Pretzel Bites Recipe

Homemade Soft Pretzel Bites-these little pretzel bites are fun to make at home and are great for parties and game day!

Today, I am throwing it back. I am sharing the most popular recipe on our site, Homemade Soft Pretzel Bites. We shared this recipe on our blog in 2010 and it has been a HUGE hit. HUGE! Seven years later and it is still number one. Have you tried these soft pretzel bites? They are perfect for parties, snacking, and game day. We are making them for the big game on Sunday and I can’t wait.

We love making homemade pretzels, the big ones, but there is something extra fun and special about the bites. They are the perfect party food! The pretzels are soft, chewy, salty, and so good dipped in cheese sauce!

We get a lot of questions about the baking soda in the recipe. There is a ⅓ cup, yes a ⅓ cup, but the baking soda doesn’t go IN the pretzels. It is for boiling the pretzels in water. Make sure you add the baking soda VERY slowly because it will bubble up. We don’t want anyone to get burnt.

Homemade Soft Pretzel Bites are fun to make and fun to eat! Make them for your next party or game day! Your guests will have so much fun dipping and snacking! Enjoy!

This is the original photo from 2010. New photos are by Sarah Fennel from Broma Bakery.

Soft Pretzel Bites

These soft pretzel bites are always a crowd favorite! The easy dough requires just 6 ingredients and there’s hardly any rise time, so this is a wonderful recipe for yeast beginners. Have fun shaping the bites (they don’t need to be perfect!) and enjoy warm flavorful homemade pretzels within an hour. Review recipe notes and watch the video tutorial before starting.

Prep: 40min

Total: 1h

Yield: 5

Ingredients:

• 1 and 1/2 cups (360ml) warm water (lukewarm– no need to take temperature but around 100°F (38°C) is great)
• 2 and 1/4 teaspoons (7g) instant or active dry yeast (1 standard packet)
• 1 Tablespoon brown sugar or granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 Tablespoon unsalted butter, melted and slightly cool
• 3 and 3/4 – 4 cups (469-500g) all-purpose flour (spoon & leveled), plus more for hands and work surface
• topping: coarse salt/coarse sea salt
• 1/2 cup (120g) baking soda
• 9 cups (2,160ml) water
• spicy cheese sauce or your favorite mustard

Instruction:

1. Whisk warm water, yeast, and sugar together in the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with a paddle or dough hook attachment. (If you do not have a stand mixer, just use a regular large mixing bowl.) Cover yeast mixture and allow to sit for 5 minutes or until foamy on top. Add salt, melted butter, and 3 cups (375g) of flour. Beat on low speed for 1 minute, scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula if needed, then add 3/4 cup (95g) of flour. Beat on low speed until the dough comes together and pulls away from the sides of the bowl, about 2 minutes. If dough is extremely sticky after 1 minute of mixing, add remaining 1/4 cup of flour and continue to beat for 1 more minute. (You can see in the video that I add the remaining flour.)
2. Keep the dough in the mixer and beat on low speed for an additional 2 minutes or knead by hand on a lightly floured surface for 2 minutes. Cover lightly with a towel and allow to rest for 10-30 minutes. (Meanwhile, I like to get the water + baking soda boiling as instructed in step 5.)
3. Preheat oven to 400°F (204°C). Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Silicone baking mats are highly recommended over parchment paper. If using parchment paper, lightly spray with nonstick spray or grease with butter. Set aside.
4. With a sharp knife, pizza cutter, or bench scraper, cut dough into 6 equal pieces (just eyeball it, doesn’t have to be perfect). Sprinkle work surface very lightly with flour. (Tip: The heavier you flour the work surface, the harder it is to roll the dough. A little stickiness actually helps. You only need *a very light* dusting of flour.) Roll each piece of dough into a 20-inch rope. If the ropes keep shrinking and stretching the dough becomes difficult, stop what you’re doing, lightly cover all of the dough, and let it rest for 10 minutes so the gluten can relax. Then, return to rolling it into ropes. Cut each rope into 1.5 – 2 inch pieces to make bites.
5. Mix water and baking soda together in a large pot. Bring to a boil. Place 8-10 pretzel bites into the boiling water for a quick 10-15 seconds. (Any longer and your pretzels could take on a metallic taste.) Using a slotted spatula or spoon, lift the pretzel bites out of the water and allow as much of the excess water to drip off. Place bites onto prepared baking sheets. Sprinkle each with coarse sea salt while they are still wet or leave plain if using cinnamon sugar topping listed in the notes. Repeat baking soda bath with remaining pretzel bites. If needed, you can cover and refrigerate the boiled/unbaked bites for up to 24 hours before baking.
6. Bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from the oven and serve warm.
7. Cover and store leftover pretzel bites 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 350°F (177°C) for 5 minutes.

Homemade Soft Pretzel Bites

Pretzel bites are fun to make and fun to eat!

Prep: 120min

Total: 138min

Serving Size: 1 serving

Nutrition Facts: calories 181 kcal, servingSize 1 serving

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups warm water
• 2 tablespoons light brown sugar
• 1 package active dry yeast (2 1/4 teaspoons)
• 3 ounces unsalted butter (melted)
• 2 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 4 1/2 to 5 cups all-purpose flour
• Vegetable oil
• 3 quarts water
• 1/3 cup baking soda (for boiling the pretzels)
• 1 whole egg (beaten with 1 tablespoon cold water)
• Coarse sea salt
• ½ Tablespoon unsalted butter
• ½ Tablespoon all-purpose flour
• ½ cup milk
• 8 ounces Cheddar cheese (grated)

Instruction:

