Homemade Soft Pretzels

Honestly, there’s nothing on the planet like a perfectly cooked soft pretzel.

The thing is, when you get them out at places (like recently when we got boozey at a Zac Brown Band concert and got soft pretzels in the venue), they’re hard, dry and definitely not the soft pretzels I want to enjoy.

But honestly, I feel this same way about all breads now. Like my Flatbread Recipe has ruined store-bought flatbreads for me. What can I say? I’m a total store-bought BREAD SNOB!!

Regardless, this soft pretzel recipe has also ruined non-fresh soft pretzels for me. And with how delicious they are, I’m fine being a Soft Pretzel Snob now, too.

Homemade Soft Pretzel Ingredients

This is actually a really simple recipe, and you may already have all of these ingredients in your house!

Flour: I use all-purpose flour for this recipe.

Butter: Melted. (I use salted.) You’ll use this both for the dough and a little extra to brush on your finished pretzels.

Yeast: I’m using active dry yeast, but you can also use instant yeast if that’s what you have on hand. You won’t have to bloom it and can just add it directly in with your ingredients.

Water: If blooming your yeast, make sure you’re using warm water (~110 degrees F).

Sugar: To feed the yeast.

Salt: I used kosher salt for both the dough and to sprinkle on top. You can be extra fancy and buy pretzel salt to sprinkle on top, but honestly kosher salt works just fine.

Eggs: Just one, beaten.

Baking soda: This is for the quick baking soda boil you’ll be doing before baking.

How to Make Homemade Soft Pretzels

Now let’s get right into this easy and delicious recipe.

Step 1: Bloom your yeast.

The first thing you’ll do is bloom your yeast. Add your yeast and sugar to the warm water and stir. It should get foamy and smell like the most delicious beer in just about 6–10 minutes.

Step 2: Make your dough.

Now, combine your flour and salt. Next, add your yeast water mixture and the melted butter. Combine until a smooth dough forms. Once ready, add a bit of olive oil to a bowl and add your dough ball, making sure to rub it a bit with oil so that it doesn’t form a crust. Cover with plastic wrap and a kitchen towel and let rise until doubled in size (about 2 hours). When I’m proofing my dough, I turn the oven light on (NOT THE OVEN!) and let it proof in there 🙂

Note: I use the dough setting on my Ninja Food Processor for this recipe, but you can also use your regular standing mixture or even your hands! If using your hands, you’ll want to knead the dough until it forms a smooth ball. This can take anywhere from 8–10 minutes.

Step 3: Form your pretzels.

First, take your dough out of the oven and preheat your oven to 450 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. You’ll also want to get ~8 cups of water on the stove and start bringing it to a boil.

Now that your dough has doubled in size, punch it to deflate it in the middle and add to to your clean work surface. Divide the dough into 4 equal-ish parts.

Now you’re going to roll each piece to form a long rope. I make 4 pretzels with this recipe, but if you want smaller pretzels you can divide the dough into 6 or even 8 parts. Totally up to you.

Now you’re going to take your dough rope fold the end of each side in to the middle and over the other (here’s a picture because I know this sounds insane:

Once you have this shape, you can leave it as is and press each side down, OR you can do what I do and twist the pretzel ends around once and then press the ends into the dough. Here’s another pic:

Make sure you really press those ends into the pretzel so they weld together. If not, you run the risk of them popping off when they go into the baking soda bath. They’ll still taste amazing though 🙂 Add these to your parchment-lined baking sheet.

Step 4: Baking soda bath.

Now that the water is boiling, add the baking soda. DO THIS CAREFULLY! Baking soda reacts to water and will bubble up, so sprinkle in a little at a time so you don’t absolutely terrify yourself like I did the first time. Whew.

Once ready, add each pretzels and let them boil for about 45 seconds. I do 1–2 pretzels at a time. When ready, remove with a slotted spoon, pat with a paper towel and add back to the parchment lined baking sheet.

Step 5: Egg wash and salt.

Now, take your beaten egg and brush it on to each pretzel. Then, sprinkle some coarse salt on top.

Step 6: Bake your pretzels!

Now, just bake your pretzels in your preheated oven for ~15–18 minutes or until they’re a beautiful golden color. Remove from the oven, brush with some melted butter and enjoy!