Pantry Staples
Chicken Broth Conversion
Chicken Broth weighs 240g per US cup.
| Amount | Grams | Ounces |
|---|---|---|
| 1 cup | 240.0 g | 8.47 oz |
| 1/2 cup | 120.0 g | 4.23 oz |
| 1/4 cup | 60.0 g | 2.12 oz |
| 1 tbsp | 15.0 g | 0.53 oz |
| 1 tsp | 5.0 g | 0.18 oz |
| 100 g | 100.0 g | 3.53 oz |
Need a different amount? Use the full Ingredient Converter tool.
Chicken broth weighs 240 grams per cup, essentially the same as water, since broth is mostly water with dissolved flavor compounds, salt, and a small amount of fat and collagen rather than anything dense enough to meaningfully change its weight-to-volume ratio.
The line between "broth" and "stock" is more consistent in professional kitchens than on grocery shelves, where the terms are used loosely — broth is traditionally simmered from meat (and sometimes bones) for a shorter time and seasoned, giving it a lighter body, while stock is simmered longer, often from bones specifically, extracting more collagen that gives it a fuller, sometimes gelatinous body when chilled; most bottled "broth" and "stock" products don't rigidly follow this distinction.
Homemade chicken broth's fat content (which rises to the surface as a layer of fat when chilled) can be skimmed off for a leaner result, a step most commercial broths have already effectively done through processing and fat-skimming before packaging.
Chicken broth's unopened shelf-stable carton or can lasts many months in the pantry, but its lighter color and flavor mean spoilage signs are subtler once opened, so the shorter refrigerated window is worth tracking closely.
It's a traditional poaching liquid for chicken itself, used to gently cook a breast for a salad or sandwich with more flavor than plain water would provide.
Chicken broth is a common base for a risotto, where it's added gradually, ladle by ladle, to a simmering rice dish — the broth's warmth and flavor are both important here, since adding cold liquid to the pan would interrupt the rice's steady cooking temperature.
A well-stocked freezer of chicken broth in small, labeled portions is one of the more genuinely useful meal-prep habits this site recommends, turning a jarred or homemade batch into a ready resource for a quick soup, sauce, or braise on a busy night.
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Frequently asked questions
Is chicken broth the same weight as water per cup?
Essentially yes — broth is mostly water with dissolved flavor compounds and a small amount of fat, none of which changes its density enough to meaningfully differ from plain water's roughly 236-240g per cup.
What's the real difference between broth and stock?
Traditionally, stock is simmered longer, often from bones, extracting more collagen for a fuller body, while broth is simmered shorter, often with meat, and seasoned for direct flavor — though commercial products frequently blur this distinction in practice.
Can chicken broth be substituted for water in a recipe by the same measurement?
Yes, by volume — since broth's density is so close to water's, a 1:1 swap works cleanly for measurement purposes, though it obviously adds flavor and sodium a plain water measurement wouldn't.
Does low-sodium chicken broth weigh differently than regular broth?
Not meaningfully — the salt content difference between regular and low-sodium broth is too small relative to the broth's overall water content to noticeably change its weight per cup.
Why does homemade chicken broth sometimes gel when refrigerated?
That's collagen, extracted from bones or cartilage during a long simmer, setting into a gel once chilled — a sign of a well-extracted, flavorful broth that simply liquefies again once reheated, not a sign of spoilage.