Cream of Tartar

Cream of Tartar or potassium bitartrate offers incredible value with its many uses, yet most kitchens hardly take advantage of it. In my kitchen, I use it often, even in ways I’ve never seen elsewhere. It has so much to contribute in the way that it can add acidity and bring out the flavors of the surrounding ingredients. It also has some major health benefits, seeing how most people are deficient in potassium. For this reason, it is an excellent ingredient to add to boost your potassium intake, just a little here and there.

What is Cream of tartar

Cream of Tartar is the byproduct of winemaking. It is a white powder with a PH level of 5. Processors derive it from the Potassium Acid Salt of Tartaric Acid, which gives it the name Cream of Tartar or potassium bitartrate. This powdery acid serves various purposes, including baking, cleaning solutions, and medicinal uses.

Cream of Tartar Taste Profile

It has a Sour Tangy taste much like powdered Citric Acid & Lemon Juice, although not quite as potent. It can have a metallic taste in baked goods and is why certain Baking Powders are more metallic in taste than others. Due to the ratios of Baking Soda & Potassium Bitartrate.

Is Cream of Tartar the same as Baking Soda

The two are different. Cream of Tartar is Tartaric Acid. Which is a byproduct of winemaking. Baking Soda is Sodium Bicarbonate and forms naturally around mineral springs. When Potassium Bitartrate is combined with Baking Soda, it creates Baking Powder.

How to use Cream of Tartar

1. Stabilize Egg Whites in Meringues. About 1/8 tsp per Egg White.
2. Used to stabilize Whipped Cream
3. Used in cookies. The most popular one being snickerdoodles, where it contributes a desirable tang. It’s the effects it has on preventing sugars from rebinding when heated. It also slows the browning process.
4. Baking Powder is made from 1/4 tsp each of Baking Soda & Cornstarch, with 1/2 tsp Cream of Tartar to substitute for 1 tsp of baking powder.
5. Added to boiling Vegetables to preserve the Color of the Vegetables. About 1/2 tsp to a pot of boiling water.
6. Preventing crystal formation in sugars. Add a pinch of it to syrups, icings, frostings, or boiling sugar will prevent the formation of crystals and prevent a grainy texture.
7. Replacing Buttermilk in a recipe. Use 1/2 tsp for every cup of milk.
8. As well as many other recipes for its desired effect in adding a Creaminess Feel or slight Tang.

What does Cream of Tartar do

Cream of Tatar is really an underutilized ingredient since it has so many applications and can be the secret ingredient in elevating flavors in certain dishes. While at the same time providing additional potassium in the diet. Below are some of what this simple ingredient does in certain applications.

What does Cream of Tartar do in Sauces

In sauces, Cream of Tartar primarily helps with:

Promoting Creaminess: Its acidic nature enhances the smoothness and overall texture of cream-based sauces, making them creamier.

Thickening: Cream of Tartar can assist in thickening sauces by helping to bind and stabilize the ingredients, resulting in a smoother, more cohesive sauce.

Preventing Separation: In emulsified sauces like hollandaise or béchamel, Cream of Tartar helps prevent the ingredients from separating, ensuring a stable mixture.

These properties make it a useful tool for maintaining the quality and consistency of sauces.

It has the ability to exaggerate creaminess or add creaminess to a dish that isn’t creamy at all. I believe the original Cream Soda contained it. It does this, especially so in sauces, and even more so in sauces where Dairy or Eggs are used. It is also very good in Gravies to cut the Fat a bit and lift the flavors.

One such application is in the Fettuccine Alfredo Sauce to create a unique mouthfeel to the sauce.

Is Cream of Tartar acidic

It has a PH level of 5. It can be used to add some subtle tang or acidity to dishes instead of using Citric Acid, which has a PH level of 3 or Lemon Juice which has a PH level of 2. While at the same time contributing Potassium, which most people are deficient in and counterbalances salt intake.

Mashed Potatoes with cream of Tartar

Added to mashed Potatoes, it elevates the flavors and works exceptionally well due to Butter & Dairy as well as Eggs sometimes added to Mashed Potatoes. It helps to promote the creaminess in mashed Potatoes. The Buttery Mashed Potatoes recipe uses this. Only a very small amount is needed. Careful not to use too much, as this will cause an off taste. It isn’t hard to overdo it, but just a small amount really elevates the flavors.

