Baking powder
Baking powder is a dry chemical leavening agent used to make baked foods lighter and less dense. Baking powder works by making a reaction between an acid and a base. This produces carbon dioxide bubbles to make the mixture light. Baking powder was invented by the English chemist Alfred Bird (1811–1878) in 1843.
It is used when the food should not taste of yeast,[1] or when the mixture is not elastic enough to hold bubbles for very long.[2] But sometimes, it has a metallic taste.[3] Because carbon dioxide is made faster by baking powder than yeast, breads made with it are called quick breads.
Most baking powders are made up of an alkaline (usually baking soda), one or two acid salts, and a starch (cornstarch or sometimes potato starch). Baking soda is where the carbon dioxide comes from,[4] and the acid releases it, like this:[5]
- NaHCO3 + H+ → Na+ + CO2 + H2O
Bird was quickly followed by Henry Jones (1812 – 12 July 1891) who invented self-raising flour in 1845.
Baking Powder Media
U.S. consumer-packaged baking powder. This particular type of baking powder contains monocalcium phosphate, sodium bicarbonate, and cornstarch.
Monocalcium phosphate ("MCP") is a common acid component in domestic baking powders.
Advertisement for DeLand & Co's Chemical Baking Powder. Earliest possible date: 1877; latest possible date: 1893
The Rumford Cook Book, 1910, back cover
Prof. Horsford's Phosphatic Baking Powder, ca. 1900
German advertisement for Dr. Oetker's baking powder in 1903.
Baking powder with sodium acid pyrophosphate, New Zealand, 1950s
Effective baking powder foams when placed in hot water.
The Horsford Cookbook, 1877
The Horsford 1887 almanac and cook book, 1887
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References
- ↑ Matz, Samuel A. (1992). Bakery Technology and Engineering (3 ed.). Springer. p. 54. ISBN 9780442308551. Retrieved 2009-08-12.
- ↑ McGee, Harold (2004). On Food and Cooking (revised ed.). Scribner-Simon & Schuster. p. 533. ISBN 9781416556374. Retrieved 2009-08-12.
- ↑ Nast, Condé (2015-08-11). "The Mysteries of Aluminum-Free Baking Powder". Epicurious. Retrieved 2021-08-07.
- ↑ "Chemical Leaveners, Lallemand Baking Update, Vol. 1 No. 12, 1996" (PDF). Lallemand Inc. Retrieved 2009-03-05.
- ↑ A.J. Bent, ed. (1997). The technology of cake making (6 ed.). Springer. p. 102. ISBN 9780751403497. Retrieved 2009-08-12.