Baking soda vs. Baking powder (baking basics)

Over the past few years I have written a lot about baking soda. Although the ingredient is becoming better known and more readily available (in The Netherlands), there are still a lot of questions about it. Not everyone is aware that it’s really different from baking powder, and many don’t quite understand how to work with it now.

If you’ve followed me for a while you might have seen some tips passing by and maybe you already understand how the two work, but I thought it would be a good idea to explain in one article what the difference is between baking soda and baking powder and what you need to know to work with the two.

If a recipe calls for baking soda you cannot simply replace this with baking powder. The two are really very different.

What is baking soda?

Baking soda, sodium carbonate, bicarbonate of soda and sodium bicarbonate. Just a few names for the same product. Although there are many different ways to use baking soda for cooking and for using in your household, I only use it in recipes as a leavening agent. Do not confuse it with baking powder, which is very different.

Whereas baking powder is made up of several ingredients and needs nothing else to ‘work’ as a leavening agent, baking soda needs some help in the form of an acidic ingredient. The chemical reaction between the two will create the result you are looking for. The acidic ingredient can be something like lemon juice, which you would immediately associate with acid but there are many more options, some of which might surprise you. I’ll explain more later in the article.

Where to buy baking soda

Shops have realized that baking soda is becoming increasingly popular in the Netherlands, and that’s a good thing, because it’s much more readily available than it was a few years ago. Most grocery stores even have several varieties on their shelves these days, from Oetker bags to Arm & Hammer’s American orange boxes. Tokos, bakery/cookery shops and other shops often stock them too. It is also readily available online, of course.

In the United states you can find it online at stores like amazon but most grocery stores will stock it like Walmart to name just one. It should not be hard to find at all. You can find it in the baked goods section most of the times. Most famous are probably the orange boxes of arm & hammer.

Functions of baking soda

You may not have realized that baking soda is a multi-functional product, as you can do much more with it than just use for it’s leavening effect in a baking recipe.

Household uses

I always refer to baking soda as an ingredient. You might not expect it, but baking soda has many uses in the home. How about a homemade toothpaste and deodorant, or as an aid to removing a splinter? Or literally around the house as a fabric softener or cleaning agent. It’s fantastic for cleaning something simple like water bottles but is also perfect for making sure the drainage pipes in your house stay clean. Have a blocked drain? Try clearing it with a mix of baking soda and vinegar.

Uses in the kitchen

In the kitchen, of course, you can use baking soda for all the necessary cleaning tasks, but I’ll focus on recipes for now. You will often see baking soda used in a recipe to make a cake fluffy or make a bread rise. So it is a leavening agent. Sometimes only baking soda is used for this purpose, but I regularly combine it with baking powder. It’s also an easy way to tenderize meat or sea food. So a little baking soda goes a long way!

Baking soda and baking powder

The difference between baking soda and baking powder

Baking soda and baking powder are both baking ingredients and have leavening power. But there is an important difference. In a nutshell:

Baking soda only works if you also add something acidic and some liquid or wet ingredient. Upon contact the baking soda will produce carbon dioxide gas which results in the leavening effect. When you’re using baking soda the effect will be immediate which means it is best to bake right away if you use baking soda.

Baking powder consists of baking soda and an acidic component (often cream of tartar), so no extra acid is needed and it works by itself. The reaction of baking powder works in two stages; the first reaction will be upon contact with the liquid. The second reaction will be upon heating in the oven.

​Flavor

When not using enough acid in a baking recipe baking soda can have a soapy taste, so the acidic ingredient is needed to neutralize the flavor.

Baking powder already has a neutral taste since it has its own acid.

Shelf life

Baking soda lasts a really long time when stored in a dry place.

Baking powder does have an expiration date and a shorter shelf life due to the combined ingredients. You can test if it is still fresh by adding some warm water. If it creates air bubbles it is still active.

Substituting baking powder and baking soda

Can you use baking powder as a baking soda substitute and vice versa? Well technically no. Both work different and you cannot substitute one for the other. If you have only baking powder and the recipe wants you to use baking soda, you need about 3 times the amount of baking powder. But that will also have an effect on the texture of the cake batter as you will have more acid and extra filling.

If substituting baking powder with baking soda you will need an acidic ingredient to activate the baking soda. Which in turn will create a different flavor to the original intended recipe.

Combining baking soda and baking powder

If you use only baking soda in a recipe without an acid, it will have no effect. If you add baking powder, it will work because it already contains the dry acid you need. Of course, you can also use baking powder alone, but then you will need proportionally much more as the baking soda is only a small part of the mix.

For a nice, airy result, baking powder and baking soda are often combined. It will have a double acting effect. Even if the recipe already has the necessary acidity, it will still have a fluffy texture.

Baking soda reacts with these ingredients

Finally, the acidity I keep talking about. By now you’ve probably realized that baking soda needs enough acid to act as a leavening agent. Lemon is obvious, vinegar and buttermilk are also common and probably easy to think of.

But there are also ingredients that are less obvious. Honey, for example, but also chocolate or cocoa powder. Or what about sour cream ? There are many more ingredients than you might think that make baking soda work as a leavening agent. Check the list below for some surprising ingredients:

• ​Yogurt
• Sour cream
• maple syrup
• honey
• chocolate
• lemon juice
• grape juice
• brown sugar
• buttermilk
• vinegar
• orange juice
• ketchup

I bet there are a couple of ingredients here that you didn’t see coming. But this little list is not all. There are many more ingredients that will have the desired effect. Think about fruit purees for instance.

Did you know all this about baking soda? Or do you have more facts to share?