Easy Pretzel Recipe – Ken’s Pretzel City Recipe –

My easy pretzel recipe starts with a little story.  I grew up outside Philly, I can remember back in first grade soft pretzels were a dime a piece. Granted times were different. Jimmy Carter was president, video games consisted of Pong and weren’t portable. Cell phones didn’t exist or really anything that would keep you occupied while riding in back of your mom’s Chevrolet Chevelle Malibu Wagon while waiting for gas with 20 cars ahead of you.

Your choices were wrestle your brothers WWF style or other wise you were snacking, that is snacking on soft pretzels.  I remember going to the Vet for a baseball game, after enjoying a game in the bleachers above the 700 Level  you had street vendors on bicycles or pushing shopping carts with big brown bags full a yummy pretzels that were 10 for a dollar.  Those days are long gone but soft pretzels are here to stay.

Pretzels were supposedly created in the 600’s by a monk who baked strips of dough that he folded into a shape resembling a child crossing its arms in prayer.  He would give these treats, which he called “pretiolas” or “little rewards,” to children who had memorized their prayers.   Well 1400 or so years ago these little rewards are still around and they taste great with some mustard especially as a mid morning or mid afternoon snack.
This easy pretzel recipe is not rocket science, essentially they are a bread recipe tweaked.  It is the tweaking that gives the pretzel its unique look and flavor. So sit back, relax and let’s see how this turns out.

Real pretzels aren’t made in a big factory downtown.   No, they are made in a shop in the back of a row home,  in a family business with salt of the Earth people who don’t report to a corporate master but instead report to the customers, one order at a time.

Granted you probably won’t have a coal fire oven, but you too can make yummy delish soft pretzels at home too.

Ingredients:

1 cup warm water, 105-120 degrees Fahrenheit
1 packet of yeast or 2 1/4 teaspoon of dry yeast
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 tablespoon of sugar or honey
1 teaspoon + of course kosher salt
1 1/2 quarts of water
1/4 cup of baking soda

Note: Production Pretzels are made with Lye which is a caustic and has a PH of  13-14.  Baking Soda or Sodium Bicarbonate has a PH of around 9, and that is what we’ll be using for this recipe.

Production:

Production is easiest with a stand mixer but it can be done by hand.  Start by adding the yeast to the tepid water and give the yeast around 5 minutes to get going.  In the mean time add flour, sugar or honey, and salt to the mixing bowl.   Give it a quick stir to mix up the dry ingredients.  Add the water and yeast.  Mix with the paddle  for a good minute or two.  Then switch over to the hook on setting number 2 for six to eight minutes.  Grease a large bowl with lard or  vegetable shortening.  Form the dough in to a ball, add to the bowl and cover.  Give the dough a half hour to 45 minutes to rise.  I put mine in the oven and set it to proofing mode which is like 100 degrees Fahrenheit.  Anyway, once it has risen, give it a punch and knead the dough for a minute or so.

Divide the dough in to 16 piece for snack sized pretzels and 8-10 for bigger pretzels.  Roll the dough into a log and then into an 18 inch fat string.  Form your chosen pretzel shape.  I find it easiest to make a heart like shape with a long tail. Throw the left over the right and bring the edge of the tail past the rim of the heart.  Press down gently so the shape stays.  It’s not the text book pretzel shape but it looks close.

Grab 2 baking sheets and place parchment paper on them then sprinkle a little Olive Oil on some plastic wrap flip it over and cover the formed dough, half of each batch on a baking sheet. Basically you don’t want the dough to stick or dry out.  Let the dough rise a bit for 15 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.

Boil the quart and half of water over high heat, stir in the 1/4 cup of baking soda, and watch as it quickly foams up.  Gently dip each pretzel in the solution, about a minute each side.  Place on cooling rack till the whole batch has been dipped. Arrange the pretzels on  baking sheets and sprinkle with the coarse salt. Bake for around 10 minutes or till golden brown.

Transfer immediately to a cooling rack.  Serve with a side of mustard.

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Easy Pretzel Recipe - Ken's Pretzel City Recipe

This easy pretzel recipe is not rocket science, essentially they are a bread recipe tweaked. It is the tweaking that gives the pretzel its unique look and flavor.

Course Appetizer

Cuisine American

Prep Time 1 hour

Cook Time 10 minutes

Total Time 1 hour 10 minutes

Servings 8 -16 pretzels

Author Ken

Ingredients

• 1 cup warm water 105-120 degrees Fahrenheit
• 1 packet of yeast or 2 1/4 teaspoon of dry yeast
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 1 tablespoon of sugar or honey
• 1 teaspoon + of course kosher salt
• 1 1/2 quarts of water
• 1/4 cup of baking soda

Instructions

1. Start by adding the yeast to the tepid water and give the yeast around 5 minutes to get going. In the mean time add flour, sugar or honey, and salt to the mixing bowl give it a quick stir to mix up the dry ingredients.
2. Add the water and yeast. Mix for a good minute or two. Knead for 8 minutes. Grease a large bowl with lard or vegetable shortening. Form the dough in to a ball, add to the bowl and cover. Give the dough a half hour to 45 minutes to rise.
3. Once it has risen, give it a punch and knead the dough for a minute or so.
4. Divide the dough in to 16 piece for snack sized pretzels and 8-10 for bigger pretzels. Roll the dough into a log and then into an 18 inch fat string. Form your chosen pretzel shape. Press down gently so the shape stays.
5. Grab two baking sheets and place parchment paper on them then sprinkle a little Olive Oil on some plastic wrap flip it over and cover the formed dough, half of each batch on a baking sheet.
6. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.
7. Boil the quart and half of water over high heat, stir in the 1/4 cup of baking soda. Gently dip each pretzel in the solution, about a minute each side. Place on cooling rack till the whole batch has been dipped.
8. Arrange pretzels on baking sheets and sprinkle with the coarse salt. Bake until golden, around 10 minutes.
9. Transfer immediately to a cooling rack. Serve with a side of mustard.

Recipe is adapted by Chowhound.com pretzel recipe.
Recipe is adapted by Cheatsheet.com pretzel recipe.