27 March 2016

Baking Soda and Baking Powder are not twins|There is indeed a difference between Baking Soda and Baking Powder


One fine evening...

Me: Honey P,don't forget to buy Baking Powder from the store ..

Honey P: OK....Added in my Grocery app !...Be right back....

Me:Drive safe hon ..

Honey P : I'll ;).......

After JUST 15 minutes ...(He is right ; When he shops alone,it takes only 10-15 minutes !) Wow

The silent garage sounds violent ...It's Honey P and his car doing a grand entry....

Honey P rushes in..

I am back...Hellooo Mrs.P ????

Mrs.P/Me : Ahaaa...That was fast hon...Want tea or coffee ? :) ..No :|,actually I asked if he bought the baking powder for sure,as if that's what I breathe to live....

Honey P: Of course I did..you know me :)
Me:I know,that's why I confirmed :)...Once you bought Basil leaves, when I asked you to bring mint leaves..So..
Honey P: Tadaaa...Here is your baking powder ..
Me: NahaaaaFacepalm....Honey,it's Baking Soda not "Baking Powder"..
Honey P : So what ?Aren't they same..baking..baking...what's the difference ?
Me ,lost in thought - Ummm...mmmm... one is Soda and other is powder :O...Long pause ...
Honey P,with a grin - How peaceful my home is now ?:D

Sometimes,spouses can be as irritating as your sibling ...Sigh !!

Recently,someone commented on one of my video where I absentmindedly said,Baking Soda instead of Baking Powder (my bad) ...Sometimes,I do mistakes twice to learn the lesson finally - if only I knew the difference well and used it carefully ..So,I asked my virtual better half,Google to guide me...So,Google did the research and this is what we learned ,which I thought of noting it down here as I don't trust my memory more than my blog ...and hope it will be helpful to others interested too....

So,the question is "What is the difference between Baking Soda and Baking Powder ?"

It's all chemistry here....... Don't sleep !

Baking soda, which is also known as Bicarbonate of soda /Soda bicarbonate and Baking powder are chemical leavening agents that release carbon dioxide in food products to rise while cooking.

Now, what is a leavening agent ?
According to Britannica.com ,"Leavening agent are substance causing expansion of dough and batters by the release of gases within such mixtures, producing baked products with porous structure. Such agents include air, steam, yeast, baking powder, and baking soda."
Like their names,and because of their leavening properties,they both are mainly apt to use for baking and they work in somewhat similar way but there is a difference - that is - Acid !


 Baking soda is a pure leaving agent .It acts as a base that needs to be mixed with "an acidic ingredient" for ex -Lemon juice,lime juice,vinegar,yogurt,buttermilk ,chocolate,honey etc AND "moisture" to release ( Carbon Dioxide in the form of bubbles in liquid forms) raising property in food .

However,this reaction is immediate ,which is not what we need while baking, as we want this effect to extend through out the baking process.

And that's where,Baking powder plays the double role as a double acting agent !

Baking Powder on the other hand , already contains Baking Soda, dry acids -Monocalcium phosphate and sodium acid pyrophosphate /sodium aluminum sulfate or Cream of Tartar and a powdered starch.So,it already has acids in it ,all it needs are "moisture" and "heat" to activate it's raising/puffing property and the acids in it helps in extending the leavening property throughout until the food is baked...





Baking powder has a neutral taste where as Baking Soda is tangy and if used extreme, can also taste bitter/soapy .Baking Soda also helps in browning/giving golden color texture to food .

Baking soda unlike Baking powder has more uses than just Baking ,like for beauty care,health care and household chores ..

Experts suggest that the recipes that requires baking powder ,it is better to use Baking powder and not Baking soda .However,if the recipe needs baking soda ,you can certainly substitute it with baking powder by just tripling the quantity of baking powder ,though the flavor may differ, so will be the texture ,as Baking soda also leads to browning .

Any recipe that requires either baking powder or baking soda ,must be cooked as soon as possible to take the full advantage of it's leavening properties ,otherwise most of the CO2 will be released to air and not to the food baked...

SO,that's my dear friend are the differences between baking soda and baking powder...

Now, I am all clear..Now, I won't do any identity assassination ...My humble bow to baking soda and baking powder respectively............ 

I am ready...Take my test !



BIG thanks to ->References: jsonline.com,http://humantouchofchemistry.com/Bakingemember, http://www.aww.com.au,https://news.ncsu.edu/2014/05/baking-soda-powder/...

Now off to baking,