Question

What is the purpose of adding baking soda when making peanut brittle.

Answer 1

Baking soda is sodium bicarbonate, which reacts with acidic compounds(HX) to form carbon dioxide gas. The chemical reaction can be shown as follows:

NaHCO3 + HX ------> NaX + H2O + CO2

During making of peanut brittle, addition of baking soda to melted syrup results in evolution of CO2 gas. Due to evolution of gas peanut brittle gets the brittle texture. In the absence of baking soda, such texture can not be obtained. Therefore, baking soda is added during making of peanut brittle.