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Sodium bicarbonate must react with acid, while baking powder pairs it with one. The figure is taken from Encyclopaedia Britannica, which is linked in full on this page. Every fact on Mondo Knows names its source rather than repeating an unsourced claim.

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Baking soda needs an acid and baking powder brings its own

Sodium bicarbonate must react with acid, while baking powder pairs it with one

Bicarbonate of soda releases carbon dioxide only when it meets an acid such as buttermilk, yoghurt or vinegar. Baking powder is bicarbonate pre-mixed with a dry acid and a starch buffer, so it works in plain batters. Double-acting powders release gas twice, once when wetted and again in the oven.

Where this comes from

Encyclopaedia Britannica

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Tags: baking, leavening, chemistry

Baking soda needs an acid and baking powder brings its own: the short answers

Where does this come from, and can I check it?: Sodium bicarbonate must react with acid, while baking powder pairs it with one. The figure is taken from Encyclopaedia Britannica, which is linked in full on this page. Every fact on Mondo Knows names its source rather than repeating an unsourced claim.
Is this really a food fact?: Yes. It sits on the Food shelf, one of 1,090 sourced facts grouped into space, animals, the human body, history, science and more. Category pages collect every fact in the same field.
What else can I read about it?: The links under the fact point to a quiz, game, puzzle or calculator on the same subject, and the shelf below shows related facts. The wording here is original, and quoted phrases are marked as quotations.