How Much Dough for a Loaf Pan? Grams for 1-, 1.5- and 2-Kin Pans, Specific Volume and a Pan-Size Chart
Put too much dough in a loaf pan and it pushes the lid up and gives sharp corners; put in too little and the corners are rounded or the top never reaches the rim. The right amount of dough for a pan comes from a simple formula: pan volume ÷ specific volume. This guide explains what specific volume is, typical values for a lidded square loaf (pullman) and an open-top loaf, how to measure your pan’s volume from its inside dimensions or with water, a chart of dough weights by volume for Japanese 1-kin, 1.5-kin and 2-kin pans, the weight of each piece when you divide an open-top loaf, and how to work out a formula from the dough weight.
What specific volume is | The number that describes how much bread rises
Specific volume is the volume of the baked loaf divided by the weight of dough put in the pan. It tells you how many ml one gram of dough becomes once baked: the larger it is, the lighter and fluffier the bread, and the smaller it is, the denser and heavier the crumb.
Bread baked in a loaf pan rises to fill the pan, so the baked volume is almost the same as the pan’s volume. That means once you decide on a specific volume, you can work back to how much dough to put in.
| Style | Typical specific volume | Tool default | Characteristics |
|---|---|---|---|
| Square loaf / pullman (with lid) | 3.6 to 4.0 | 3.8 | Baked square, held down by the lid |
| Open-top loaf (no lid) | 4.0 to 4.5 | 4.2 | Rises upward, so less dough |
| Extra-light loaf | Around 4.5 | 4.5 | When you want a big rise |
| Chewy, dense loaf or brioche | 3.0 to 3.5 | 3.3 | More dough |
An open-top loaf has a larger specific volume because, with no lid, it rises well above the rim of the pan. In the same pan, use less dough for an open-top loaf than for a lidded one.
The formula for dough weight
For example, a 1-kin pan with inside dimensions of 19.5 × 9.5 cm at the top, 18.5 × 9 cm at the bottom and 9.5 cm high holds about 1,670 ml. That gives about 439 g for a lidded loaf (3.8), about 398 g for an open-top loaf (4.2), about 371 g for an extra-light loaf (4.5) and about 506 g for a dense loaf (3.3).
When a recipe’s dough weight does not suit your pan, the same formula lets you adjust. Even if the recipe says “450 g of dough for a 1-kin pan”, a pan of 2,000 ml needs about 526 g for a lidded loaf. Pan sizes differ between manufacturers, so think in terms of volume rather than relying on the name “1-kin pan”.
Measuring your pan’s volume | From the inside dimensions, or with water
If the volume is not printed on the packaging, measure it yourself. There are two ways.
- 1
Measure with water (most accurate)
Line the pan with a plastic bag pressed against the inside, put it on a scale and zero it, then fill with water to the rim. The weight of the water in g equals the volume in ml. Using a bag means you can measure safely even with pans that leak at the seams or have a non-stick coating.
- 2
Calculate from the inside dimensions
Measure the top length, top width, bottom length, bottom width and height on the inside of the pan. Loaf pans are slightly wider at the top, so use the prismoidal formula: volume = height ÷ 6 × (top area + bottom area + 4 × middle area). The middle area is the average of the top and bottom lengths × the average of the widths.
Calculating length × width × height from the top dimensions alone gives about 1,760 ml for a pan of 19.5 × 9.5 cm at the top and 9.5 cm high, about 90 ml more than the actual 1,670 ml or so. For a lidded loaf that is a difference of about 24 g of dough, so measuring both top and bottom is more accurate. If measuring is a hassle, the water method is the one to use.
Dough weight chart by volume | 1-, 1.5- and 2-kin pans
In Japan, loaf pans are sized in kin: most 1-kin pans hold around 1,700 ml, 1.5-kin pans around 2,400 ml, and 2-kin pans around 3,000 to 3,400 ml. Sizes vary widely between manufacturers and shapes (slim pans, square-section pans and so on), so look at the row closest to the volume of your own pan.
| Pan volume | Typical pan | Lidded (3.8) | Open-top (4.2) | Extra-light (4.5) | Dense (3.3) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1,700 ml | 1-kin pan | About 447 g | About 405 g | About 378 g | About 515 g |
| 2,000 ml | Large 1-kin pan | About 526 g | About 476 g | About 444 g | About 606 g |
| 2,400 ml | 1.5-kin pan | About 632 g | About 571 g | About 533 g | About 727 g |
| 3,000 ml | 2-kin pan (smaller) | About 789 g | About 714 g | About 667 g | About 909 g |
| 3,400 ml | 2-kin pan | About 895 g | About 810 g | About 756 g | About 1,030 g |
For example, a pan with inside dimensions of 20.5 × 10.5 cm at the top, 19.5 × 10 cm at the bottom and 12 cm high holds about 2,460 ml: about 648 g for a lidded loaf and about 586 g for an open-top loaf. A pan of 24.5 × 10.5 cm at the top, 23.5 × 10 cm at the bottom and 12 cm high holds about 2,950 ml: about 777 g lidded and about 703 g open-top.
