Have you ever read through the ingredient list for angel food cake or meringue and wondered “what exactly is cream of tartar?” You’re not alone. The mysterious powder is sold with the spices but is used in various baking recipes, and not for its flavor.
Cream of tartar (also known by its chemical name potassium bitartrate) is a fine, white powder that is used in cooking as well as cleaning. It tends to pop up in baking recipes, especially if whipped egg whites are involved, but it has a number of other uses. Here’s everything you need to know about the pantry staple.
Cream of Tartar
Common uses: Stabilizing whipped egg whites or whipped cream, preventing sugar from crystalizing, homemade baking powder, cleaning
Shelf life: Indefinite if kept in a cool, dry place
Cream of tartar is a white powder found in the baking aisle that is commonly used to help stabilize whipped egg whites in meringues and cakes and give snickerdoodle cookies their signature flavor and texture. It’s made from tartaric acid, a byproduct of the winemaking process. As grape juice sits and ferments, potassium bitartrate precipitates and forms crystals on the inside of the casks which can then be collected and processed to make cream of tartar.
Cream of tartar has a slightly tangy, acidic flavor, but it’s not typically used in large enough quantities to impact the flavor of dishes. While you’ll find cream of tartar in spice jars and tins in the baking aisle, it also makes appearances in cleaning solutions. Mix it with white vinegar to make a paste that will shine up stainless steel, copper, brass, and porcelain.
Where to Buy
Cream of tartar is typically packaged in spice jars and tins in the baking aisle, often mixed in with the spices. You’ll find it in major grocery stores as well as at online retailers.
Any brand of cream of tartar will do, as there is no noticeable difference between them. Most home cooks find a small jar is plenty, since recipes tend to call for a pinch or two. If you have a cleaning project coming up and are looking for more than a usual three to five ounce jar, you can sometimes find cream of tartar in bulk bins. You can also order large containers of cream of tartar online.
How to Store
Cream of tartar should be stored the same way as spices—in an airtight container in a cool, dry place. If you purchased the powder in a screw-top jar or metal tin, the original container will do just fine. Make sure you seal the container completely after each use. If you purchased cream of tartar from a bulk bin, transfer it to a screw-top jar or similar container.
A dark pantry or spice drawer away from the stove is ideal. When stored in a cool, dry place, cream of tartar will last indefinitely.
How to Cook with Cream of Tartar
Cream of tartar is commonly used as a safety net for whipped egg whites. On their own, egg whites precariously hold pockets of air, threatening to destabilize and deflate at any minute. Adding a pinch of cream of tartar while whipping the eggs helps to strengthen the bubbles and keep them nice and stable. It's frequently used in meringue, whether that meringue is piled atop a pie, made into cookies, or baked into a light-as-air cake like pavlova.
Cream of tartar also helps keep angel food cake and similar cakes that get their height from eggs fluffy and well-risen.
Similarly, a pinch of cream of tartar can also help stabilize whipped cream so that it lasts longer. On the flipside, cream of tartar interferes with the formation of sugar crystals and can come in handy when boiling sugar to make caramel or candy. Sometimes bakers add a pinch to help keep crystals from forming, yielding a smoother result.
Cream of tartar can also be used to activate baking soda, leavening baked goods. In fact, some baking powder is made using cream of tartar. To make your own baking powder, combine cream of tartar and baking soda at a ratio of 2:1 (for example, 1 teaspoon cream of tartar + 1/2 teaspoon baking soda).
Recipes That Use Cream of Tartar
Cream of tartar is most commonly found in baking recipes, especially recipes that involve whipped egg whites. You’ll also find it in snickerdoodle cookies, giving the treats their signature flavor and soft texture.
Lemon Meringue Pie
Chocolate Pavlova
Frosted Snickerdoodle Bars
Summer Peaches With Baked Meringue
Angel Food Cake
Seven Minute Frosting
Cream of Tartar Substitutes
If you don’t have cream of tartar handy and need a quick fix, there are a few substitutions using pantry ingredients that work well. Since cream of tartar is used in a few different ways, which one you pick will depend on the application. Find the right cream of tartar substitution for your recipe here.
