What’s the Difference Between Baking Soda and Baking Powder?

Reader Contribution by Staff

What’s the difference between baking soda and baking powder? Are they interchangeable?

Lisa Yonk
Rogers, Arkansas

Baking soda and baking powder both help create a reaction that causes doughs to rise. This chemical reaction is dependent on the interaction of a base and an acid.

Baking soda is the common name for sodium bicarbonate, which is a base. When combined with an acid plus some moisture, such as buttermilk, the reaction releases carbon dioxide bubbles, causing dough to expand.

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