On 6/4/2016 1:01 PM, Nancy Young wrote:
> On 6/4/2016 1:41 PM, dejamos wrote:
>> On 6/4/2016 11:35 AM, wrote:
>
>>> I didn't either. I know enough to keep baking powder sealed and in the
>>> freezer, but I thought I didn't have to be that careful with baking
>>> soda - and yes, that's all the recipe calls for.
>
>> I had a cake fail a few years ago and when I looked at the ingredients
>> the only thing that looked like it *could* have been the culprit was the
>> baking soda that had expired many years earlier. I bought fresh and
>> remade the cake and it rose beautifully. Anecdotal, of course, but in
>> my experience baking soda can eventually lose its oooomph.
>
> I bought a book that arrived just this morning. Informative and
> entertaining, it's The Food Lab by Kenji Lopez-Alt. I looked it
> up, baking soda is good for 8 months to a year.
>
> Baking powder, 6 months to a year, depending on humidity.
>
> nancy
>
>
Interesting that the times are so close. I have successfully used both
baking soda and baking powder that was older than a year, but that
particular box had expired over 3 or 4 years earlier, IIRC.
There probably is some loss of effectiveness after a year or so, but
nothing that I have ever noticed. I always kept a closer watch on how
old the baking powder was than the baking soda; it's good to know that I
should be keeping an eye on both.
I keep both in the freezer these days and refill small jars that I keep
in my cupboard.