This is one of the easiest ways to prepare homemade soft pretzels and the results are extra delicious. The soft pretzel dough only needs to rest for 10 minutes before shaping. The quick baking soda boil gives the pretzels their traditional flavor. Make sure you watch the video for how to shape pretzels!
Homemade soft pretzels are nothing new around here because this recipe has been a reader favorite for years. This recipe is such a fan favorite, that it deserved a spot in print! You’ll also find this recipe in my cookbook, Sally’s Baking 101 (which has become a New York Times Best Seller!).
The dough requires just 6 ingredients and there’s hardly any rise time, so not only are these easy, they’re pretty quick too. In fact, I remember feeling pleasantly surprised at the ease and speed the first time I made them—it took us only 30 minutes to make 1 batch!
Over the years, I’ve added a smidge of melted butter to the dough for improved flavor. Furthermore, we’ve introduced the baking soda bath. While it sounds strange, this step is what gives pretzels that iconic flavor, chewy texture, helps deepen their golden color in the oven, and locks in the super soft interior. If you get the water boiling ahead of time, it really only adds 5 minutes to the entire process.
We’ve also made them soft pretzel bites, soft pretzel knots (with various toppings), jalapeño cheddar pretzels, and soft pretzel rolls from this simple dough. There’s no wrong way to shape a pretzel, but let’s stick with the classic today. I promise you’ll no longer feel intimidated working with yeast, shaping pretzels, or the baking soda bath.
Even if you have zero skill in the kitchen, you can make these homemade soft pretzels.
Step-by-Step Photos
Let’s chat about the dough. You need the simplest, most basic ingredients possible and I bet each one is in your kitchen right now. Warm water, 1 packet of yeast, brown or regular granulated sugar, melted butter, salt, and flour.
Mix the yeast and sugar in the warm water, let it sit for a minute, then whisk in the butter and salt, then add the flour. You can use a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment a big bowl and wooden spoon. Work with what you have in the kitchen. And if you need extra help with kneading, see my full How to Knead Dough video tutorial.
You don’t have to wait to let this dough rise for an extended period of time. Just 10 to 30 minutes does the trick. Don’t have a lot of time on your hands? This recipe is for you. If, however, you want to extend the rise time, you certainly could. Doughs that leave time for bulk fermentation (when the dough rises before shaping), typically have a more enhanced, developed flavor. In fact, some pretzel recipes require an overnight rise in the refrigerator. If you have the time for that, do it! However, I find a brief rise suitable for today’s pretzels, especially if I’m making them with younger bakers.
How to Shape Homemade Soft Pretzels
Now it’s time to shape.
Roll about 1/3 cup (75g) of dough into a long 20- to 22-inch rope.
Twist the ends and bring the ends down. That’s a pretzel!
Now drop the pretzels into the boiling water + baking soda. Let them boil for 20–30 seconds each, then place onto a baking sheet. This pretzel dough makes 12 regular-size soft pretzels, so I use 2 baking sheets. 6 on each.
Sprinkle with coarse salt and bake in a hot oven. That’s it, you’re done.
Make-Ahead Tip
If you are making pretzels in advance, do not top them with coarse salt before baking. The salt draws the moisture out of the pretzels, and once you’ve placed the baked and cooled pretzels in an airtight container or bag, it doesn’t take long before you’ll notice water droplets forming inside and the pretzels become soggy and wrinkled. Yuck!
If you won’t be serving the pretzels the same day you bake them, omit the salt-topping step. Bake as directed, then allow to cool completely before placing them in an airtight container, and store at room temperature. When you are ready to serve them, place the pretzels on a baking sheet and brush them lightly with water, then sprinkle with coarse salt. Bake them in a 350°F (177°C) oven for 5–10 minutes, or until warmed through.
