You're standing in the kitchen, flour on your jeans, looking at a recipe that calls for two-thirds of a cup of butter. Your sticks of butter are sitting there, cold or maybe slightly softened, but they don't have those convenient little lines for thirds. It's annoying. Most American butter sticks are marked in eighths—standard tablespoons. So, how many tablespoons of butter in 2/3 cup?
The quick, "I need to get this in the oven" answer is 10 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons.
That’s the magic number. It isn't a clean, even break, which is why people get so frustrated. If you try to just "eyeball" it between the 10 and 11-tablespoon mark, you might end up with a greasy cookie or a cake that doesn't rise quite right. Baking is basically delicious chemistry, and when you mess with the fat ratios, the chemistry gets moody.
The Math Behind the 2/3 Cup Measurement
Let’s break this down because once you see the logic, you won't have to Google this every single time you make brownies.
A standard U.S. cup is 16 tablespoons. If you want to find two-thirds of that, you’re looking at $16 \times (2/3)$. That equals $10.666...$ tablespoons. Now, nobody has a "0.666" tablespoon measuring spoon in their drawer. To get that fraction into something usable, we convert it to teaspoons. Since there are exactly 3 teaspoons in a single tablespoon, two-thirds of a tablespoon is exactly 2 teaspoons.
So: 10 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons = 2/3 cup.
It sounds small, but those 2 extra teaspoons matter. If you were making a delicate shortbread where the ratio of butter to flour is the whole point of the texture, missing those two teaspoons would leave the dough crumbly and dry. On the flip side, if you rounded up to 11 tablespoons, you’re adding about 4% more fat than the developer intended. In a high-stakes recipe, that’s the difference between a crisp edge and a puddle of melted butter on your baking sheet.
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Sticks, Grams, and the European Problem
Most of us in the States use the standard Western or Eastern pack sticks. One stick is 8 tablespoons (1/2 cup). So, for a 2/3 cup measurement, you need one full stick plus another 2 tablespoons and 2 teaspoons from a second stick.
But what if you’re using Kerrygold or another European-style butter?
European butter often comes in 250-gram blocks or different shapes that don't follow the 8-tablespoon-per-stick rule. Honestly, if you're serious about your sourdough or your pastries, you should probably stop counting tablespoons anyway. Professionals use weight.
In terms of weight, a cup of butter is generally accepted as 227 grams.
Therefore, 2/3 cup of butter weighs approximately 151.3 grams.
If you have a digital kitchen scale, just put your bowl on it, tare it to zero, and slice off chunks until you hit 151 grams. It’s faster. It’s cleaner. You don’t have to wash a greasy measuring cup afterward. Plus, you avoid the "air pocket" problem. When you press cold butter into a measuring cup, you almost always leave little gaps of air at the bottom. Those gaps mean you're actually using less butter than the recipe calls for.
Why 2/3 Cup is Such a Weird Measurement
Most recipes stick to halves, quarters, or thirds. You see 1/4 cup (4 tablespoons), 1/2 cup (8 tablespoons), or 3/4 cup (12 tablespoons) constantly. The 2/3 cup requirement usually pops up in older "scaled" recipes or specifically formulated cakes where the liquid-to-fat ratio is incredibly precise.
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I’ve found that many amateur bakers see "2/3" and their brain just goes "half cup plus a little more." They guestimate. They fail.
Think about the moisture content. Butter isn't just fat; it’s about 15-20% water and milk solids. When you add 2/3 cup of butter, you’re also adding a specific amount of water that will turn into steam in the oven. That steam helps the layers of a pie crust separate. If you miss that 10 tablespoons and 2 teaspoons mark, you're changing the steam levels.
Quick Reference Conversion Table (The Mental Cheat Sheet)
If you’re halfway through a mess, here’s how the 2/3 cup stacks up against its neighbors so you don't over-pour:
- 1/2 cup: 8 tablespoons (Standard stick)
- 2/3 cup: 10 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons (The sweet spot)
- 3/4 cup: 12 tablespoons (One and a half sticks)
- 1 cup: 16 tablespoons (Two sticks)
Is Melted Butter Different?
This is a common trap. If a recipe says "2/3 cup butter, melted," you measure the solid butter first, then melt it. If it says "2/3 cup melted butter," it technically implies you should melt a bunch and then measure the liquid.
However, for most home cooking, the volume doesn't change significantly enough between solid and liquid states to ruin a recipe. The bigger issue is temperature. If you melt that 10 tablespoons and 2 teaspoons of butter and then immediately pour it into a bowl with eggs, you’re going to have scrambled eggs in your cookie dough. Let it cool.
Real-World Application: The "Spoon and Level" Fallacy
We talk about tablespoons like they are a universal constant. They aren't. A "heaping" tablespoon is not a tablespoon. If you are using a literal soup spoon from your silverware drawer, stop. Those vary wildly in size. Use actual measuring spoons.
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When measuring the 10 tablespoons needed for your 2/3 cup, make sure you are leveling off the top with a flat edge—like the back of a butter knife. Don't leave a "mountain" of butter on the spoon.
Also, consider the salt. Most "tablespoon" measurements in recipes assume unsalted butter unless stated otherwise. A 2/3 cup of salted butter contains about 1/3 to 1/2 teaspoon of salt. If you’re using salted butter because that’s all you have, you might want to slightly reduce the additional salt the recipe asks for.
Making the Cut
If you are working with a standard 8-tablespoon stick, here is the easiest way to get 2/3 cup without a scale:
- Take your first stick (8 tablespoons) and put it in the bowl.
- Take a second stick. Look at the markings.
- Cut at the 2-tablespoon mark. Add that to the bowl.
- Now, you need that final 2/3 of a tablespoon. Since a tablespoon is 3 teaspoons, just use a 2-teaspoon measuring spoon to scoop out the last bit from the second stick.
It feels like extra work, but your palate will thank you when the texture is exactly what it should be.
Summary of Actionable Steps
Stop guessing. If you want to nail that 2/3 cup measurement every single time, follow these steps:
- Buy a digital scale. This is the ultimate "pro" move. Weigh out 151 grams of butter and skip the tablespoon math entirely.
- Memorize the "10 + 2" rule. 10 tablespoons and 2 teaspoons. Write it on a post-it and stick it inside your spice cabinet.
- Check your stick size. Verify if you're using 4-ounce (1/4 lb) sticks. Some bulk brands or international brands use different weights which will throw off your tablespoon count.
- Level your spoons. Use a straight edge to ensure your 10 tablespoons aren't "extra generous," which can lead to greasy baked goods.
- Temperature check. Ensure your butter is at the temperature the recipe specifies (room temp vs. chilled) before you start measuring, as softened butter is much easier to pack into a measuring spoon accurately than rock-hard cold butter.