Which is better to use baking soda or baking powder for making cakes?
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I'm confused. I would like to know which is better to use: baking powder or baking soda for making cake. Or which is best for what recipes.
Best Answer
They are different ingredients and one does not replace the other. Baking soda is an alkali which can react with acidic ingredients in a recipe to produce carbon dioxide which helps baked goods rise. Baking powder includes baking soda (or similar) and an acidic ingredient, so it is more 'self-contained' rather than relying on something else in the recipe. (Self-raising flour is basically flour with baking powder mixed in, to be even more self-contained.)
But you should just follow whatever is in the recipe you are making or adapting. If you have found a recipe you are trying to follow which does not make it clear you could post it in your question and we could try to work it out from the other ingredients.
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Quick Answer about "Which is better to use baking soda or baking powder for making cakes?"
Baking soda as we talked about reacts immediately to acidic elements and gives immediate leavening effect. The baking powder keeps reacting with the heat to give a leavening boost while the baked goods are in the oven. A combination of both these leavening agents gives the best leavening for most cake recipes.Should I use baking soda or baking powder in cake?
Because of baking soda's bitter taste, it must be paired with a sweeter tasting acidic compound. Baking soda is most commonly used in cookie and muffin recipes. Baking powder, however, already contains an acid and a base and has a more neutral taste, which works great when baking cakes and bread.What happens if I use baking soda instead of powder in cake?
If you swap in an equal amount of baking soda for baking powder in your baked goods, they won't have any lift to them, and your pancakes will be flatter than, well, pancakes. You can, however, make a baking powder substitute by using baking soda.Does it matter if you use baking soda instead of baking powder?
If you have a baking recipe that calls for baking soda, and you only have baking powder, you may be able to substitute, but you will need 2 or 3 times as much baking powder for the same amount of baking soda to get the same amount of leavening power, and you may end up with something that's a little bitter tasting, ...Baking Soda vs. Baking Powder: The Difference
Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
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