Easy Homemade Soft Pretzels
Homemade soft pretzels with the same pretzel-shop like aroma, soft texture and flavor.. and only a few simple pantry ingredients.
I munching on an extra soft homemade pretzel and sipping Chia tea while typing this post... and kitchen is filled with pretzel-shop aroma... Aroma like I stepped into a fair and already knew - there is a soft pretzel shop close-by.. baking a fresh batch of pretzels! yumm!
Sharing today a soft pretzel recipe which will bring you taste of the fair at home! Extra soft texture with crusty salty crust yet negligible sugar (my fav). This pretzel recipe uses easy-to-find pantry ingredients and still yields pretzels which are much more lighter than you buy from pretzel shop.
So, serve these for next family-get-together, or to watch Sunday games or just because you are pretzel-fans like myself. :) Whatever the reason may be, bake a double batch since these disappear faster than you expect.
I'm a sucker for good soft pretzel! That crusty crust, soft texture, and perfect amount of salt in every bite.... A good baked soft pretzel is "the treat" for savory snack-freak like myself. For the record, I have to eat a soft pretzel whenever we are in a fair or just happen to visit mall. Since it is not possible to be in mall/fair every now and then..... I figured a best way to satisfy my pretzel-cravings,.... baking soome pretzels at home! :)
I also call my homemade pretzels - humble poor man's pretzels. I mean seriously, there are just 6 basic pantry ingredients in baking this bread snack, favorite of everyone. I'm not sure what ingredients classic German people use to bake pretzels... but this recipe is homemade and it has to be simple and delicious..... that's what makes/encourages me to bake some at home. Just mix simple ingredients, rise dough for 1-2 hour, and then bake for only 10 minutes for a yummy snack to serve for any occasion!
Be it a Irish-theme party, football game day appetizer, Friday movie night or just family-munching time on the weekend.... Honestly, I didn't even need a reason to enjoy few pretzels. ;)
When I baked this batch last weekend.... the first positive reaction came from Vishal when he returned home after running an errand... just opened door and he was like "pretzels!!" His reaction reminds me of an old Indian advertisement where a little boy decides to leave home over a fight and then happen to hear some sweets are being prepared at home... and he is ecstatic at name of his favorite sweet called Jaleebi... screaming "Jalebee!!!" lol
I have been making pretzels from past few years now.... Last time I had chance to click pictures, they did not look so good. Those days I had major camera-angel issues! Sometimes I wonder, how on this earth I saw a 75 degree angle picture fit to share on blog! :) I have a plenty of those... look at my old recipes.
But by the time, that pretzel picture got chance to make to blog, I seriously started thinking about my picture quality. I discarded the old batch of pretzel photos.
No Special Ingredients like Caustic Soda (what!?!?) Needed:
It's homemade pretzel and does not need out-of-ordinary stuff to make it look pretty (at least). For this reason, I name my homemade pretzels - humble poor man's pretzels, pantry-friendly, safe for kids and safe for everyone. Just so you know, most pretzel recipes call for Caustic Soda to get deep brown crust and Pretzel salt for extra-kick briney salty bite.
I'm not at all sold for caustic soda. I don't buy anything that will not bring value to my kitchen and is not so safe. The simplest replacement of caustic soda is "plain baking soda". It does not create as super-dark brown crust like hard pretzels but it still does a pretty good job (i hope pictures speak for themselves).
For salt, I simply use flaky kosher salt. I live an apartment and don't have huge kitchen cabinet to hold on to a box of salt just for pretzels. Kosher salt works fine for me.
PS: you can also use egg wash for extra glossy crust yet I wanted to keep these pretzels egg-less.
I'm sharing a plain pretzel version here but you can also add some toppings like Jalapeno Cheddar Cheese is my all time favorite. Oh, other one is pretzel pizza! :) (will share recipe sometime)
PS: I missed you all yesterday. Happy to be back. I hope you enjoying beginning of a new week. Wish you a great day ahead. :)
Enjoy! -Savita
Few more crowd-pleasing baked appetizers from Chef De Home recipe archive:
Easy Homemade Soft Pretzels
(12 reviews)
Ingredients
Pretzel DoughDirections
- 1. Preheat oven at 450 degrees Fahrenheit. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
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2.
Lukewarm milk and water for dough and pour in a wide mixing bowl. Mix in sugar. Mix in yeast and let sit undisturbed for 10-15 minutes until yeast has bloomed.
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3.
Add two cups of flour, salt, and melted (room temperature, not hot) butter and mix with spatula to bring dough together.
4.
With dough hook attached, knead dough for 5 minutes, adding 1 tbsp of flour of remaining dough at a time. (dough should not be very dry). Remove dough in a clean oiled bowl, cover with clean kitchen towel and set aside at warm place for 1-2 hour.
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5.
Place in warm place for 1-2 hour or until dough more than double in size.
6.
Punch down the dough.
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7.
Remove to a work board and divide into 8 equal portions. (oil your hands as needed so as to easily handle soft dough)
8.
