Description
You might be wondering what is baked baking soda and what’s it used for? For starters, when you heat baking soda in the oven for a long period of time, it chemically alters it from being bicarbonate of soda into sodium carbonate which is an even stronger alkaline salt. This alkaline salt is then used to make slippery, extra springy, homemade ramen (noodles) and Chinese wheat noodles for dishes like dan dan mian, and even works as a great substitute for lye water when making homemade pretzels.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup baking soda (bicarbonate of soda) (100g)
Instructions
- Bake the baking soda. Preheat the oven to 250°F/121°C. Add the baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) to a baking pan covered with aluminum foil and spread it out into an even layer, Bake it for one hour. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely. Transfer to a glass jar and seal it until ready to use. *Alternatively, you may use a glass baking dish to bake the baking soda, but add an extra 20 or 30 minutes to the baking time because glass takes longer to heat and to transfer heat evenly than aluminum.
Notes
- If you’re making baked baking soda primarily for making homemade noodles, use the amount called for in the recipe above. This is plenty for several rounds of ramen or dan dan noodles since you only use about 1 tablespoon for each batch.
- If you’re making baked baking soda primarily for substituting lye when making pretzels, I suggest tripling the recipe because you’ll need about 2/3 cup of baked lye for the alkaline water solution you’ll cook the proofed pretzels in before baking them.
- If making larger batches of baked baking soda (sodium carbonate), you may choose to bake it on two separate baking trays or bake it on one tray for 2 hours total. If baking on one single tray, be sure to toss the baking soda about halfway through the baking time using a wooden or metal spatula to move it around a little. Then, spread it back out as evenly as possible and allow it to continue baking.
- A note on safety. Be careful with baked baking soda when transferring it to a glass jar for storage. It is a strong alkaline at this stage and can cause irritation to your skin.
- Store the baked baking soda in a glass jar, label it, and keep it in a dry, cool place away from humidity and sun (the back of a cabinet basically).
- Prep Time: 2 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Category: Pasta
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: Asian
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 tablespoon
