My sourdough soft pretzels are made with active, bubbly sourdough starter and dunked in a lye bath for a classic, old-fashioned flavor. They are so soft and chewy!
Note that this dough requires 5-7 hours of resting at room
temperature followed by a 12+ hour overnight fermentation in the
refrigerator. I recommend preparing the dough in the morning or early
afternoon and then baking the pretzels the next day.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine sourdough starter, water, honey,
butter, salt, and approximately half of the flour and stir until well
combined.
Attach the dough hook attachment to the mixer and begin to stir on
low-speed. Add remaining flour as needed until the dough begins to
cling to itself and pull away from the sides of the bowl (dough will still be
quite sticky, but shouldn’t stick to your finger if you touch it).
Continue to knead dough with dough hook (medium/low speed) until
smooth and elastic (usually 5-10 minutes longer).
Transfer dough to a lightly oiled bowl, cover the bowl with plastic
wrap, and allow to rise in a warm, draft-free place until nearly doubled in
size (usually 5-7 hours).
Transfer to refrigerator and allow to rest for 12-18 hours (I let mine sit
overnight) before proceeding.
The next day, preheat oven to 400F (205C) and line three baking sheets
with parchment paper. Set aside and prepare the lye bath.
It is important to handle lye safely. Work in a well ventilated area and
wear rubber gloves and eye goggles. Do not touch the lye or the lye/
water solution and beware that if it splashes it may ruin surfaces.
Place a wide, deep glass dish on one of your parchment paper lined
baking sheets. Pour water into the dish and then carefully add lye and use a stainless steel spoon to stir until lye is dissolved.
Remove pretzel dough from the fridge and divide into 10 equal pieces.
Roll each into a long thin rope, about 20-24” long, and twist into a pretzel
shape.
Use a slotted spatula to lower each pretzel, one at a time, into the lye
bath for 30 seconds, then carefully remove. Drain as much water as you
can from each pretzel and place on prepared baking sheet, spacing
pretzels at least 2” apart.
Sprinkle with pretzel salt.
Transfer to center rack of 400F (205C) oven and bake pans 1 at a time
for 12 minutes per pan, rotating the pan halfway through and baking
until deep golden brown.
Remove from oven and cool slightly before serving.
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily value may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
Stand mixer
A stand mixer is highly recommended. This dough is and should be very
soft and somewhat sticky. Using a stand mixer allows us to keep the
dough soft while still kneading it sufficiently. If you were to knead the
dough by hand, you would have to add quite a bit more flour than is
ideal in order to even be able to manage it, which would result in
tougher pretzels.
Instead of a lye bath, you can do a baking soda bath instead, but your
pretzels will not be as brown or taste quite as traditional (they’re still
delicious though!). To do this, bring 8 cups water and ¼ cup (66g) baking
soda in a large pot. Gently lower pretzels (only 1 or 2 at a time) into the
boiling mixture and boil for 30 seconds per side then use a frying spider
to remove and drain and place on parchment-lined baking sheet.
Prepare an egg wash (optional, but helps darken the pretzels) by
whisking an egg with a Tablespoon of water, gently brush each pretzel
with the mixture, sprinkle with pretzel salt, then bake as indicated.
Cinnamon sugar variation
Skip the pretzel salt and bake the pretzels plain. While pretzels are still
warm, brush each one with melted salted butter (you’ll need about ¼
cup/57g), then sprinkle with cinnamon sugar or dip in cinnamon sugar.
Storing
Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days (the
salt may dissolve as they sit) or tightly wrap and freeze for several
months. To reheat from frozen, preheat your oven to 325F (165C) place
on a parchment lined baking sheet, brush lightly with water or melted
butter, and heat until warmed through (this will just take a few minutes).