Cream of tartar is an oft-overlooked pantry staple. The white powder helps to stabilize whipped egg whites in cakes and meringues, activate leavening like baking soda (it's often an ingredient in baking powder), and prevent sugar crystallization in caramel and candy.
Cream of tartar stabilizes the tiny bubbles in the egg whites, by precluding the egg proteins from sticking together. It thus speeds up the egg white whipping process and contributes to a stable, billowy, glossy meringue, perfect for cookies, topping pies, and folding into cake.
For every 1/2 teaspoon of cream of tartar in the recipe, use 1 teaspoon lemon juice or white vinegar. As an example, if your cookie recipe calls for 1 teaspoon baking soda, add 2 teaspoons lemon juice instead of the cream of tartar.
Evidence shows that consuming high amounts of cream of tartar may cause abdominal discomfort, abnormal heart rate, and muscle weakness — all common symptoms of hyperkalemia ( 8 , 10 ).
Cream of Tartar: Stabilizes the egg whites and keeps them from deflating. This helps create that light, fluffy texture. Vanilla: Vanilla extract adds incredible flavor! For angel food cake variations, try replacing some or all of the vanilla with almond extract, orange extract, or lemon extract.
You can also simply leave out the cream of tartar from a recipe, which may result in baked goods that are not as fluffy, but will still work out and taste good.
You can drink half a teaspoon of cream of tartar in one glass of water and feel the difference. Cream of tartar is rich in potassium, and this element can reduce migraine. In addition, it acts as a buffer that controls acid-alkaline levels and boosts antioxidants in the body.
Cream of tartar does not expire so long as you store it in a cool and dry space. When in doubt, check for a powdery, white appearance and a slightly acidic smell. Discard your cream of tartar if it has become discolored or if it has a strong smell.
In some recipes, you can leave out cream of tartar if there is no suitable replacement. You can simply omit cream of tartar from the recipe if you're making whipped egg whites, syrups, frostings, or icings.
Because cream of tartar is an acid, lemon juice makes a good cream of tartar replacement for many recipes. If you need a cream of tartar substitute for meringue, lemon juice is your best choice.
Cream of tartar wears many hats in the kitchen. It adds tang to snickerdoodles, stabilizes egg whites for fluffy angel food cakes and light-as-air meringues, and prevents sugar from crystallizing for smooth syrups and chewy cookies.
What Is Cream of Tartar Used For? Adding a small amount of cream of tartar when you're beating egg whites—usually 1/8 teaspoon per egg white—speeds up the creation of foam and helps stabilize the structure of those minuscule air bubbles you're whipping up.
Angel food cake is one-of-a-kind, and no other cake recipe matches its super fluffy, airy texture. Though it's a type of sponge cake, it differs from other popular recipes because it's traditionally made using no butter or oil in the batter. Instead, beaten egg whites are the secret to its ultra-light texture.
Angel food cake gets its wonderfully light, fluffy texture from whipped egg whites (think about a nice, airy meringue). There is very little flour, compared to other cake styles, and no fat or egg yolks are used.
Without cream of tartar, you'll get the same baked good in the end, but the consistency may not be as flawless. If you're worried about your cake coming out too flat or your lemon meringue pie going runny, adding cream of tartar is an effective way to prevent it.
While cream of tartar is not an ingredient you probably keep on hand in your kitchen, it is worth the investment if you are trying to become a playdough making pro. Cream of tartar really helps to get your playdough to the fun gel form and prevent it from staying too wet.
The most common recipes that call for cream of tartar are those that call for egg whites to be whipped, like angel food cake, genoise cake, meringue, and macarons. Jampel says that is because cream of tartar works as an egg white stabilizer that increases both the volume and shelf life of the meringue.
As grape juice sits and ferments, potassium bitartrate precipitates and forms crystals on the inside of the casks which can then be collected and processed to make cream of tartar. Cream of tartar has a slightly tangy, acidic flavor, but it's not typically used in large enough quantities to impact the flavor of dishes.
Introduction: My name is Jeremiah Abshire, I am a outstanding, kind, clever, hilarious, curious, hilarious, outstanding person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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