What is cream of tartar chemically and why does it do this?

[ertyu]

https://gfycat.com/ringedevergreengentoopenguin

Not a thing where I am from. What is it? I assume a dressing or some sort? Is it acidic? Suggested substitutions?

[daylen]

"First of all, it's not creamy. It's a dry, powdery, acidic byproduct of fermenting grapes into wine. Its sciency name is potassium bitartrate, aka potassium hydrogen tartrate or tartaric acid (hence the commercial name). But you can find it in the spice aisle labeled as plain ol' cream of tartar."

- some random website

[Frita]

Cream of tarter helps to stabilize whipped egg whites and is a leavening agent for baked goods. When whipping egg whites, substitute equal amount of lemon juice or vinegar. In baked goods, substitute baking powder at 1.5 times the amount of cream of tarter. Consider just finding a different recipe that doesn’t use it if you don’t like making substitutions.

If buying cream of tarter, consider buying a bit in bulk or the smallest jar as you won’t use much.

[ertyu]

Thank you, problem solved

[Alphaville]

beware that baking powder contains other substances like sodium bicarbonate (aka baking soda, nasty flavor) which is a buffer and might ruin your plans, plus other various things designed for a "second rise" etc. so don't use baking powder to make mascarpone.

in other applications you can use lemon or vinegar though.

oh you want to clean, just saw your link. use distilled vinegar? wow that pan is MESSED UP.

ETA: if you can find OXALIC ACID, which here is sold as "bar keeper's friend," it's really the best cleaner for steel and that sort of stuff. bar keeper's also uses feldspar, whichhere is used in another cleaning powder called "bon ami".

i've removed burns with overnight sodium bicarbonate soaks as well plus double use as mild abrasive. it's cheap and widely available everywhere.

[Frita]

+1 on Bar Keeper’s Friend Heat up the baking soda water and add a few drops of blue Dawn dishwashing soap, bring to a books, cover with a lid, and let soak.



Baking powder = 2 parts of cream of tartar + 1 part baking soda If the recipe already calls for baking soda, I’d adjust accordingly. Alpha like has a point that too much has a nasty taste, hence, the find a different recipe.

[Alphaville]

yup, single acting baking powder is easy to diy. although some brands use monocalcium phosphate instead of tartaric acid, plus cornstarch as a carrier, etc.

double acting baking powder is trickier because in addition to those it’s got other compounds that react only at high temperature, creating a second rise during the bake. monocalcium phosphate acts in both cold + hot phase. depending on baking powder brand, you might also find: sodium aluminum sulfate, sodium aluminum phosphate, and sodium acid pyrophosphate (in “aluminum free” powders)

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i think frita’s suggestion to boil sodium bicarbonate is the most universally available solution because it’s cheaply found everywhere, but use on steel not aluminum.

[Frita]

Alphaville is much more knowledgeable about the ins and outs of baking powder than me. My knowledge is from 4-H cooking and baking programs from 35-40+ years ago. We had to memorize equivalent measurements and substitutions. My grandma had me and my friends scratch cooking and doing Chopped challenges before it was a thing. There were some disastrous results at times.

[Alphaville]

My grandma had me and my friends scratch cooking and doing Chopped challenges before it was a thing. There were some disastrous results at times.

that is brilliant, and i'm sure it was a blast

[Frita]

It was!! My friend and I were in second grade when we made a layer cake without a recipe. Due to lack of stirring and too much leavening agents, it did not rise evenly. The frosting was a drippy mess. My grandma ate it, declaring it the “best cake ever.” (Sorry, we didn’t write down the recipe. LOL). This is one of my best childhood memories.