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An angled side view of sourdough pretzels on a baking sheet.

Sourdough Pretzels

Soft sourdough pretzels are made in three simple steps: forming the dough, boiling the pretzels in baking soda water and baking the pretzels in the oven. They can be made with either active sourdough starter or with discard.
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Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Rest time 1 hour
Total Time 2 hours
Course Breakfast, brunch
Cuisine American
Servings 8 pretzels
Calories 221 kcal

Equipment

  • Parchment paper
  • baking sheet
  • dutch oven or stock pot
  • stand mixer

Ingredients
  

  • 227 grams sourdough starter fed or hungry
  • 360 grams all purpose flour or bread flour
  • 170 grams milk
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 2 teaspoons instant yeast
  • 1½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon non-diastatic malt powder optional

Instructions
 

  1. Place the mixing bowl on a kitchen scale that is set to grams, then hit the tare button. The tare function tells the scale not to count the weight of the bowl, which is important!
  2. Add the hungry or active starter, bread flour, diastatic malt powder (if you are using it), whole milk, yeast, sugar and salt to the mixing bowl. I use the tare button between each addition to measure directly into the bowl. 
  3. Knead the dough in the bowl of your stand mixer with the dough hook attachment for about five minutes, or until the stiff dough clings to the sides and feels soft and only slightly sticky to the touch.
    If the dough is too dry, add a splash of milk. If the dough is sticking to the bowl and seems too wet, add flour gradually until the texture improves. There is a bit of intuition involved with making sourdough recipes, but you will get the hang of it!
  4. Leave the dough in the mixing bowl, cover it with a tea towel or plastic wrap and place it somewhere warm to bulk rise for an hour for the first rise. I turn my oven on to preheat for a few minutes, then shut it off to create a proofing box of sorts or boil a cup of water in the microwave and then store it in my modified proofing box.
  5. After the dough has warmly rested for an hour, it will feel soft and pillowy. At this point the dough can be long fermented overnight or up to 4 days in the refrigerator or baked immediately.
    On a clean work surface remove it from the mixing bowl and divide the dough into eight equal pieces using either a knife for pastry scraper.
  6. Form each piece of dough into smooth balls and then gently roll them into a long rope.  Shape the dough by twisting the middle together and bringing the ends down to form a pretzel shape.
  7. Let the pretzel dough rest on the counter for the second rise for about 30 minutes, covered by a tea towel. Bring a large pot of water comes to a boil and preheat oven to 350°F.
  8. Once the water reaches a boil, add 1 tablespoon of baking soda. The baking soda creates an alkaline solution that acts as both a binder and pH stabilizer to keep the pretzel shape during the boiling process. 
  9. Once the boiling baking soda bath is ready, add 2-4 pretzels to the pot. The shaped pretzels SHOULD NOT TOUCH EACH OTHER in the boiling water. Set a timer for one minute and let the bagel boil.
  10. After one minute, flip the pretzels over with a slotted spoon and boil the other side for one minute more. Remove the pretzels from the water and let any excess water drip off before setting them on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
  11. Brush the pretzel tops with an egg wash* and sprinkle with a pinch of flaked sea salt or seasonings. I'm using Everything But the Bagel Jalapeño and plain poppy seeds. 
  12. Bake the pretzels at 350°F for about 20-25 minutes. This could vary depending on your oven. In my oven, I place my sheet pan on the bottom rack and bake for exactly 25 minutes. Sometimes I rotate the pan after 15 minutes if they appear to be browning unevenly.
  13. Once the pretzels are golden brown and cooked through (check for an internal temperature between 195-205°F), let them cool on a wire rack.

Notes

*How to Make an Egg Wash
Crack one egg into a small bowl.  Add a half teaspoon of water. Stir vigorously until the egg mixture becomes light and frothy.

 

Variations
  1. For cheesy Italian pretzels, before baking the pretzels, brush them with egg wash and sprinkle with shredded mozzarella cheese, parmesan cheese, Italian seasoning and sea salt. Once it has baked, serve with warm marinara sauce.
  2. When I am craving the flavorful punch of Everything But the Bagel seasoning, I make my plain pretzels and sprinkle them generously with the seasonings after the egg wash and before baking. They are so tasty when served with softened cream cheese!
  3. Poppyseed Pretzels are a variation that is super easy! All you have to do is sprinkle the pretzel with poppyseeds just before baking.
Storage
The sourdough pretzels can be stored in a plastic bag or airtight container for up to two days on the counter or two months in the freezer.

Nutrition

Calories: 221kcalCarbohydrates: 44gProtein: 7gFat: 1gSaturated Fat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.2gMonounsaturated Fat: 0.3gCholesterol: 3mgSodium: 450mgPotassium: 114mgFiber: 2gSugar: 3gVitamin A: 36IUVitamin C: 0.03mgCalcium: 36mgIron: 2mg
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