How to know if your bicarb and baking powder are still good to use … kitchen helper
Getting ready to bake? Using old bicarbonate of soda or baking powder that is no longer effective is a good way to ruin your recipe and waste a lot of time and ingredients. Let’s be honest, unless you’re an avid baker, you’ve probably had those ingredients sitting in the pantry for quite a while. You’ve likely even searched for an expiry date, but as they are rarely labelled with one you’re left wondering if they are still good to use. You don’t have to guess though! You can easily test the effectiveness of your baking powder or bicarbonate of soda before you start cooking.
To test baking powder, just mix a teaspoon into half a cup of boiling water. Does it bubble? Awesome, your baking powder is good to use! If there’s no bubbles, it’s time to replace it. And what about bicarbonate of soda? Mix a quarter of a teaspoon into 2 teaspoons of vinegar or lemon juice. Once again, you should immediately see bubbling. If you don’t, the bicarb is no longer effective.
