We all love the smell of those soft pretzels at the mall, but why go buy just one when you can make a dozen yourself?
Soft pretzels are actually not as difficult to make, or shape, as they may seem. The 6-ingredient dough comes together in a matter of minutes, and in under 2 hours you can have delicious homemade pretzels that that will satisfy any soft pretzel craving, and save you a trip to the mall. Personally, I’d rather make my kitchen smell that yummy anyway!
Here are a few tips to successful soft pretzels at home:
Bake your baking soda.
I know this sounds strange, and seems like A LOT of baking soda, but that’s what is needed to approximate the effect of lye on the dough. Lye is the key ingredient in the browning and flavor of traditional pretzels, but it is generally considered too dangerous for household use. Aren’t you glad there’s a safer substitute?
While baking soda won’t completely mimic the best Bavarian pretzel you’ve ever tasted, you’ll still be able to accomplish a pretty impressive feat in your home kitchen without endangering yourself or your family. Alton Brown boils his pretzels with 2/3 cup of baking soda before baking, which is certainly a reasonable alternative. But if I could avoid bringing a giant pot of water to boil AND have browner pretzels, I wanted to give it a try.
The answer came from the father of modern food science, Herold McGee, in this NYT article. Baking the baking soda in a low oven increases its alkalinity, making it work more like lye. Briefly soaking the pretzels in a high-octane baking soda solution causes them to brown better in the oven. It’s worth the time and minimal prep work required to yield truly golden brown and properly flavored pretzels.
Weigh your dough.
If you have a kitchen scale, use it to weigh the dough pieces as you’re portioning. This takes the guesswork out of creating evenly sized pretzels, which will also bake more evenly.
Danielle DeSiato
DIY tape measure.
Measure a 20-inch piece of masking tape and adhere to your counter before rolling the pretzels. This will make it easier and faster to roll the ropes to a consistent length.
Danielle DeSiato
Go beyond salt.
Get creative and coat your pretzels with Everything Bagel seasoning, cinnamon sugar, grated Parmesan, or your favorite topping. Just be sure to do it while the dough is still wet so the toppings adhere.
Use this handy trick for stuck pretzels.
The wet pretzels tend to stick to parchment paper when baked, so make sure your sheets are well greased. Remove your pretzels from the parchment paper shortly after they come out of the oven. If your pretzels stick anyway, carefully pour a small amount of water under the parchment paper while the baking sheet is still hot. Wait 30 seconds to a minute, and then the pretzels should release easily.
