Caraway seeds

One US cup of caraway seeds weighs between 107 and 144 grams (3.8 to 5.1 ounces), depending on how the cup is filled and which source measured it. That range is the answer; a single number would not be. Every figure behind it is below, with the method each source used.

Spice seeds compared: cup weights side by side, the source behind each, and why they differ.

Caraway seeds sit in a wide cup-density range because measurement method and seed condition drive substantial variance across published sources: USDA anchors the low end near 107 g/cup, while King Arthur and multiple branded UPC records cluster at 134-144 g/cup. The 34.6% spread is real commercial and methodological variance, not a correction target for any single source.

Caraway (Carum carvi) is a member of the Apiaceae family, alongside coriander, fennel, cumin, dill, and anise. The "seed" is technically a schizocarp — a small dry fruit that splits at maturity into two crescent-shaped mericarps, each roughly 2 mm long with characteristic longitudinal ridges. Kitchen "caraway seed" is these mericarps, sometimes still paired at packaging, sometimes fully separated by handling and shipping. The mericarp shape matters for cup density: elongated crescent seeds nest and lock together to different degrees depending on how they were poured, how much they were tapped or vibrated, and whether the mericarps remain intact or have separated.

The data splits into two clusters. USDA SR Legacy publishes 113 g per metric cup (107 g/US cup, density 0.452 g/mL); Chef's Resources tabulates 4.10 oz/cup (116 g). These are the low-density anchor. On the high side, three aqua-calc branded UPC records show 134-140 g/cup, and King Arthur's ingredient weight chart extrapolates to 141-144 g/cup based on a 2-tablespoon measurement (5/8 oz = 18 g). Roughly a 30% gap between the two camps.

Two mechanisms plausibly explain the split. First, settling: the USDA measurement is likely a poured-and-leveled sample where crescent mericarps rest at maximum void space, while retail labels and KA may reflect measurements taken from bag-settled material where seeds have jostled into denser configurations during shipping and shelf life. Second, mericarp state: intact double-mericarp schizocarps pack differently than fully separated individual crescents, and no source specifies which state was measured. Both effects likely combine.

For validation and internal consistency, this entry withholds a single figure and publishes the observed range 107-144 g/cup. King Arthur at 144 is not flagged as a correction — it sits within the retail branded cluster and is confirmed by three independent aqua-calc UPC records. USDA is not flagged either — it may reflect a lab-controlled loose-fill measurement that retail packaging never replicates.

Practical guidance: for baking accuracy, weigh caraway seeds rather than measure by volume. A common baker's default of ~120-130 g/cup falls between the two camps and works for most recipe scaling, but any single number will be off by 15-20% for one or the other end of the observed range. Recipes that call for 1-2 teaspoons of caraway (typical for rye bread, seed cake, sauerkraut, goulash, Irish soda bread) sit in the sub-tablespoon range where absolute mass variance is small enough not to matter. Bulk conversions (e.g., scaling a commercial rye formula) benefit from weighing.

For the ground form: expect ground caraway to be denser than whole, in the same direction as coriander. Both are Apiaceae schizocarps with hollow fruit cavities that collapse under grinding. Chef's Resources tabulates ground caraway at ~142 g/cup, close to the whole-seed high end and consistent with this prediction. This is the opposite of the mustard-cumin pattern (solid seeds that pack tighter than their ground powder).