The Reason Your Cornbread Tastes Like Soap (And How To Fix It)

Cornbread comes in all kinds of regional variations — such as hoecakes, hush puppies, and spoonbread. Sometimes though, wherever you are, the finished product might taste a little soapy. There's a reason for that.

Daily Meal talked to two-time James Beard nominated chef Tiffany Derry, co-founder of T2D Concepts and upcoming judge on "Top Chef" season 15, to find out why the soapy flavor comes through. "Once you add baking soda/powder to any acidic ingredients like milk or buttermilk, it starts working," she explains, "and as you cook the cornbread, it releases carbon dioxide gas — so if you have too much baking powder/soda it becomes the most dominant flavor because it's not allowing the carbon to fully release. That's what creates that soapy flavor.



" Derry noted that the same thing can happen with biscuits, which can also become dry and taste bitter when too much baking powder or soda is added. Since cornmeal doesn't contain gluten, it won't rise unless you add baking powder or soda to cornbread recipes for leavening. Even a traditional cornbread recipe that contains gluten from wheat flour needs this additional ingredient.

One of the common mistakes to avoid when making cornbread is not leaving the batter to rest so that the baking powder has time to activate. However, Derry says that using too much baking powder or soda will make the cornbread rise more, create a thicker batter, change the texture, and create a soapy flavor. Tips for preventing soapy-tasting cornbread If you're in need of tips for making the best cornbread without the soapy flavor, chef Tiffany Derry's top one is to measure your ingredients with a scale.

"I always scale dry ingredients in grams and use a measuring cup for wet ingredients for consistency," she says. Also, she notes that you can replace the wheat flour and baking powder in a cornbread recipe with self-rising flour because it already contains the right amount of each ingredient. Just substitute the self-rising flour cup for cup, and don't add the baking powder and salt that your original recipe requires because it's already in the flour mixture.

When it comes to mixing the ingredients, Derry explains, "When making cornbread, I like to go from dry to wet. I add dry ingredients into wet ingredients and once everything is completely mixed, I stop there. You don't want to over mix your cornbread," she cautioned, "because it can be too tough, flat, or even crumbly sometimes.

" And, if you're feeling comfortable enough to be a little adventurous, you can add additional ingredients to upgrade the flavor of your cornbread . For instance, bake your recipe in a cast iron pan with bacon drippings for unmatched flavor. Or, add a splash of vanilla extract to enhance the natural sweetness of the cornmeal.

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