bicarb or baking powder?

mrs_mix

black-saturn wrote:

But they both do the same job yeh?

not quite they are both raising agents but for different things although baking powder does have bicarb in it
full explanation http://chemistry.about.com/cs/foodchemistry/f/blbaking.htm
hth

pam xx

V.Lucky

Want baking powder for a recipe but only have bicarb.

Can I still use bicarb - cake recipe.

I notice on the back of the pack it says to add cream of tartar, but of course I don't have any of this.

Wanted to make it tonight.

thanks

Gingernutmeg

No, they're not the same thing - if you add bicarb to your cake it might not work too well ... sorry

V.Lucky

Oh bum!!


Thanks for the quick reply anyway.

Will put it on my shopping list for tomorrow then.

purplemoon

I thought bicarb was in baking powder? If you wanted to experiment you could try using self raising flour instead- I know its possible to make flour 'self raising' by adding baking powder to it so it should work the over way around?

V.Lucky

Thanks purplemoon, but it's a slimming world "pretend cake" recipe with no flour in it at all.

Sounds delicious, although I had rather hoped to have it tonight.

Gingernutmeg

Bicarb is in baking powder, but it's mixed with other stuff (cream of tartar, I think) so that it gives you the right kind of reaction to make cakes rise. If you use it on it's own it just tends to make stuff taste salty.

Baking soda is the same thing as bicarb - baking powder is something different

smsmasters

Read this:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sodium_bicarbonate

lonelyinlondon

Evening all!

I fancy doing some baking tomorrow and have found a "mystery"
tub of white powder in my cupboard. (oops that sounds dodgy!) Problem is that i don't know whether it is baking powder or bicarb! Are they interchangeable?

Thanks.

odds-n-sods

no, they arent'. Put a little in a glass add some vinegar - if it foams up its bicarb.