Whether a beginner or a pastry pro, you probably use baking powder and baking soda frequently. That's because they are some of the most common leavening agents in baking, which create the rise and expansion of batters and doughs. Both white powders are chemical leaveners, meaning they interact with other ingredients to produce carbon dioxide during mixing and baking. That gas expands to provide the lift in your cakes, cookies, and other baked goods.
They may sound and act similarly, but have you ever stopped to think about why a recipe uses one instead of the other or both? Turns out, it's all about the science.
What's the Difference?
You may have already guessed that baking powder and baking soda are not the same or interchangeable. Baking soda is 100 percent sodium bicarbonate, an alkaline salt compound that creates carbon dioxide gas when mixed with an acid. Baking powder, on the other hand, is a mixture of sodium bicarbonate and an acid like cream of tartar which requires moisture and heat to activate.
When to Use Baking Powder
Because baking powder already contains an acid, it is used in recipes where an acid is not a significant ingredient. Most store-bought baking powders will be labeled "double acting," meaning they start to activate once they touch a liquid and again when heat is applied. You will see it solo in vanilla cake recipes, for instance, which use regular milk for moisture and the heat of the oven to activate the baking powder.
When to Use Baking Soda
Since baking soda needs to mix with acid to create carbon dioxide, you will commonly find it in recipes featuring a prominent acidic ingredient such as cocoa powder or buttermilk. Think of the classic childhood volcano project when you mix baking soda with vinegar. That's essentially what's happening inside the batter to create the expansion. Baking soda also promotes browning, making it an excellent choice for recipes that benefit from it, like classic chocolate chip cookies.
Why Do Recipes Include Both?
If you look on the side of the box, baking soda is listed as an antacid. When it produces carbon dioxide, it essentially neutralizes the acidic ingredient. But what if you need acid for flavor? Let's use a more obvious example like buttermilk biscuits. If you only use baking soda, you'll lose that telltale tang. Using a combination of both will both leaven a recipe and keep some of the flavor profile.
Also, in some cases, baking soda alone may not give enough lift. Adding too much of it will create a metallic or bitter taste. That's why it requires a little help from a friend. It's a delicate balance between gas production, flavor, and browning for most baked goods, which is why you often see both used in the same recipe. Even professionals must experiment to get that ratio just right, and it's another reason why most baking requires adherence to exact recipe ingredients and measurements.
Do Either Go Bad? Here's How to Make Sure They're Fresh
Like most kitchen ingredients, baking powder and baking soda eventually lose their potency. Opened containers will last about six months to a year, while unopened containers should last until their expiration dates. If you find yourself in questionable territory and want to reconfirm freshness before ruining a batch of berry shortcakes, try these simple tricks. For baking powder, add ½ teaspoon to a small bowl and pour ¼ cup of boiling water over the top. If fresh, the mixture will bubble vigorously. If it barely bubbles or doesn't bubble at all, toss it.
For baking soda, place a teaspoon of it into a small bowl and add a tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice. It should bubble and fizz vigorously like a little volcano project if it's fresh. If not, you know what to do. And perhaps this should go without saying, but please don't use the same baking soda actively deodorizing your refrigerator. That's already serving its purpose and doesn't belong in your baked goods.
Baking soda and baking powder are not the same. Sodium bicarbonate and bicarbonate of soda are other names for baking soda. Baking powder is made of baking soda plus cream of tartar
cream of tartar
Potassium bitartrate, also known as potassium hydrogen tartrate, with formula KC4H5O6, is a chemical compound with a number of uses. It is the potassium acid salt of tartaric acid (a carboxylic acid). In cooking, it is known as cream of tartar.
https://en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Potassium_bitartrate
However, if you're in a pinch, the substitution is one teaspoon baking soda equals three teaspoons baking powder. Baking soda is also much stronger than baking powder and, by trying to provide enough leavening, you may wind up with an unpleasant metallic, salty taste in the final baked product.
The most common reason is that these recipes contain an acid, but the combination with baking soda is not enough to fully leaven the recipe, so baking powder is used to add the necessary lift. These recipes maximize the amount of acid neutralization and leavening power.
Baking soda helps baked goods brown better. And that's because browning occurs better in alkaline batters - add some baking soda to a batter with baking powder, and it'll get to work neutralizing acids, turning them alkaline and encouraging browning.
Baking soda changes the texture of baked goods by causing a batter or dough to spread, while baking powder produces light, fluffy texture. Some recipes may call for baking soda or baking powder on their own, while others may require both ingredients to create the ideal balance for great texture.
Simply, without these leaveners, many cookies would fall flat and cake layers would be dense and stodgy. But baking powder and soda are not interchangeable, and if you're out of one, the other won't act as a direct substitute (though it can be part of the solution—more on that below).
Just keep in mind that too much baking powder will leave a slightly bitter taste in your baked good, so I wouldn't use anymore than 2 tsp of baking powder per 1 cup of flour.
The baking soda reacted faster with vinegar than baking powder did and also produced more bubbles. The baking powder also bubbled when vinegar was added, but the overall reaction was slower and the bubbles did not rise as high in the cup as they did with baking soda.
Too much baking soda or baking powder can mess up a recipe, causing it to rise uncontrollably and taste terrible. But don't freak out if you accidentally pour too much baking soda into cookie dough or add too much baking powder to the cake batter. Depending on the situation, you might be able to fix it.
Baking soda is typically used for chewy cookies, while baking powder is generally used for light and airy cookies. Since baking powder is comprised of a number of ingredients (baking soda, cream of tartar, cornstarch, etc.), using it instead of pure baking soda will affect the taste of your cookies.
Baking soda is good indefinitely past its best by date, although it can lose potency over time. You can use a rule of thumb—two years for an unopened package and six months for an opened package. While old baking soda may not produce as much leavening action, it is still safe to eat.
Many recipes need both kinds of reactions to achieve the intended overall balance of flavor and texture, which is why you'll often see both baking soda and baking powder in a recipe. Even though the ingredients are both adding air during the baking process, they're complements, not substitutes.
Unopened baking powder can be stored for up to 18 months and still be fresh and effective. After that, you'll likely notice a loss of potency when using it in baking recipes. Opened baking powder should be used within 6 months.
Baking soda is used in recipes that also include an acidic ingredient, such as cream of tartar, buttermilk, or citrus juice. Conversely, baking powder is typically used when the recipe doesn't feature an acidic ingredient, as the powder already includes the acid needed to produce carbon dioxide.
Baking soda is essential for baked goods, but baking powder is really what makes pancakes and biscuits rise and become so super fluffy. Double-acting baking powder, which is the kind that you'll find in the grocery store, produces bubbles in two ways: when it is mixed with wet ingredients and then when it gets heated.
The leavening power of baking soda is about three to four times stronger than baking powder. This means that you need a lot less baking soda in your recipes. If a recipe calls for baking soda and you only have baking powder, you need to use the right baking soda to baking powder conversion.
Use 1 teaspoon of baking soda for every tablespoon of baking powder. To make sure it functions correctly, also add 2 teaspoons of vinegar, lemon juice, cream of tartar, or another acidic ingredient to your batter or dough.
To substitute baking soda for baking powder in banana bread, use one third the amount of baking soda that you would of baking powder. For example, if your recipe calls for 1 tablespoon of baking powder, you can use 1 teaspoon of baking soda (exactly one third).
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