Baking Soda

"Fish and visitors smell in three days."-Benjamin Franklin

There are some items that have hundreds of uses and should also be kept on-hand; examples include duct tape, vinegar, and baking soda. Can these really have over 100 uses? How about 500? Website ShelterPop.com recommends Vicki Lansky's book from 2003, Baking Soda: Over 500 Fabulous, Fun, and Frugal Uses You've Probably Never Thought Of. From the book ShelterPop has identified 15 unusual (but useful) ways to use baking soda:

1. Washing food
Wash toxins off the skin of fruits and vegetables with a baking soda paste on a sponge. Rinse the fruit/veg. well before eating.

2. Drain cleaner
Not as powerful as, say, Drano but much cheaper. Pour a half cup of baking soda down the drain followed by half cup of white vinegar. Wait two hours, then rinse with hot water.

3. Smelly Vacuum?
Sprinkle baking soda on the floor, then vacuum it up to kill odors in your vacuum.

4. Stinky Door Mat?
Deodorize your front door mat by sprinkling baking soda on it.

5. Soft hands
If you wash dishes with a baking soda paste, it'll remove tough baked-on food and soften your hands at the same time.

6. Musty books
Sprinkle baking soda between the pages of musty books, and brush it out a few days later for a fresh scent.

7. Remove Mothball smell
The smell of mothballs on clothing can be removed by adding ½ cup of baking soda to your washing machine's rinse cycle.

8. Oil and grease
Sprinkle soda on the garage or basement floor to soak up oil and grease.

9. Weathered look for a Deck
Remove mildew by washing your deck with a solution of two cups baking soda in one gallon water, and using a stiff straw brush to work the solution into the wood, then rinsing with cool water for a clean desk with an aged patina look. Try this in a hidden corner first to see if you like the weathered look.

10. Weed killer
Sweeping large amounts of sodium-rich baking soda into the cracks of your paved walks and driveways will eliminate weeds and dandelions.

11. Canvas cleaner
To clean canvas, rub on a paste of baking soda, then rub off.

12. Burnt pots
To eliminate seriously burnt-on food, pour in a thick cushion of baking soda, add an inch or so of water, and put the pot on the stove to boil. After boiling for a minute, try scrubbing again. Don't burn yourself!

13. Plastic shower curtains
Wash mildewed or dirty plastic shower curtains in the washing machine on the gentle cycle with a couple of bath towels, and add in a half cup of baking soda and detergent during the wash cycle. Add in one cup of vinegar during the rinse cycle, then let drip dry.

14. Automatic dishwasher detergent
Mix two tablespoons baking soda and two tablespoons borax, as a alternative to commercial dishwasher detergent.

15. Smokey or Smelly clothes
Place the clothing in a plastic bag with baking soda for two days, then wash as usual.

Bottom Line
Baking soda is famous as an odor remover and a cleaner. Do you know the difference between Baking Soda and Baking Powder? If not check out my blog from a year ago at http://perpetualpreparedness.blogspot.com/2009/07/baking-powder-food-science.html

Baking Powder & Food Science

“In France, cooking is a serious art form and a national sport.”-Julia Child

For several days after a local disaster, odds are you won’t be able to drive to the local grocery store to pick up some missing ingredients. For this reason all preparedness sites will recommend food storage and stocking up on supplies. But sometimes even the best plans have a gap and you discover you forgot something basic like baking powder. When that happens it’s nice to have a list of emergency ingredient substitutions in a good cookbook (like Joy of Cooking) or printed (in advance) off a website like http://chemistry.about.com/od/foodcookingchemistry/a/substitutions.htm?nl=1

What is baking powder and how would you make it? According to Wikipedia, “Baking powder is a dry chemical leavening agent used to increase the volume and lighten the texture of baked goods such as muffins, cakes, and biscuits. … It is used instead of yeast for end products where fermentation flavors would be undesirable or where the batter lacks the elastic structure to hold gas bubbles for more than a few minutes. … Breads made by chemical leavening are called quick breads.”

Baking powder consists of an alkaline/base component (typically baking soda), one or more acid salts and an inert filler (like cornstarch). When the powder (single acting) gets wet the base and acid react producing gassy bubbles. The role of the filler is to extend the shelf life of the powder by absorbing moisture and preventing a reaction in the baking powder container. Over time the filler will be used up and the baking soda goes flat if not tightly sealed.

I used the phrase “single acting” which needs explaining. Baking powder that reacts when wet is single acting. In contrast “double acting” powder requires liquid AND heat to react. Double acting is useful when you want something to rise in the oven while cooking.

If you’re out of baking powder or find that it’s gone flat, you can make it as follows:

1 teaspoon of Single Acting Baking Powder =
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar (an acidic salt)
1/4 teaspoon cornstarch or potato starch

You can leave out the cornstarch if you’re making just enough for one recipe and using it immediately.

Bottom Line

My mother majored in Home Economics at the University of Idaho. One of her textbooks, which I found fascinating as a teen, was called the Chemistry of Cooking. It explained why things happen when you cook. Today a great source for food science facts is the TV show “Good Eats” by Alton Brown on the Food Network. Knowing the science can make one a better cook.

For example, do you know that deep fried food need NOT be greasy! Greasiness is a sign that the oil was not hot enough (perhaps from too much food put in the oil too quickly) or that the food was left in the fryer longer than necessary. Under the right conditions, the food being fried emits steam from the heat of the oil and the steam prevents oil from going into the food.