1. {‘@type’: ‘HowToStep’, ‘text’: ‘For the Pretzels: Combine the 1 1/2 cups water, sugar, yeast, and butter in the bowl of a stand mixer and mix with the dough hook until combined. Let sit for 5 minutes.’, ‘name’: ‘For the Pretzels: Combine the 1 1/2 cups water, sugar, yeast, and butter in the bowl of a stand mixer and mix with the dough hook until combined. Let sit for 5 minutes.’, ‘url’: ‘https://www.twopeasandtheirpod.com/homemade-soft-pretzel-bites/#wprm-recipe-39488-step-0-0’}
2. {‘@type’: ‘HowToStep’, ‘text’: ‘Add the salt and flour and mix on low speed until combined. Increase the speed to medium and continue kneading until the dough is smooth and begins to pull away from the side of the bowl, about 3 to 4 minutes. If the dough appears too wet, add additional flour, 1 tablespoon at a time. Remove the dough from the bowl, place on a flat surface and knead into a ball with your hands.’, ‘name’: ‘Add the salt and flour and mix on low speed until combined. Increase the speed to medium and continue kneading until the dough is smooth and begins to pull away from the side of the bowl, about 3 to 4 minutes. If the dough appears too wet, add additional flour, 1 tablespoon at a time. Remove the dough from the bowl, place on a flat surface and knead into a ball with your hands.’, ‘url’: ‘https://www.twopeasandtheirpod.com/homemade-soft-pretzel-bites/#wprm-recipe-39488-step-0-1’}
3. {‘@type’: ‘HowToStep’, ‘text’: ‘Oil a bowl with vegetable oil, add the dough and turn to coat with the oil. Cover with a clean towel or plastic wrap and place in a warm spot until the dough doubles in size, about 1 hour.’, ‘name’: ‘Oil a bowl with vegetable oil, add the dough and turn to coat with the oil. Cover with a clean towel or plastic wrap and place in a warm spot until the dough doubles in size, about 1 hour.’, ‘url’: ‘https://www.twopeasandtheirpod.com/homemade-soft-pretzel-bites/#wprm-recipe-39488-step-0-2’}
4. {‘@type’: ‘HowToStep’, ‘text’: ‘Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.’, ‘name’: ‘Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.’, ‘url’: ‘https://www.twopeasandtheirpod.com/homemade-soft-pretzel-bites/#wprm-recipe-39488-step-0-3’}
5. {‘@type’: ‘HowToStep’, ‘text’: ‘Bring the 3 quarts of water to a boil in a small roasting pan over high heat and carefully add the baking soda. It will boil over, so add slowly and be careful!’, ‘name’: ‘Bring the 3 quarts of water to a boil in a small roasting pan over high heat and carefully add the baking soda. It will boil over, so add slowly and be careful!’, ‘url’: ‘https://www.twopeasandtheirpod.com/homemade-soft-pretzel-bites/#wprm-recipe-39488-step-0-4’}
6. {‘@type’: ‘HowToStep’, ‘text’: ‘Remove the dough from the bowl and place on a flat surface. Divide the dough into 8 equal pieces, about 4 1/4 to 4 1/2 ounces each. Roll each piece into a long rope measuring 22 inches and shape. Cut the dough into one inch pieces to make the pretzel bites. Boil the pretzel bites in the water solution in batches. We did about 15 bites at a time. Boil for about 30 seconds. Remove with a large slotted spoon. Place pretzel bites on a baking sheet that has been sprayed with cooking spray. Make sure they are not touching. Brush the tops with the egg wash and season liberally with the salt. Place into the oven and bake for 15 to 18 minutes until golden brown.’, ‘name’: ‘Remove the dough from the bowl and place on a flat surface. Divide the dough into 8 equal pieces, about 4 1/4 to 4 1/2 ounces each. Roll each piece into a long rope measuring 22 inches and shape. Cut the dough into one inch pieces to make the pretzel bites. Boil the pretzel bites in the water solution in batches. We did about 15 bites at a time. Boil for about 30 seconds. Remove with a large slotted spoon. Place pretzel bites on a baking sheet that has been sprayed with cooking spray. Make sure they are not touching. Brush the tops with the egg wash and season liberally with the salt. Place into the oven and bake for 15 to 18 minutes until golden brown.’, ‘url’: ‘https://www.twopeasandtheirpod.com/homemade-soft-pretzel-bites/#wprm-recipe-39488-step-0-5’}
7. {‘@type’: ‘HowToStep’, ‘text’: ‘Remove to a baking rack and let rest 5 minutes before eating. Serve with cheese sauce.’, ‘name’: ‘Remove to a baking rack and let rest 5 minutes before eating. Serve with cheese sauce.’, ‘url’: ‘https://www.twopeasandtheirpod.com/homemade-soft-pretzel-bites/#wprm-recipe-39488-step-0-6’}
8. {‘@type’: ‘HowToSection’, ‘name’: ‘To make the cheese sauce:’, ‘itemListElement’: [{‘@type’: ‘HowToStep’, ‘text’: ‘Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the flour and cook 1 minute. Whisk in the milk and cook until slightly thickened. Remove from heat and stir in the Cheddar cheese until smooth and all of the cheese is melted. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.’, ‘name’: ‘Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the flour and cook 1 minute. Whisk in the milk and cook until slightly thickened. Remove from heat and stir in the Cheddar cheese until smooth and all of the cheese is melted. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.’, ‘url’: ‘https://www.twopeasandtheirpod.com/homemade-soft-pretzel-bites/#wprm-recipe-39488-step-1-0’}]}

How to make Soft Pretzel Bites | Auntie Anne’s Pretzels Recipe

FAQ

What is the secret ingredient which makes a pretzel taste like a pretzel?

Does Auntie Anne’s fry or bake their pretzels?

How do you keep pretzel bites from getting soggy?

Why do you soak pretzels in baking soda?