Expert: Robert Connolly - 9/28/2008

Question
dear sir
i am meisam nasiri , studying chemistry in one of iran 's universities ,sophomore ,working in a bread baking company . i had some questions about the usage of baking soda in bread , its side effects , is there any advantage or disadvantage in using baking soda in bread . please help me out .
i really appreciate and looking forward to hearing from you soon .
meisam nasiri


Answer
hello meisam,wow,you are studying chemistry,you probably know more than i do about this stuff but i will do my best to try and help you.let's look at baking soda and it's properties for a bit,it is a salt first of all,salt can have some basic preservative properties in and of itself which can add a little shelf life to a product but only as a by-product of it's more important role which it leavening or adding bubbles and rise to a product like bread,baking powder,another salt is also helpfull in combination with baking soda to give rise to breads.one of it's advantages in warmer climates like you have in iran is that you don't need refrigeration like you do when you use yeast,yeast raised doughs like we commonly use in the usa require refrigeration during summer to retard the activity levels in the dough so it does not overheat before it's ready to be baked,also by using baking soda you can reduce the salt content by adjusting for the salt properties in the baking soda,another thing is it is cheaper than yeast by a good marjin,one of the things i make at my bakery here are tea bisquits,i use only baking powder for leavening,and they come out just wonderfull,nice and fluffy and delicious,there are some religions which limit certian kinds of leavening agents as well so companies are always trying to produce products to acomidate these things to increase thier costomer base.i hope this has helped you and given you some things to think about for your career.all the best to you! robert connolly. u.s.a. www.millsbakery.com        let me know if you have any other questions in the future! good luck! meisam,i forgot one thing,the only thing i could think of in terms of a adverse affect with baking soda is for people with high blood pressure, people with high blood pressure may need to avoid salt in thier diets and bread made this way would need to be avoided,other than that i see no adversity.