Soft Pretzels
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes
Yield: 6 pretzels
INGREDIENTS
180ml warm water
3.5g instant or active dry yeast (1/2 standard packet)
Pinch of salt
1/2 tbsp granulated sugar
1/2 tbsp unsalted butter, melted and slightly cool
500g plain flour, plus more for hands and work surface
coarse salt or coarse sea salt for sprinkling
For the baking soda water
2L water
120g baking soda
METHOD
Whisk the yeast into warm water. Allow to sit for 1 minute.
Whisk in salt, granulated sugar, and melted butter. Slowly add in the flour, 1/3 at a time. Mix with a wooden spoon (or dough hook attached to stand mixer) until the dough is thick. Add more flour until the dough is no longer sticky. If it is still sticky, add more in small amounts. Poke the dough with your finger – if it bounces back, it is ready to knead.
Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead for 3 minutes, and shape into a ball. Cover lightly with a towel and allow to rest for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, it’s time to get the water + baking soda boiling (Step 6)!
Preheat oven to 205°C. Line 2 baking sheets with silicone baking mats. (If using parchment paper, lightly spray with nonstick spray or grease with butter). Set aside.
With a sharp knife or a dough scraper, cut the dough into 6 sections (Mine came to about 75g per portion).
Roll the dough into a 20-22 inch rope. Form a circle with the dough by bringing the two ends together at the top of the circle. Twist the ends together. Bring the twisted ends back down towards yourself and press them down to form a pretzel shape.
Bring baking soda and 2L of water to a boil in a large pot. Drop 1-2 pretzels into the boiling water for 20-30 seconds (Max! Any more than that and your pretzels will taste metallic.)
Using a slotted spatula, lift the pretzel out of the water and allow as much of the excess water to drip off. Place pretzel onto prepared baking sheet. Sprinkle each with coarse sea salt. Repeat with remaining pretzels. If desired, you can cover and refrigerate the boiled/unbaked pretzels for up to 24 hours before baking in step 7.
Bake for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown.
Remove from the oven and serve warm! (I had mine with German weisswurst and sweet mustard)
Cover and store leftover pretzels at room temperature for up to 3 days. They lose a little softness over time. To reheat, microwave for a few seconds or bake in a 177°C for 5 minutes.
What I learnt:
Make bigger ones! Double the recipe and make six, by rolling them out thicker so that you end up with a ‘meatier’ pretzel
I ended up boiling one pretzel at a time, so next time I will try to use a smaller pot and pare down the proportions
