Baking Powder vs. Baking Soda: What’s the Difference?

If you’ve ever baked anything from scratch, you’ve likely come across recipes that call for either baking powder or baking soda—or sometimes both. While these two ingredients might seem similar, they play very different roles in baking. Understanding the difference between baking powder and baking soda is key to achieving the perfect rise in your baked goods.

Baking Soda: Baking soda, also known as sodium bicarbonate, is a powerful leavening agent that helps your baked goods rise. It’s a base, which means it needs an acid (like lemon juice, buttermilk, or yogurt) to activate it. When baking soda comes into contact with an acid, it produces carbon dioxide bubbles, which cause your batter or dough to expand and rise.

Baking Powder: Baking powder, on the other hand, is a complete leavening agent. It contains both the base (baking soda) and acids (one slow-acting and one fast-acting), along with a drying agent like cornstarch. This means that baking powder doesn’t need an additional acidic ingredient to work—just moisture and heat. Most baking powders are double-acting, meaning they release some gas when mixed with wet ingredients and then more gas when exposed to heat, ensuring a thorough rise.

When to Use Baking Soda vs. Baking Powder The choice between baking soda and baking powder depends on the ingredients in your recipe:

• Use baking soda when your recipe includes acidic ingredients. The baking soda will react with the acid to create the leavening effect you need.
• Use baking powder when your recipe doesn’t include acidic ingredients. The built-in acid in baking powder ensures your baked goods rise properly.

Sometimes, a recipe will call for both. This usually happens when a little extra leavening is needed beyond what the acid in the recipe can provide with baking soda alone.

While baking soda and baking powder might seem interchangeable, they each have specific functions that are crucial to your baking success. By understanding when and how to use each, you can ensure your cakes, cookies, and breads turn out perfectly every time. 

As with most recipes, quality matters. With Clabber Girl, you can trust that you’re using the best baking ingredients to achieve delicious results.