Tomorrow is Super Bowl Sunday, and I honestly cannot imagine a better snack for the Super Bowl than soft pretzels. This recipe makes quick and easy delicious soft pretzels. For a yeasted dough, they only take about 2 hours, which is quite quick indeed! It’s sort of insane just how delicious these soft pretzels are. I’m sure these will become a staple in your household. I’ve even ventured into transforming this recipe to make pretzel pigs in a blanket, cinnamon sugar pretzel bites, and of course the beloved garlic parmesan pretzel. The possibilities of what this pretzel dough can become are endless. I cannot wait to see all of the new ways you guys use this pretzel dough recipe for!
Do my pretzels have to be salty?
Not at all! These pretzels can be anything you want them to be! Sweet, garlicky, cheesy, you name it! Of course, this recipe will walk you through how to make a classic salted pretzel, but if you use your imagination, you can turn the base dough recipe into your ideal pretzel. When I make sweet pretzels, I mix about 1/2 cup of white sugar with 1 tablespoon of cinnamon, brush the baked pretzels with melted butter, and dip them into the cinnamon sugar mixture. This allows for even coating and the ultimate sweet pretzel. I’ve also added chopped garlic and shredded parmesan to the dough with a bit of dried basil. It creates almost a garlic knot flavor, and it is utterly delicious!
Where do I get pretzel salt from?
I think this is definitely one of the harder things about making pretzels, is finding the right salt. You can order pretzel salt from here on amazon, or you can try to get lucky going to a specialty grocery store and looking for some there. I gave up my search for pretzel salt a long time ago, and I use Maldon flaky salt. It gives a beautiful rustic look to the pretzels, the perfect amount of saltiness, and it’s easy to find in almost any grocery store!
Quick and Easy Soft Pretzels
Ingredients
For the Dough:
- 1½ cups Warm Water
- 1 tablespoon Active Dry Yeast
- 4 teaspoons Sugar
- 2 teaspoons Salt
- 2 tablespoons Unsalted Butter (melted)
- 3½-4 cups All-Purpose Flour
For Boiling:
- 6 cups Water
- ¼ cup Baking Soda
For the Topping:
- 2 Egg Yolks
- Pretzel Salt or Maldon Flaky Salt (optional)
Instructions
- Add the flour, one cup at a time, mixing until fully incorporated. Once the third cup is added and incorporated into the dough, add 1/2 cup of flour to a working surface. Remove the dough from the bowl and begin to knead the dough on the surface, gradually adding the 1/2 of flour on the working surface as you are kneading it.
- If the dough is still too sticky once the 3 ½ cups of flour are added, add ¼ cup more flour to the working surface while you are kneading. The dough should be tacky but not sticky. If your dough is still sticky and you need to add another ¼ cup of flour, you can, but I ususally find 3½ cups to be perfect for my dough. You want the dough to still be supple and smooth but not sticky.
- Once the dough has been kneaded for at least 8 minutes, transfer to an oiled bowl and allow to rise for 40-45 minutes or until doubled in size. Make sure the bowl is covered with plastic wrap to ensure the dough stays hydrated and does not dry out.
- Once the dough is risen, divide it into 8 or 16 equal sections. You can either make 8 large pretzels or 16 mini pretzels, the ones in my photos are the large ones. For the large pretzels, roll the dough into a long rope, about 18-20 inches long, and twist into a pretzel shape. Add water to the dough where the loose ends meet the bottom of the pretzel to ensure the pretzel shape holds together. Repeat for each pretzel and set on an oiled baking sheet and allow to rise, uncovered, for 20-30 minutes or until they look puffed.
- After the pretzels have puffed, boil 6 cups of water and 1/4 cup baking soda in a heavy bottomed pot. Place parchement paper on two large baking sheets. At this point, preheat your oven to 425°F.
- When the water is boiling, add your pretzels 1 or 2 at a time, boiling for 30 seconds per side. Once finished boiling, transfer the pretzels to the parchment covered baking sheets. Finish boiling all of the pretzels. About 4 large pretzels will fit per sheet comfortably.
- Using a pastry brush, brush the egg yolk over the top of the boiled pretzels, making sure to have even coverage of yolk over the dough. Sprinkle the salt on top of the egg yolk washed pretzels, and place in the preheated oven to bake for 15-20 minutes.
- Remove from oven once evenly browned and puffed. Allow to cool before enjoying!
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