Baking powder
A chemical leavener made of baking soda, one or more dry acids and a little starch, which releases carbon dioxide to make batters rise.
- Baking ingredients and additives
Also called: double-acting baking powder
When baking powder gets wet, its acid and baking soda react and give off carbon dioxide. Most baking powder sold for home use is double-acting: part of the reaction happens when the batter is mixed and the rest when it heats in the oven, so batters do not have to go into the oven the instant they are mixed.
Baking powder is not interchangeable one-for-one with baking soda. Soda needs an acid in the recipe (buttermilk, yogurt, brown sugar, natural cocoa) and is several times stronger; baking powder brings its own acid. To check that baking powder is still active, stir a little into hot water: it should fizz right away.
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Tools for this
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Related entries
Sources
Written by VanillaGoods in our own words from these sources. Last reviewed October 15, 2026.
- The Difference Between Baking Soda and Baking Powder, North Carolina State University (NC State News)
- Holiday Baking Ingredients, Iowa State University Extension and Outreach (AnswerLine)
- Understanding Ingredients for the Canadian Baker: Baking Powder, BCcampus Open Publishing (BC Cook Articulation Committee)
- Baking powder (Q29476), Wikidata