Self raising or plain?

[ILoveGreekCats]

I've noticed that some cake recipes use self raising and some plain and baking powder. What's the difference and are they interchangeable? Also why is baking soda so important?

Plain flour, plus baking powder = Self-raising Flour, that's all

Bicarbonate of soda has a bit more "oomf" to lift heavier cake mixes & breads, & will be mixed with something like yogurt to help it work

HTH

Lost a bit of text there

Mixed with something like yoghurt or cream of tartare - it's an alkali & need an acid to get it bubbling up to lift the cake

If you don't bake much just go for the plain and baking powder, there's ratios on the back of packets usually for adding baking powder. Flour doesn't last forever