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Hi Bold Bakers!
I have been swamped with messages asking to show you how to substitute raising agents in your baking — including a baking soda substitute. Luckily, this is totally doable. Baking powder and baking soda are both baking essentials, and depending on the specific recipe you may need one or the other, or both. If you run out of one while you are baking I’m going to tell you how you can substitute it in a recipe!
Let’s start out with the what:
What Is Baking Powder?
It is a raising agent that reacts with moisture in your recipe to activate it and make your baked goods rise. An example of this is: If you add baking powder to water you will see it bubble up and get fizzy.
How To Make Baking Powder Substitute
To make baking powder, mix together 1 tablespoon of baking soda and 2 tablespoons of cream of tartar. Cream of tartar is an acid and it is used to activate the baking soda in recipes. It is a by-product of winemaking.
What Is Baking Soda?
Baking soda is another raising agent, but it has to react with an acid in your recipe to activate it. By an acid, I mean a recipe that has buttermilk, yogurt, sour cream, vinegar and so on. If you add baking soda into vinegar you will see it bubble up and fizz over. That is the acid reaction.
How To Make A Baking Soda Substitute
For every 1 teaspoon of baking soda in a recipe, replace it with 4 teaspoons of baking powder — so use 4 times the amount of baking powder. The ratio is 1:4.
Notes on Yeast
Yeast, fresh or dried, is a raising agent for bread and dough. Now, you can use active dried or fast-action yeast. They are similar except fast action doesn’t require you to let your dough rise a second time unlike active dried yeast. Sorry, but there is no substitute for yeast in a recipe. You need to add it in for the recipe to rise.
But, not all bread needs yeast! Make my Traditional Irish Soda Bread or Best-Ever Banana Bread, for instance.
Want more baking tips like these? Check out my Weight Conversion Chart and How to Substitute Sugar in Recipes.
And don’t forget to buy my Bigger Bolder Baking Cookbook for more recipes!
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About Us
Meet Gemma
About Us
Meet Gemma
Hi Bold Bakers! I’m Gemma Stafford, a professional chef originally from Ireland, a cookbook author, and the creator of Bigger Bolder Baking. I want to help you bake with confidence anytime, anywhere with my trusted and tested recipes and baking tips. You may have seen one of my 500+ videos on YouTube & TikTok or as a guest judge on Nailed It! on Netflix or the Best Baker in America on Food Network. No matter your skills, my Bold Baking Team & I want to be your #1 go-to baking authority.
This is not helpful. You don’t show how to create either of these items. To make either, you have to have the other. I want to know how to create baking soda from nature. Is it distilled from salt? Is it dug out of the ground? How would a person living in the woods, in primitive conditions make baking soda?
What should I do if I don’t have cream of tartar to make to baking powder substitute. What should I do?
What can you do to make up baking soda and baking powder if you have none what can you use to substitute them.
What if I have neither baking powder or baking soda?
Hi Gemma! I just love your recipes and videoes! I just bought your cookbook for myself and my daughter! I even bought us each a set of your adorable measuring cups, but I would like to know where you purchased your cute measuring spoons! Thank you
Thank you for sharing this valuable information. Baking is not my best kitchen skill. You were clear and concise in your instruction. This ability is rare and you have been blessed with a gift from God. Also, I could listen to you speak all day!! Your accent is beautiful. Your words are actually crisp and a far cry from the long, slow drawl that’s characteristic of my Southern twang.
Blessing To You,
Ashley
North Carolina, USA
You can sub sourdough for yeast as it contains natural yeast, but you’d have to alter the amounts and extend the fermentation time.
Hi Gemma! Thank you for sharing your expertise! Could I please ask how much orange juice to use to neutralise baking soda? I understand that lime and lemon are more acidic but is it possible to achieve the same results with more orange juice? Thank you.
Hello Gemma 🙂
Can you help me understand when in a recipe we use only baking soda or only baking powder or both baking powder and baking soda?
Thanx for the article.but baking powder if used overly ..does it give crumbled effect? And how to get rid of baking soda bitterness.?
Also when these two r used in combination, what effect we should expect?