Bicarbonate of soda

Used in 15 recipes on RecipeWiki.

Bicarbonate of soda is an alkaline raising agent. It releases carbon dioxide when it meets an acid such as buttermilk, yoghurt, honey or brown sugar, which is why Buttermilk Soda Bread and Buttermilk Pancakes rely on it. Too much leaves a soapy, metallic taste, so measure it level. It also browns: it helps the cookie dough in Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies colour, and a pinch in the parboiling water for Crisp Roast Potatoes roughens their surface for extra crunch. Sieve it with the flour to break up lumps. Once it is wet, the reaction starts, so bake batters promptly.

What else can I make with it?

Most often cooked with

Recipes with bicarbonate of soda

Banana Bread shot from directly overhead, a true flat lay

Banana Bread

Blackened bananas mashed into a soured-cream batter and baked low, so the crumb stays damp and the sugar-heavy crust does not burn before the middle sets.

1 hr 15 minServes 10

AmericanBakingBreakfast

Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies — shot from directly overhead: chocolate chip cookies made with browned butter and a long overnight rest

Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Chocolate chip cookies made with browned butter and a long overnight rest, which deepens the flavour and stops them spreading thin.

12 hr 37 minServes 20

AmericanBakingChocolate

Buttermilk Pancakes — shot from directly overhead: thick American-style pancakes raised with buttermilk and bicarbonate of soda

Buttermilk Pancakes

Thick American-style pancakes raised with buttermilk and bicarbonate of soda, mixed in under a minute so the batter stays lumpy.

AmericanBreakfastVegetarian

Buttermilk Soda Bread — shot from directly overhead: a yeast-free loaf leavened with bicarbonate of soda and buttermilk

Buttermilk Soda Bread

A yeast-free loaf leavened with bicarbonate of soda and buttermilk, in the oven ten minutes after you start and cooling within the hour.

BakingBreadIrish

by zestykestrel

Chickpea and Spinach Stew — shot from directly overhead: dried chickpeas cooked from scratch and thickened with fried bread pounded to a paste

Chickpea and Spinach Stew

Dried chickpeas cooked from scratch and thickened with fried bread pounded to a paste, which is how Seville gets body without cream.

14 hr 15 minServes 4

Leafy greensMain coursesSpanish

Crisp Roast Potatoes — shot from directly overhead: floury potatoes parboiled with bicarbonate of soda

Crisp Roast Potatoes

Floury potatoes parboiled with bicarbonate of soda, roughed up in the pan, then roasted in fat that is already smoking hot.

1 hr 20 minServes 6

BritishPotatoesSide dishes

Crumpets — shot from directly overhead: a wet yeasted batter cooked in rings on a low griddle

Crumpets

A wet yeasted batter cooked in rings on a low griddle, with bicarbonate stirred in at the end so the holes open right through.

2 hr 5 minServes 5

BreadBritishVegetarian

Crushed Roast Potatoes — shot from directly overhead: floury potatoes parboiled

Crushed Roast Potatoes

Floury potatoes parboiled, crushed flat and roasted in hot fat, so the broken surfaces crisp into edges a whole roast potato never gets.

1 hr 15 minServes 6

BritishPotatoesSide dishes

Hand-Rolled Bagels — shot from directly overhead: a stiff low-hydration dough rolled by hand

Hand-Rolled Bagels

A stiff low-hydration dough rolled by hand, retarded overnight and boiled before baking, which is what sets the chewy glossy crust.

14 hr 35 minServes 8

AmericanBreadJewish

Medovik — shot from directly overhead: honey layer cake of thin baked discs

Medovik

Honey layer cake of thin baked discs, filled with soured cream and left overnight until the layers soften into cake.

10 hr 40 minServes 12

DessertsRussianVegetarian

Oladyi — shot from directly overhead: small thick pancakes raised with kefir and bicarbonate of soda

Oladyi

Small thick pancakes raised with kefir and bicarbonate of soda, fried in a shallow film of oil until the edges set crisp.

BreakfastRussianVegetarian

Pryaniki — shot from directly overhead, the table surface filling the frame

Pryaniki

Spiced honey biscuits with a soft crumb and a thin white sugar glaze that dries to a matt shell as they cool.

1 hr 45 minServes 24

DessertsRussianVegetarian

Skillet Cornbread — shot from directly overhead: a savoury all-cornmeal bread baked in a preheated cast-iron pan

Skillet Cornbread

A savoury all-cornmeal bread baked in a preheated cast-iron pan, so the batter hits hot fat and sets a crust as it lands.

BreadSouthern USAmerican

Smetannik — shot from directly overhead, the table surface filling the frame

Smetannik

Soft honey-scented sponge layers stacked with a whipped soured cream filling and left overnight to soften.

9 hr 35 minServes 12

DessertsRussianVegetarian

Sticky Toffee Pudding — shot from directly overhead: a dark date sponge skewered and soaked with hot toffee sauce the moment it leaves the oven

Sticky Toffee Pudding

A dark date sponge skewered and soaked with hot toffee sauce the moment it leaves the oven, then served with the rest of the sauce.

1 hr 15 minServes 9

BritishDessertsVegetarian