Same goes for freezing homemade soft pretzels: wait to top with salt until you’re ready to serve them. Cool the unsalted baked pretzels completely, then freeze in an airtight freezer-safe container or zip-top bag for up to 3 months. To reheat, brush frozen pretzels (no need to thaw) with water and sprinkle with coarse salt, then bake at 350°F (177°C) for 20 minutes or until warmed through.
And if you want to kick your soft pretzel status into major high gear, add some spicy nacho cheese sauce.
Print
Easy Homemade Soft Pretzels
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 12 pretzels
- Category: Snacks
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
This is one of the easiest ways to prepare homemade soft pretzels for beginners, and the results are extra delicious! The dough is a family recipe and only needs to rest for 10 to 30 minutes before shaping. The quick baking soda boil gives the pretzels their traditional flavor, and I do not recommend skipping it. This recipe is also in my New York Times best-selling cookbook, Sally’s Baking 101.
Ingredients
- 2 and 1/4 teaspoons (7g) instant or active dry yeast (1 standard packet)
- 1 Tablespoon brown sugar or granulated sugar
- 1 and 1/2 cups (360ml) warm water (around 100°F/38°C)
- 1 Tablespoon (14g) unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 and 3/4–4 cups (469–500g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled), plus more as needed
- coarse salt, for topping
Baking Soda Bath (See Recipe Note)
- 1/2 cup (120g) baking soda
- 9 cups (2.13L) water
Instructions
- Whisk the yeast and sugar into warm water. Cover and allow to sit for 1 minute.
- Whisk in the melted butter and salt. Add 3 cups (375g) of flour. Mix with a wooden spoon (or dough hook attachment if using a stand mixer) until combined. Add 3/4 cup (94g) more flour until the dough is slightly tacky and pulls away from the sides of the bowl. If it is still sticky, add up to 1/4 cup more (31g) flour, 1 Tablespoon at a time, as needed. Poke the dough with your finger—if it bounces back, it is ready to knead.
- Knead the dough: Keep the dough in the mixer and beat for an additional 3 to 5 full minutes, or knead by hand on a lightly floured surface for 3 to 5 minutes. (If you’re new to bread-baking, my How to Knead Dough video tutorial can help here.) If the dough becomes too sticky during the kneading process, sprinkle 1 teaspoon of flour at a time on the dough or on the work surface/in the bowl to make a soft, slightly tacky dough. Do not add more flour than you need because you do not want a dry dough. After kneading, the dough should still feel a little soft. Poke it with your finger—if it slowly bounces back, your dough is ready to rise. You can also do a “windowpane test” to see if your dough has been kneaded long enough: tear off a small (roughly golfball-size) piece of dough and gently stretch it out until it’s thin enough for light to pass through it. Hold it up to a window or light. Does light pass through the stretched dough without the dough tearing first? If so, your dough has been kneaded long enough and is ready to rise. If not, keep kneading until it passes the windowpane test.
- Shape the kneaded dough into a ball. Cover lightly with a towel and allow to rest for 10 to 30 minutes. (Meanwhile, I like to get the water + baking soda boiling as instructed in step 8.)
- 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.
- With a sharp knife or pizza cutter, cut dough into 75g sections, which is about 1/3 cup of dough each.
- Roll the dough into a 20–22-inch rope. Form a circle with the dough by bringing the 2 ends together at the top of the circle. Twist the ends together. Bring the twisted ends back down towards yourself and press them down to form a pretzel shape.
- Bring baking soda and 9 cups of water to a boil in a large pot. Drop 1–2 pretzels into the boiling water for 20–30 seconds. Any longer than that and your pretzels will have a metallic taste. Using a slotted spatula, lift the pretzel out of the water and allow as much of the excess water to drip off. Place pretzel onto prepared baking sheet. Repeat with remaining pretzels. If desired, cover the boiled, unbaked pretzels with lightly oiled plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 24 hours before baking (step 9).
- Sprinkle the tops of the pretzels with coarse salt. Bake for 12–15 minutes or until dark golden brown.
