The addition of baking soda serves a dual purpose; one is to shorten the time it takes for the legumes to cook. (see below) Lentils usually softened after soaking then boiling them, however if, after simmering for reasonable length of time, you can try to add a bit of baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) while simmering. No more than half a teaspoon will do. Do not add more, it might catch too much of that baking soda taste and ruin it all.
The second reason is that adding baking soda to legumes as they cook is supposed to make them more easily digested, thus eliminating any bloating and intestinal gas that often occurs when eating beans and lentils. This can ALL be found by using Google.
which unsurprisingly includes an explanation about the chemistry behind it.
Note that this article is the top hit if you search for "cook beans baking soda" on a decent search engine like DuckDuckGo (one that hasn't been infested by current AI hallucination garbage).
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Lentils usually softened after soaking then boiling them, however if, after simmering for reasonable length of time, you can try to add a bit of baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) while simmering. No more than half a teaspoon will do. Do not add more, it might catch too much of that baking soda taste and ruin it all.
The second reason is that adding baking soda to legumes as they cook is supposed to make them more easily digested, thus eliminating any bloating and intestinal gas that often occurs when eating beans and lentils. This can ALL be found by using Google.
Anyhow, adding baking soda to beans for cooking reduces the time and increases creaminess.
This is covered in detail by an article over at Serious Eats:
https://www.seriouseats.com/baking-soda-brine-for-beans-5217841
which unsurprisingly includes an explanation about the chemistry behind it.
Note that this article is the top hit if you search for "cook beans baking soda" on a decent search engine like DuckDuckGo (one that hasn't been infested by current AI hallucination garbage).
Anyhow best of luck.