Stoichiometry: reading an equation like a recipe

Look at 2KOH + H₂SO₄ → K₂SO₄ + 2H₂O. It is tempting to read it as “2 g of KOH gives 1 g of K₂SO₄”. That reading loses marks every single year.

A cake recipe says 2 eggs for every cup of flour. Nobody weighs the eggs against the flour; the eggs are counted. An equation works the same way: its numbers count particles, and moles are how chemists count.

An equation has limits too. It does not tell you the conditions or the rate, and you can even write one for a reaction that never happens.