Can we talk about how baking powder goes bad without you knowing?

I made two batches of biscuits last Tuesday, one with a fresh can and one from the back of my cabinet. The old batch came out flat and dense while the new ones rose perfectly. How often do you guys replace your leavening agents?

3 comments

3 Comments

oliver_wilson491mo agoMost Upvoted

Test your old powder by dropping a teaspoon into hot water if it fizzes strongly its still good but if it barely bubbles its dead and your biscuits will always turn out sad.

elizabethg181mo ago

That's actually super helpful, but how long does it take for the fizzing to really matter? Like if it fizzes a little bit but not a ton, is it still okay to use or am I just setting myself up for flat biscuits?

julia_patel1mo ago

Oh wow yeah that test is pretty straightforward but I actually had a friend who tried it and totally misread the results... She saw a few tiny bubbles and figured it was fine and then her muffins came out like hockey pucks. Turns out her powder was borderline but not strong enough to lift anything. I've learned the hard way that if it's not a really good fizz like a soda can opening then just toss it and get fresh stuff. It's way cheaper than wasting a whole batch of ingredients on sad flat biscuits.