unit of weight in the metric system—the gram— is more precise than your basic unit of weight in the imperial system—the ounce This means that measuring small amounts on a scale is more accurate • It’s easier to work out percentages Say you have a sausage recipe that calls for 1.5 percent salt by weight and 2 pounds of meat (I picked a nice round number to make it even easier.) How much salt should you add? The math ain’t easy, is it? Even when you do arrive at the right answer—0.48 ounce—how are you supposed to measure a strange number like that? With the base-10 metric system, figuring out percentages is essentially built in Got 100 grams of meat? That’s 1.5 grams of salt 1,000 grams of meat? 15 grams of salt 200 grams of meat? 3 grams of salt See how easy that is? • It makes scaling a snap Sometimes you might feel like making a huge batch of bread dough or a small batch of sausage With the imperial system and its 16 ounces to a pound, it’s not easy to scale even a basic recipe up or down With the metric system, all of your units can be scaled up and down with ease Doubled, halved, tripled, no matter what, they consist of the base-10 math that we’re used to working with EXPERIMENT: Meat, Salt, and Time So I’ve come out and said that good sausage can’t be made without salt and that the salt takes some time to work its magic But you don’t have to take my word for it, prove it to yourself Here’s how: Materials • 1 pound boneless pork shoulder, cut into 1-inch chunks • Kosher salt • A meat grinder or food processor, grinder parts or processor bowl well chilled Procedure Divide your meat mixture into thirds and place each portion into a zipper-lock plastic bag Add 0.1 ounce kosher salt (about teaspoon) to one bag and toss until the salt is evenly distributed Seal all three bags and refrigerate overnight The next day, add 0.1 ounce salt to one of the unsalted bags and toss the meat to coat it evenly Then immediately grind all three batches of meat, one after the other, and mix each one separately in a bowl Weigh out ounce of meat from each batch and form it into a small patty, then fry all three side by side in a skillet Weigh the patties after cooking and take note of their weight loss Finally, taste, taking ... toss until the salt is evenly distributed Seal all three bags and refrigerate overnight The next day, add 0.1 ounce salt to one of the unsalted bags and toss the meat to coat it evenly Then immediately... one after the other, and mix each one separately in a bowl Weigh out ounce of meat from each batch and form it into a small patty, then fry all three side by side in a skillet Weigh the patties after cooking and... A meat grinder or food processor, grinder parts or processor bowl well chilled Procedure Divide your meat mixture into thirds and place each portion into a zipper-lock plastic bag Add 0.1 ounce kosher salt (about