Why lidded and open-top loaves need different amounts, and dividing the dough
A lidded loaf is baked with the lid on, so any mismatch between dough and pan shows up in the shape straight away. An open-top loaf can escape upwards, so small differences are absorbed by the height of the dome.
| Style | Too much dough | Too little dough |
|---|---|---|
| Lidded loaf | Pushes the lid up and makes sharp corners, sides hard and dense, dough squeezes out of the gap under the lid | Rounded corners, pale top, crumb not filled out and dry |
| Open-top loaf | Dome splits badly, spreads sideways and tends to collapse at the sides | Low dome that does not reach the rim |
Open-top loaves are often divided into two or three pieces, rounded and placed side by side in the pan. For an open-top loaf (about 398 g) in a 1-kin pan of about 1,670 ml, that is about 199 g per piece for two domes and about 133 g for three. When dividing, make every piece the total weight divided by the number of pieces so the domes rise to the same height.
- For a lidded loaf, slide the lid on when proofing has brought the dough to about 80% of the pan’s height
- Grease the lid lightly too so it comes off easily
- Bake with the specific volume changed a little at a time, find the value that gives the texture you like and note it down, so you can reproduce it even with a different pan
Turning a dough weight into a formula (grams of each ingredient)
Once you know how much dough the pan needs, divide by the total of the baker’s percentages to get the flour. Flour = dough weight × (1 + loss % ÷ 100) ÷ total % × 100.
For a loaf of 100% bread flour, 6% sugar, 2% salt, 3% skimmed milk powder, 1.5% instant dry yeast, 6% butter and 68% water (186.5% in total), baking an open-top loaf (about 398 g) in a 1-kin pan of about 1,670 ml with 3% loss allowed gives about 220 g of flour. That makes 13 g sugar, 4.4 g salt, 6.6 g milk powder, 3.3 g yeast, 13 g butter and 149 g water. A lidded loaf (about 439 g) in the same pan needs about 242 g of flour and about 165 g of water.
The step-by-step calculation from dough weight to formula is explained in How to calculate baker’s percentage. For scaling a recipe when you change the size of a cake tin such as a round or pound-cake tin, Pound-cake tin sizes and conversions is also useful.
Signs in the baked loaf that the dough weight needs adjusting
Even with a typical specific volume, the result varies a little with the flour and the fermentation. Look at the shape of the baked loaf and adjust the dough weight (specific volume) next time. Something that looks like a dough-weight problem may actually be caused by fermentation or baking time, so check those as well.
| Baked result | Possible dough-weight cause | Other possible causes |
|---|---|---|
| Lidded loaf with rounded corners or a pale top | Too little dough (specific volume too large) | Lid put on too early, not enough final proof |
| Lidded loaf with sharp corners or a lifted lid | Too much dough (specific volume too small) | Over-proofed in the final proof |
| Sides cave in (keyholing) | Too much dough, not baked through | Baking time too short, taken out of the pan too late, over-proofed |
| Dense, heavy crumb | Too much dough | Dough temperature too low after mixing so under-fermented, under-kneaded |
| Open-top loaf with a low dome that spreads | Too little dough | Dough too soft (high hydration), loose shaping |
Changing the specific volume in steps of 0.2 is an easy way to adjust the dough. In a 1-kin pan of about 1,670 ml, changing a lidded loaf from 3.8 to 3.6 raises the dough from about 439 g to about 464 g, roughly 25 g more, and going to 4.0 lowers it to about 418 g, about 21 g less. Rather than making big changes at once, bake and compare in steps of 0.2 to find the value that suits your pan and oven.
Working out the dough for your pan with the bread-making calculator
In the “Loaf Pan & Dough Weight” tab of the bread-making calculator, enter the pan’s top length, top width, bottom length, bottom width and height, or type in the volume you measured with water, then choose the style (specific volume). It shows the pan volume and the dough weight to put in. You can also type a specific volume directly.
Press “Build a formula from this dough weight” and the dough weight is passed to the “Baker's % Formula” tab, which immediately shows the grams of every ingredient. Before you start kneading, check what temperature the mixing water should be in the “Dough Water Temperature” tab too (see The formula for desired dough temperature).
FAQ
- How do I calculate how much dough to put in a loaf pan?
- Dough for the pan = pan volume ÷ specific volume. For a 1-kin pan of 1,700 ml, that is about 447 g for a lidded loaf (specific volume 3.8) and about 405 g for an open-top loaf (4.2). Work out the pan volume from its inside dimensions or by filling it with water.
- What is specific volume?
- It is the volume of the baked loaf divided by the weight of dough put in the pan. It shows how many ml one gram of dough rises to; typical values are 3.6 to 4.0 for a lidded loaf and 4.0 to 4.5 for an open-top loaf. The larger it is, the fluffier the bread; the smaller, the denser.
- How many grams of dough for a 1.5-kin pan?
- For a 1.5-kin pan of around 2,400 ml, about 632 g for a lidded loaf and about 571 g for an open-top loaf. Sizes of 1.5-kin pans vary a lot between manufacturers, so measure your own pan’s volume before calculating.
- How many grams of dough for a 2-kin pan?
- For a 2-kin pan of around 3,400 ml, about 895 g for a lidded loaf and about 810 g for an open-top loaf. For a smaller 2-kin pan of 3,000 ml, about 789 g lidded and about 714 g open-top.
- How do I measure the volume of a loaf pan?
- Line the pan with a plastic bag, put it on a scale, zero it and fill with water to the rim. The weight of the water in g is the volume in ml. To calculate from the inside dimensions, measure the length and width at the top and bottom and the height, and use the prismoidal formula, which suits a pan that is wider at the top.
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