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Baking Powder and Bitter Taste
Posted January 20, 2007 – 10:52 pm by Yakov Shafranovich in PersonalThis past Friday I ended up baking a small cherry cake for our family. The recipe was very simple – it only had 5 ingriedents: flour, baking powder, eggs, oil and pie filling. Unfortunatly, after the cake was baked, it turned out that it tasted very bitter to me. My wife on the other hand, did not taste anything unusual. To add more to this mystery, I have been tasting a bit of bitterness in some baked goods at my home for quite some time. My first thought was an egg substitute but after some research, it was something entirely different.
It turns out that the blame is on the baking powder. There are two reasons why baking powder can cause something to taste bitter:
1. Some people are sensitive to a specific type of baking powder. It turns out that there are TWO types of baking powder – one containing a salt called “sodium aluminum sulfate”, and others that don’t. This particular salt is bitter according to this page and this page. Wikipedia seems to imply that some people are more sensitive to its taste than others. While there has been healthy concerns, it does not look like they were confirmed.
2. Using too much baking powder causes bitterness. According to this page at Joys Of Baking, too much baking powder can cause bitter taste. The normal proportion is about 1 to 2 teaspoons per 1 cup of flour. This recipe had a mistake – 2 TABLESPOONS instead of 2 tea spoon.
While I was researching this, it turns out that for the past year we used to use non-aluminum baking powder made by Rumford. However, recently we ran out, and when I went to check the cupboard, it turns out that we switched to a different brand made by Clabber Girl which contans aluminum.
P.S. The only reason why I am bothering to post this is because it took me more than 20 minutes of Googling to find the right answer. I am hoping that my post will help others find the answer quicker.
Tags: baking, baking powder, food, health —
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7 Responses to “Baking Powder and Bitter Taste”
I know this sounds nerdy haha, but it really helped. I never cook with baking powder but recently I made a sponge, and it tasted so bitter. I’m so relieved to know it’s not me haha.
By little.birdy on Oct 20, 2008
I recently switched brands. This must be the cause of the bitterness to taste…thank you for posting.
By Jana on Mar 15, 2009
Wow. I just made banana bread and used baking powder for the first time (usually I stick with soda because I am leery of additives). Its quite unfortunate that the only time my banana bread tastes otherwise excellent, the ridiculous bitter aftertaste of this baking powder is partially ruining it for me! Thanks for posting this. I was analyzing each and every component and it was very vexing to not know where that bitterness came from! This baking powder goes in the trash today. Ugh.
By Tinypliny on Jun 20, 2009
I have tasted a bitter taste in homemade muffins, pancakes and waffles since I was a kid. No one else in my family (wife and two kids) tastes the bitter taste. After a little on-line research, we decided to switch from a sodium aluminum sulfate baking powder (Clabber , walmart brand) to a monocalcium phosphate baking powder (Rumford). The change was amazing to me, the rest of the family couldn’t tell a difference. I finally know why they like waffles and pancakes so much.
By Mark on Aug 30, 2009
thamks so much for this post! i made gorgeous scones with dried cantaloupe and a rum glaze for a tea gathering–and was disgusted to find that “ridiculous bitter aftertaste” in a recipe i’ve used 10+ years successfully. my bulk store must’ve switched suppliers. they surely will hear about it!
By jael on Oct 18, 2009
Not to sound overly dramatic (although I know it will), but this post didn’t just save me some unnecessary Google time, it may have changed my life. I had no idea that other people could not taste baking powder. I have avoided baked goods for years and thought I was just picky or crazy. I couldn’t imagine that other people simply did not taste that overwhelming horrible flavor — they must taste it and not mind it, making me the weird one. All that said, we’ve only ever had Clabber Girl baking powder — it’s what I grew up with and what I have bought out of habit. I wouldn’t know how the other kind is because I’ve never tried it. Guess what’s going on the grocery list!
By Kate on Dec 4, 2009
I get that same bitter taste using a baking mix or corn bread mix and was told it was the baking soda, not baking powder. After checking ingredients on the box, the mix had baking soda. But it was an old mix, could that be the problem? If not, what can I do to make the mix not taste bitter? Add flour or more liquid?
By Damsel on Dec 23, 2009