Pretzels for the Breadmaker
Submitted by hunnybunny
Homemade soft pretzels using a bread machine for the dough, then boiled in a baking soda bath and baked at high heat. Chewy inside with a dark, salty crust.
Let the bread machine handle the kneading, then you take over for the fun part: shaping, boiling, and baking real soft pretzels with that signature chewy bite and dark, glossy crust.
The baking soda bath is what separates a real pretzel from a shaped roll. Dipping each pretzel in simmering alkaline water for about 15 seconds per side creates a chemical reaction on the surface that produces that distinctive brown color and slightly tangy flavor when baked. Skip this step and you’ll just have pretzel-shaped bread.
Keep the water just below a boil. A full rolling boil batters the soft dough and ruins the shape. Gentle bubbles are what you want.
Pro Tips
- Roll the ropes thin. They puff up considerably in the oven. What looks too skinny raw will be just right baked.
- Use a non-aluminum pan for the baking soda bath. Aluminum reacts with baking soda and creates off-flavors and discoloration.
- Sprinkle the kosher salt immediately after the bath, while the pretzels are still wet. The moisture makes the salt crystals stick. Wait too long and they slide right off.
- Watch closely during the last 2 minutes of baking. At high heat the line between golden brown and burnt pretzel is razor thin.
Variations
- Cinnamon sugar pretzels: Skip the salt. Brush warm pretzels with melted butter and roll in cinnamon sugar for a sweet version.
- Everything pretzel: Top with a mix of sesame seeds, poppy seeds, dried garlic, and dried onion flakes.
- Pretzel bites: Cut the ropes into 1-inch pieces instead of shaping. Boil and bake the same way for dippable snack-sized nuggets.
Ingredients
Directions
Add into the bread machine in this order.
Set on manual.
FORMING: Cut dough into short strips, roll into ropes and shape into pretzels.
Cover with a tea towel and let rise for 45 minutes.
‘BATH': In a cast iron or OTHER NON-ALUMINUM pan, bring almost to a boil 4 cups of water and 5 teaspoons of baking soda.
Gently place (by hand or using slotted spoon) the pretzels into the water for approximately 15 seconds on each side turning once.
Do NOT let water come to a boil. Remove pretzels and place on a greased baking sheet.
Sprinkle with coarse salt (kosher).
Bake at 475 for 12 minutes.
NOTE: In my oven it took only about 10 minutes, so watch carefully.
Do NOT make the strips too fat; they really puff up.
If you are on a salt- free diet, use sesame, poppy, garlic; whatever you like on the outside.
- If you use a machine that needs the water first add ingredients in reverse order.
Comments