While start working on dough, set oven to preheat and also heat a deep-wide pan with 4-5 cups of water until water starts boiling.Take one portion of dough at a time and make a long rope. Place rope on board in U shape, then twist the ends inward, cutting each other and place opposite bottom edges of the U. Wet your hands and attach ends onto edges to seal. (Make sure to leave some loose end hanging or pretzel loop will open during the cooking.)
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9.
Add baking soda in boiling water and mix well. Add one pretzel at a time and let it dip in soda-bath for 20 secs (make sure to coat both sides in water or pretzel will not color properly.). Remove on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Repeat steps 8-9 with all of the remaining dough.
10.
Then, bake in preheated oven for 8-10 minutes or until tops are dark golden brown.
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11.
Remove from oven and brush the melted butter on pretzels. Dust with flaky sea salt. Transfer to cooling rack to cool slightly. Serve while still warm with cheese dipping sauce. Enjoy!
Savita's Notes:
Recipe yields 8 medium-size pretzels. No. of servings depends on serving size.
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41 Responses
Callie P
Thank you. I had difficulty getting the bread to rise I guess my house was too cold. After waiting two hours heated my oven to 100° and turned the oven off off !!! and put the bread inside for two hours. After the bread rose, continued with the recipe and turned out perfectly. Used a large stainless pasta strainer to immerse dough into boiling water.G.V
So I followed the directions to the letter and they are good, however, they stuck to the parchment paper and once removed the bottoms were torn off. Suggestions?Savita
Parchment worked fine for me. I recommend next time, try oil the paper slightly before placing on parchment or cook directly on a lite oil coated sheet pan.Laura
Best recipe for hot pretzels I have tried. It was simple and they were delicious.Savita
thanks for the feedback. These are our family favorite pretzels.Edward
This pretzel recipe is amazing and so simple my only suggestion is to not preheat oven as instructed in Step 1 wait until instructed in Step 8.Savita
Edward, thanks. Point noted for Oven step. I'm going to fix the instructions.Susan
ps. I used plant butter and almond milkSusan
I made these today using plant butter and almond milk. They came out pretty good, the only problem I had was removing them from the parchment paper after baking them in the oven. Maybe I'll use aluminum foil next time or maybe it was because they were so wet when I placed them on the parchment paper.Savita
Hi Susan, I recommend take pretzels out of the water bath using slotted spoon or spatula. Also, make sure to shake it once or twice to get rid of extra dripping water before placing on the parchment paper. (Wet is okay, dripping water is not good.) Also, you can bake'em directly on the baking sheet. Only spray the pan with light coat of cooking oil spray before placing pretzels on it. I hope it will help when you try next time. Thanks for sharing your experience with us.Ben S
Someone asked about plant based milk and if it works. I used plain almond milk because I didn’t have dairy at the time and they turned out great! Made these for my pregnant wife and her family and they loved them! I don’t consider myself to be a top chef or anything, but these were the best pretzels I’ve ever had. You just can’t beat home made with a high quality recipe!Savita
Thanks, Ben! Agree 100% that nothing beats homemade! You can adjust it as you prefer. 🙌 for tips on using non-dairy milk.Holly
the baking soda and water made my pretzels shapeless so i did not come out with pretzels.Savita
Baking soda and water bath is important step in making pretzels. Specially for color and chewy texture. Please practice a little as I stand by my recipe and have never seen pretzels going out of shape. One suggestion, make sure pretzel dough is not very soft. Use little less water while making dough so that pretzel hold shape while hot water bath. I hope it helps.Tracy
I am NOT a baker; however, I have made these for my family 4 times, and the pretzels are a hit! They have even asked me to make them again and again. Easy and delicious! Thank you for sharing your recipe.Savita
Thanks for letting me know, Tracy. I'm glad you enjoying baking pretzels. 🙌 Nothing like homemade, especially when family loves it.Linda
Awesome recipe... easy to make and yummy!Savita
Thanks for sweet words. I'm glad you enjoyed cooking this recipe.Lynn
Can you use a plant-based milk instead?Savita
Hi Lynn, I have not tied these with Plant Based milk. Most plant based milks have gum (or in simple words a thickening agent.) I'm not sure how will it go with texture of pretzels. If you absolutely have to, I recommend using half the quantity plant based milk and replace rest with water. I hope it helps.Maya
Just made these. Easy to follow recipe. They turned out perfectlySavita
Thanks for letting me know. I'm glad you like the recipe.Arianne
Instead of baking in the oven- can I use a air fryer?Colleen
Great recipe! I love the step by step pictures! I love pretzels and I really want to try making my own. This recipe looks like a great guide and I cant wait to try them.Savita
Thanks. Colleen. These homemade pretzels are very delicious, and so easy to make. I hope you try these soon. Happy cooking!Kirsten
Made these today & they turned out great!Savita
Kristen, thanks for feedback. I'm glad you enjoyed pretzels. Have a great day.Tammy Osborn
Very tasty and easy to prepare. Family and friends loved them!Savita
I'm glad you enjoyed, Tammy. Thanks for sharing your experience with us.