Soft Pretzels

The pretzel is a type of salty bread from Germany. This bread is part of the typical food of the country and is divided into two categories: the pretzel cookie (which are lacitos those salty we all know) and soft pretzels.

This second type can be cooked with many flavors, such as almond or garlic, or it can be made sweet, flavored with cinnamon or vanilla. In some regions they are even prepared with egg and lemon zest.

In this post we teach you how to prepare soft pretzels.

Two recipes for soft pretzels

Option 1: Soft Pretzels

Ingredients for the dough

• 4 cups of flour
• 2 sachets of yeast
• 1 teaspoon of sugar
• 2 teaspoons of salt
• 1 cup of water
• 3 tablespoons of butter
• Coarse salt

Ingredients for the bath

• 8 cups of water
• ½ cup of baking soda

Process

1. Dissolve yeast in warm water.
2. Mix the flour and salt in a large bowl.
3. Form a volcano with the flour mixture and add the sugar in the center of the volcano.
4. Pour the yeast and water mixture into the crater of the volcano and let it sit for 15 minutes before mixing.
5. Add the softened butter to the bowl and knead everything until you get a smooth dough. It can be beaten with a mixer to mix everything well.
6. Cover the dough with a damp cloth and let it rest for 30 minutes.
7. After that time, remove the dough from the bowl and spread it out on a flat surface (the table should not need to be dusted with flour because the dough should not stick to the touch).
8. Cut the dough into 12 equal parts.
9. Roll each of the pieces onto itself until it forms a long roll. Make the pretzel shape.
10. Place the pretzels on a cookie sheet in the fridge for about an hour.
11. Preheat the oven to 204ºC.
12. Separately, fill ¾ of a pot with water and bring to a boil
13. Carefully and slowly add the baking soda to the boiling water. When the baking soda falls into the water it will bubble furiously for a few moments and then relax.
14. Using a slotted spoon, dip each pretzel in this bath for 10 seconds, flip it over, and dip another 10 seconds.
15. Place them on a baking sheet lined with greaseproof paper.
16. Sprinkle with coarse salt and bake the pretzels for 15 to 20 minutes, depending on how dark you want them.

Option 2: Soft Pretzels

Ingredients

• 2 cups of lukewarm water
• 2 sachets of dry yeast
• 4 tablespoons of sunflower oil
• 5 and a half cups of white flour
• 6 cups of water
• 3 tablespoons of baking soda
• ¼ cup mustard

Preparation

1. Dissolve the yeast in warm water and let it rest for 10 minutes.
2. Add the sunflower oil and half of the flour to the yeast mixture. Stir until well mixed. Add the remaining flour and knead for 5 minutes.
3. Cover the dough with a damp cloth and let it rest for an hour.
4. Divide the dough into 24 pieces. Roll each piece into a 15 cm long roll and shape it into a pretzel.
5. Let it rest for another 30 minutes.
6. Preheat the oven to 220ºC.
7. In a large pot, combine the baking soda with the 6 cups of water and bring to a boil.
8. Add the pretzels to the boiling water for a minute and then transfer to a baking sheet previously greased with oil.
9. Bake for 12 minutes and serve each pretzel with ½ teaspoon mustard (optional)

Did you like these two recipes for soft pretzels?