| ≥1 piece |
Food preparation
Food uses of sodium hydroxide include washing or chemical peeling of fruits and vegetables , chocolate and cocoa processing, caramel coloring production, poultry scalding, soft drink processing, and thickening ice cream . Olives are often soaked in sodium hydroxide to soften them, while pretzels and German lye rolls are glazed with a sodium hydroxide solution before baking to make them crisp. Owing to the difficulty in obtaining food grade sodium hydroxide in small quantities for home use, sodium carbonate is often used in place of sodium hydroxide [ 15 ] .
Specific foods processed with sodium hydroxide include: