This Soft Pretzel Bites Recipe makes chewy and perfectly soft pretzel bites. To get the best homemade pretzel bites, just follow these easy step by step instructions. You can get your favorite soft pretzel bites without ever leaving your kitchen!
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Easy Pretzel Bites
The secret to getting that firm skin and definitive “pretzel flavor” is all thanks to the poaching step, which has unfortunately scared off many a potential pretzel-maker. If you still want that true pretzel flavor but don’t want to mess with a caustic lye solution and rubber gloves, then this recipe is for you!
We've got your back. All you need is baking soda, water, and a little extra time. They make the best weekend treat or game-day snack.
This recipe is perfect for making soft pretzel or pretzel bites. You can make them the classic salted pretzel flavor or switch it up a bit and make them cinnamon sugar, garlic parmesan, or another favorite pretzel flavor.
Other Pretzel Bite Variations To Try
- Garlic Parmesan: Mix together about 6 tablespoons of grated Parmesan cheese, 2 teaspoons of garlic powder, and 2 teaspoons of Italian seasoning. Once the pretzels are out of the oven, brush with melted butter and sprinkle generously with the garlic cheese mix.
- Try other seasonings: after brushing your egg wash onto the pretzels, sprinkle with “everything” bagel seasoning, ranch seasoning, or even cajun seasoning.
- Cheese: brush on your egg wash and sprinkle grated Parmesan, Asiago, or Romano cheese.
- Sliced jalapeños: if you like things spicy, top with thinly sliced jalapeños just before baking.
How To Make Soft Cinnamon Sugar Pretzel Bites:
Cinnamon sugar pretzels are one of those nostalgic treats that you can never say no to. They’re buttery, sweet and so delicious straight from the oven.
To make cinnamon sugar pretzels, mix and shape the dough as directed above. The only differences are:
- Before baking, brush with egg wash but do not sprinkle with sea salt.
- Once baked, remove from the oven and let cool just enough so that you can handle them. Melt about 2 tablespoons of butter and brush it onto your pretzels, then toss them one at a time in a mixture of 1 cup of sugar to 4 tsp of cinnamon. Enjoy!
Dips To Serve With Soft Pretzel Bites
These homemade soft pretzels are so yummy just straight from the oven (or maybe also smothered in melted butter…let's get real). But who doesn’t also love a soft pretzel dipped in cheesy, buttery goodness? Here are a few of our recommendations:
- Honey Butter
- Garlic Butter
- Marinara Sauce
- Cheddar Queso Dip
- Pepper Jack Queso Dip
- Jalapeno Artichoke Dip
How To Proof Yeast
First things first. There are two main types of dry yeast that you will find at the grocery store - instant yeast (or quick rise) and active dry yeast.
Without getting into too much of the science, instant yeast is specially manufactured so that it can just be dumped into your dries and mixed.
Active dry yeast, on the other hand, needs to be woken up, or “proofed.”
Don’t be scared! Proofing yeast really couldn’t be more simple. All you need to do is combine your active dry yeast with warm water or milk and a touch of sugar, and let it sit for 5-10 minutes at room temperature until it starts to get nice and bubbly.
That’s it - now your yeast is awake and happy and you can use as directed in your soft pretzel recipe. If the yeast never bubbles and foams, it’s likely “dead” and you will want to start over with new yeast. Much better to know sooner rather than later!
How To Shape Homemade Soft Pretzel Bites
- Cut the dough ball into 4 pieces.
- Take each piece of dough and begin rolling them into long logs on the counter. (Hint: if you “bang” the dough on the counter as you roll, they will naturally get longer and longer.)
- Keep going until you reach about 18 inches.
- Use a sharp knife some kind of sharp edge to cut the pretzels into 1" pieces. (You can make these bigger or smaller depending on the size you want your pretzel bites to be)
Ingredients In Homemade Soft Pretzel Bites
- Water - your water to proof yeast should be warm (95-105 degrees F) in order to wake up the yeast.
- Sugar - yeast loves sugar, and helps it get nice and bubbly.
- Yeast - we use active dry yeast for this recipe.
- Flour - you can use either all-purpose or bread flour, or even a combination of both.