What does Cream of Tartar do to Meat

Added to brines to assist in tenderizing meats and adding an acidic taste. This is used in the Poultry Brine for chicken dishes without a breading. It works exceptionally well at tenderizing the Chicken. It also slows browning, allowing the Chicken to cook up a nice golden color.

What does Cream of Tartar do for Vegetables

Cream of Tartar can benefit vegetables in a few ways:

Color Retention: Adding a small amount of Cream of Tartar (1/2 tsp or less) to boiling water can help preserve the vibrant color of vegetables, especially green ones, by stabilizing their pigments.

Texture Improvement: It can also help maintain the firmness of vegetables during cooking, preventing them from becoming too soft or mushy. This also applies to Rice, helping to maintain the exterior more so than without. Just a small amount though as too much will taste too acidic.

Acidity Adjustment: The acidity of Cream of Tartar can influence the overall flavor and texture of vegetables, particularly when used in pickling or preserving.

Overall, its primary role with vegetables is to help retain color and texture during the cooking process or in fermented foods. It also counterbalances the salt and add an extra dimension in acidity. It makes for an exceptional brine solution.

I use it in Pickled Cucumbers to boost acidity and help preserve color. While its effectiveness in color preservation is debatable, it’s an old, classic cooking tip often applied when boiling vegetables.

What does Cream of Tartar do to Milk

Cream of Tartar interacts with milk in a few notable ways:

Making Buttermilk: Adding it to milk creates a homemade buttermilk substitute. Typically, you mix about 1/2 teaspoon with 1 cup of milk and let it sit for 10-15 minutes. The acidity of Cream of Tartar sours the milk, giving it a similar consistency and tangy flavor to buttermilk, which is useful in recipes that call for buttermilk but where it’s not readily available.

Preventing Curdling: In some recipes, Cream of Tartar can help prevent milk from curdling, especially in acidic environments, by stabilizing the proteins.

Improving Whipped Cream: When whipping cream, a small amount of Cream of Tartar can help stabilize the whipped texture, making it hold its shape better.

Overall, Cream of Tartar’s main effects on milk involve creating a buttermilk substitute and stabilizing whipped cream. As well as added to cream-based sauces to enhance or exaggerate creaminess. Below is a Buttermilk substitute with 10% Cream & Cream of Tartar.

Is Potassium the opposite of Salt

As far as the body is concerned, the opposite to Salt is Potassium.

“The Na+/K+ pump or Na+/K+-ATPase (Salt & Potassium Pump), is a protein pump found in the cell membrane of neurons (and other animal cells). It acts to transport sodium and potassium ions across the cell membrane in a ratio of 3 sodium ions out for every 2 potassium ions brought in. In the process, the pump helps to stabilize membrane potential, and thus is essential in creating the conditions necessary for the firing of action potentials.”

It maintains the proper concentration of Salt outside the Cell and Potassium inside the Cell and has an important role for the Heart, Kidney, and Nerve signaling.

By adding potassium bitartrate in Salty dishes, you can both introduce a bit of acidity and counter the effects of Salt on blood pressure. This is also why I seek to use it in so many dishes.

How to make Baking Powder

Baking Powder is made from 1/4 tsp each of Baking Soda & Cornstarch, with 1/2 tsp Cream of Tartar to substitute for 1 tsp of baking powder. You can increase these amounts using a ratio of 1:1:2, Baking Soda, Cornstarch, to 2 parts Cream of Tartar.

Cream of Tartar can lend a metalic taste, so the ratios can be adjusted for taste and performance.

Recipes that use Cream of Tartar

I often add Cream of Tartar as a weaker acid to many dishes. In part because of the flavor and function it performs, as well as the health benefits of consuming more potassium.

Cream of Tartar has many more uses, and I’m constantly experimenting with it. I want to emphasize that it’s far more versatile than most people realize. Beyond its role in cooking, it also serves as an effective cleaning agent and even medicinal applications due to its acidic properties.