Homemade Soft Pretzels

Make homemade soft pretzels with just a few simple ingredients! You will love the salty, chewy exterior with an incredibly soft inside.

Perfect for afternoon snacks, movie nights, game days, or “just because”. They are great dipped in homemade cheese dipping sauce.

These pretzels are super easy to make, get ready for these to become a favourite!

Do Pretzels Need a Baking Soda Bath?

One of the keys to success with this recipe is to dip the pretzels in a boiling alkaline bath before baking.

This step is what gives soft pretzels that distinctive rich brown exterior color and the coveted soft, chewy interior.

Professional bakeries often use lye for this process, while many home cooks prefer to work with baking soda as a less caustic alternative.

Here, the more user-friendly baking soda bath is used.

Do Pretzels Need an Egg Wash?

An important step is to brush each pretzel with an egg wash after they have been removed from the alkaline bath and patted dry.

This step imparts a nice shine to the pretzels and helps the coarse sea salt adhere while baking.

For a richer golden color, use a whole egg or just the yolk (vs. just the egg white) for this step. 

What to Serve Soft Pretzels With?

Serve these bad boys with mustard or homemade cheese dip.

Alternatively, to make dessert pretzels, after baking, brush each pretzel with melted butter and dip each pretzel into a shallow bowl filled with a mixture of sugar and ground cinnamon to coat.

Looking for More Tasty Snack Recipes?

Check out some of my favourite recipes for snacking on:

These Caprese Skewers with a Balsamic Glaze are a classic appetizer recipe. They are a caprese salad on a stick, always a favourite!

This delicious white bean dip is quick and easy to make – and your guests are sure to love the subtle balance of flavours.

How to Make Homemade Soft Pretzels

Yields: 12 soft pretzels | Prep time: 20 mins (+ 1 hour for dough to rise) |Cook time: 12-15 mins

Ingredients:

3 T. extra virgin olive oil, divided
1½ c. very warm water
1 t. table salt
1 T. brown sugar
2¼ t. active dry yeast (1 packet)
4½ c. all-purpose flour, divided
8 c. water
½ c. baking soda
1 large egg
1 T. water
Sea salt

Directions:

Line two large, rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper or Silpat™ baking mats and grease a large bowl with one tablespoon olive oil. Set aside.

Add the warm water to a different large bowl, followed by the salt, brown sugar, and yeast. Set aside for 5 minutes.

Add remaining olive oil to the bowl with the yeast. Gradually add four cups flour, one cup at a time, stirring vigorously with a fork and scraping the sides, until the flour is thoroughly incorporated into the dough without any lumps.

Sprinkle remaining flour onto a clean, dry work surface and lightly coat hands with additional flour. Drop the dough onto the work surface and knead in remaining flour just until dough is no longer sticky. Do not overwork.

Shape dough into a ball and add to the clean bowl coated in olive oil. Cover the bowl with a towel and set aside in a warm place for one hour or until the dough doubles in size.  

When the dough is almost done resting, position the oven racks so that the oven is divided into thirds and pre-heat the oven to 450°F.

Once the dough has doubled in size, punch it down with your lightly floured fist.

Rest for a couple minutes, then drop the dough onto a lightly floured work surface and divide into 12 equal-sized portions.

While the dough is resting (Step #7), fill a large pot with 8 cups water and one-half cup baking soda and bring to a rolling oil.

How to Shape Homemade Soft Pretzels

Roll each section of dough into a long, thin rope, with your hands.

Bend the dough into a “U” shape.

Twist the loose ends together twice before attaching each tip toward the bottom of the “U” to form a traditional pretzel shape, as shown.

Transfer pretzels to the prepared baking sheets.

Allow the pretzels to sit for 10-15 minutes once shaped, they will continue to rise or “puff up” to form a nice full shape.

Drop each pretzel, one at a time, into the boiling baking soda bath and boil for 20 seconds before flipping.

Boil for another 20 seconds, then transfer with a slotted spatula to a wire rack to drain excess liquid.

Gently pat pretzels dry with a paper towel and transfer back to the prepared baking sheets.

Beat egg and water together in a small bowl and brush each pretzel with the egg wash.

Sprinkle with coarse sea salt and place in the pre-heated oven for 12-15 minutes, or until golden brown.

For even browning, rotate the baking sheets and move the baking sheet on the bottom rack to the top (and vice versa) halfway through baking.

Remove from oven and cool for a couple minutes before serving with some spicy mustard or your favourite cheese dip. Enjoy!