Soft Pretzels
I adore soft pretzels. And ever since finding out how easy they are to make at home, I make them quite often. I’ve pretty much stopped buying them at malls, ballparks, fairs, etc.
Not only does the dough take only about five minutes to come together, but you can freeze the dough too so you can have fresh soft pretzels whenever you want.
I’ve made quite a few batches of soft pretzels but stopped taking pictures. These ones came out particularly pretty in my opinion, so I decided to photograph them. My go-to recipe is one by Alton Brown. I should probably venture out and try some others to compare, but I’m always worried that the other recipe won’t be successful and then I’ll be soft pretzel-less. The pretzels look more golden/orange than normal because I actually was trying to make a pumpkin version again. I’m still not happy with it. The pretzels didn’t have any pumpkin flavor though they came out this pretty color.
If anyone has a favorite soft pretzel recipe let me know. I’m only linking to the original recipe since the pumpkin adaptation wasn’t to my satisfaction.
Soft Pretzels
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups warm water, 110 to 115°F
- 1 tbsp granulated sugar
- 2 tsp kosher salt
- 2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
- 4 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 2 oz unsalted butter, melted
- 2/3 cup baking soda
- 1 large egg
Instructions
- Combine the warm water, sugar and kosher salt in the bowl of a stand mixer and sprinkle the yeast on top. Allow to sit for about 5 minutes.
- Add the flour and butter and, using the dough hook attachment, mix on low speed until well combined. Change to medium speed and knead about 5 minutes until the dough is smooth and pulls away from the side of the bowl.
- Remove the dough from the bowl, and place the dough in a glass bowl oiled with vegetable oil. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place for approximately 50 to 55 minutes or until the dough has doubled in size.
- Divide the dough into 16 pieces. Roll out each piece of dough into a 12-inch rope. Take the dough and make a pretzel shape. Place onto the parchment-lined baking pan.
- Preheat the oven to 450°F.
- Using a large saucepan, bring water and the baking soda to a rolling boil.
- Place the pretzels into the boiling water, a few at a time, for 30 seconds. Remove them from the water using a large flat spatula. Place the pretzels back on a baking pan lined with parchment paper.
- Beat one large egg. Brush the top of each pretzel with the beaten egg. Bake until dark golden brown in color, approximately 6-7 minutes.
These looked so good that when I found your recipe last month I had to make them straight away! Well, they turned out so good! I love soft pretzels but making them from home is always better then trying to find them out somewhere. I will definitely be making these again. Thanks for posting it!
So glad you like them! I love making them. The dough freezes well too, so you can make a bunch, stick some in the freezer and take the dough out to bake whenever you are in the mood.