cups (1.3 L)4 cups (900 ml)Equivalent Volume Loaf or Cake Pan
1 1/2 quarts7 1/2 cups (1.7 L)5 cups (1.3 L)Equivalent Volume Loaf or Cake Pan
2 quart10 cups (2.25 L)8 cups (1.8 L)Equivalent Volume Loaf or Cake Pan
2 1/2 quarts12 1/2 cups (2.8 L)10 cups (2.25 L)Equivalent Volume Loaf or Cake Pan
3 quart15 cups (3.4 L)12 cups (2.7 L)Equivalent Volume Loaf or Cake Pan
4 quart20 cups (4.5 L)16 cups (3.6 L)Equivalent Volume Loaf or Cake Pan
5 quart25 cups (5.6 L)20 cups (4.5 L)Equivalent Volume Loaf or Cake Pan

Also called:
Bratpfanne (German) Top...