Question

Explain the action of baking powder in the making of cake (or bread). Write equation of the reaction involved.

 

Answer 1

On mixing baking powder with water, which is present in the dough prepared for baking a cake or bread, sodium hydrogencarbonate reacts with tartaric acid to evolve carbon dioxide gas. The carbon dioxide gas gets trapped in the wet dough and bubbles out slowly, and the cake becomes soft and spongy.

`NaHCO_3 (aq) + H^+ (aq) -> Na^+ (aq) + CO_2 (g) + H_2O (l)`

Note: Here, H⁺ is from tartaric acid and Na⁺ is from sodium tartrate salt.