Sift These Two Baking Ingredients For The Perfect Result Every Time

Everyone hates adding unnecessary steps, especially when it's for a recipe that's already complicated enough. Sifting ingredients can often feel like one of those extra chores, and, most of the time, there isn't really a need for it. While sifting was once a vital part of baking to remove seeds and insects from freshly milled flour, commercial processing has pretty much mitigated any risk of that, so you're usually good to open the bag and go. In fact, most of our dry ingredients are pretty refined nowadays, but we're sorry to tell you that there are two items you should still pass through a sieve: powdered sugar and cocoa powder.

Although there may not be any bugs crawling around in your pantry, it's important to sift cocoa powder and powdered sugar because they're both prone to clumping. Cocoa powder becomes affected in this way because of how fine its texture is, while powdered sugar has moisture to blame. Unsifted cocoa powder can lead to dry spots and uneven surfaces in baked goods, and it can affect the moisture of your cakes. The biggest issue with unsifted powdered sugar? Lumpy frosting, which no one wants.

All you need to do to sift cocoa powder or powdered sugar is pass it through a fine mesh strainer held over a large bowl. Both ingredients should be light enough to shake through, and you can use a spatula or spoon to press any stubborn lumps into the strainer. If you don't have a sieve or strainer, a whisk will do. Just measure out the cocoa powder or powdered sugar in a bowl with your other dry ingredients and whisk briskly in circular strokes until any clumps disappear. A fork is another great backup.

Unless the recipe you're using specifies otherwise, measure the cocoa powder or powdered sugar before sifting. The reason recipes will sometimes call for measuring after sifting is that sifting aerates ingredients, which can decrease the weight of something like a cup of flour by 20% to 30%. It's always best to use a scale to avoid this problem since it's one of the biggest mistakes you're making while baking. For now, focus on digging that sieve out of the back of the cupboard, and you'll be well on your way to making lump-free chocolate frosting and smooth fudgy brownies every time.