- Salt - salt is extremely important for both the flavor and structure of any breads so be sure not to skimp!
- Baking Soda and Water - this poaching bath gives your pretzels that authentic pretzel flavor, without having to use a caustic lye solution.
- Eggs - use whole eggs whisked with a little water to make your egg wash.
- Pretzel Salt - this is much coarser than normal salt and is rectangular shaped, which helps it stick to the pretzels. If you can’t find true pretzel salt, coarse sea salt with work just fine.
Pretzel Bites
Ingredients
Pretzel Dough
- 1 1/2 cups Warm Water slightly warm to the wrist (95-110 degrees F)
- 1 Tablespoon Sugar
- 1 tsp Yeast active dry yeast or instant is fine
- 3-3 1/2 cups Flour bread flour or all-purose flour
- 1 1/2 tsp Salt
Pretzel Poaching Liquid
- 6 cups Water
- 6 tsp Baking Soda
For Egg Wash
- 1 large Egg
- 2 Tablespoons Water
For Salted Pretzels
- 2 Tablespoons Pretzel Salt or Course Salt
For Cinnamon Sugar Pretzels
- 1/4 cup Sugar
- 2 tsp Cinnamon can reduce to 1 1/2 if it seems too strong
Instructions
How To Make Pretzel Bites Dough
- Proof your yeast by adding the warm water, sugar, and yeast into the bowl of a stand mixer. Stir well, and let sit for about 10 minutes until frothy.
- When the mixture looks nice and bubbly, add 2 cups of the flour and your salt, and mix on low speed using the dough hook. Add in the rest of your flour, 1/2 cup at a time, until dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl (you may not need to use the full amount).
- Once all of your flour has been added, mix on low to knead the dough for another few minutes, then turn off the mixer and cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Let the dough rise until doubled in size, or about 1 hour.
- After your dough has doubled, turn it out onto a floured surface and divide into 9 equal balls. Cover the dough balls loosely with a kitchen towel and let them relax for about 2 minutes.
How to Shape Pretzel Bites
- Cut the dough ball into 4 pieces.
- Take each piece of dough and begin rolling them into long logs on the counter. (Hint: if you “bang” the dough on the counter as you roll, they will naturally get longer and longer.)
- Keep going until you reach about 18 inches.
- Use a sharp knife some kind of sharp edge to cut the pretzels into 1" pieces. (You can make these bigger or smaller depending on the size you want your pretzel bites to be)
Cooking Pretzel Bites
- Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. At the same time, make your baking soda bath by combining the water and baking soda in a large pot and set it on high heat to bring it to a boil.
- While the water starts to heat, you can shape your pretzels as directed above.
- When your poaching water is boiling, add 6-7 pretzel bites at a time and poach for 20 seconds. Flip them over and poach for another 20 seconds. Do not over boil them! Remove them from the water using tongs or a slotted spatula and place on a baking tray.
- As soon as all of your pretzel bites are poached, whisk together the egg and water in a small bowl. (I found it easiest to just dip the pretzel bites into the egg mixture and take out with a slotted spoon) Place on a baking sheet and then sprinkle the pretzel salt, or coarse sea salt, over the tops.
- Bake for 15 minutes, or until the pretzel bites are golden brown. Remove from the oven and serve warm. Enjoy!
How To Make Buttery Soft Pretzels
- If your thing is buttery, Auntie Anne style soft pretzels, we hear ya! The secret is to brush the top of each pretzel with melted butter once they are fresh out of the oven. Let them cool for just a minute or two so that more of the butter has a chance to stick.
Nutrition
Other Bread Recipes we love!
- Classic French Bread
- Homemade White Bread
- Homemade Crescent Rolls
- Copycat Olive Garden Breadsticks
- Rustic Cheddar Cheese Bread
- Pull Apart Garlic Bread
- Homemade Soft Pretzels
- Stuffed Crust Pizza
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Ths Soft Pretzel Bites Recipe makes chewy and perfectly soft pretzel bites. To get the best homemade pretzel bites, just follow these easy step by step instructions. You can get your favorite soft pretzel bites without ever leaving your kitchen!
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