- Remove from the oven and, if desired, serve warm with spicy nacho cheese sauce.
- Cover and store leftover pretzels at room temperature for up to 3 days. See Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions in recipe Notes below for more storage info. To reheat, microwave for a few seconds, or bake at 350°F (177°C) for 5 minutes.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: If planning to freeze fully baked pretzels, do not top them with coarse salt before baking. Cool completely, then freeze in an airtight freezer-safe container or zip-top bag for up to 3 months. To reheat, brush frozen pretzels (no need to thaw) with water and sprinkle with coarse salt, then bake at 350°F (177°C) for 20 minutes or until warmed through, or microwave frozen pretzels until warm. The prepared pretzel dough can be covered and refrigerated for up to one day or frozen in an airtight container for 2–3 months. Thaw frozen dough in the refrigerator overnight. Refrigerated dough can be shaped into pretzels while still cold, but allow some extra time, about 1 hour, for the pretzels to puff up at room temperature before continuing with the baking soda bath and baking. You can also freeze the boiled, unbaked pretzels and here’s how: after boiling the pretzels in step 8, place them on a lightly greased parchment paper- or silicone baking mat-lined baking sheet. Freeze the pretzels for about 1 hour, then transfer them to an airtight freezer-safe container or zip-top bag (squeeze out as much air as possible from the bag before sealing) and freeze for up to 3 months. To bake, brush frozen pretzels (no need to thaw) with water and sprinkle with coarse salt, then bake at 400°F (204°C) for 15–20 minutes or until dark golden brown.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Electric Stand Mixer or Glass Mixing Bowl | Wooden Spoon | Baking Sheets | Silicone Baking Mats or Parchment Paper | Pizza Cutter | Large Pot (such as a Dutch oven)
- Baking Soda Bath (Step 8): The baking soda bath is strongly recommended because it helps create that chewy texture and distinctive pretzel flavor. If skipping, brush the shaped and unbaked pretzels with a mixture of 1 beaten egg + 1 Tablespoon of dairy or nondairy milk. This is known as an egg wash. Sprinkle the brushed pretzels with salt. The egg wash will help the salt stick. If you don’t have an egg, simply brush with 2 Tablespoons of dairy or nondairy milk.
- Cinnamon Sugar Pretzels: Skip the coarse salt topping (and skip the egg wash, see note above, if you aren’t doing the baking soda bath step). Bake as directed in step 9. Meanwhile, melt 4 Tablespoons (56g) of unsalted or salted butter. Brush the baked and warm pretzels with melted butter, then dip the tops into a mix of cinnamon and sugar. I usually use 3/4 cup (150g) of granulated sugar and 1 and 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon. Cinnamon-sugar pretzels taste best the day they’re made because the melted butter topping causes them to become soggy after a few hours.
- Reference my Baking with Yeast Guide for answers to common yeast FAQs.
Reader Comments and Reviews
I love this recipe. My twisting skills still need work but they are getting better with each batch.
This us an easy to follow recipe to follow and to do step by step.
My daughter has wanted to try making pretzels for a long time. We finally made these yesterday and they turned out so well!! Can’t believe how easy they were. We’re definitely adding to our ‘favorites’ list for a movie night treat or when the kids have friends over.
Hi Sally! Thanks so much for this recipe. I want to make these for a cooking class, if I am making the dough ahead of time, could I wrap/refrigerate and then take out 10 mins before shaping? Or can the dough not sit for longer in the refrigerator?
Hi Emily, The prepared pretzel dough can be covered and refrigerated for up to one day. See recipe Notes for other make ahead options.
This recipe was so easy! Made this with my 4 and 5 year olds…I want to try a GF version soon
If I need to halve the recipe, do I reduce the amount of yeast by half as well?
Hi Susie, yes, halve everything. Enjoy!
I love these, made them today. Do these freeze well?
Hi Chris, If you want to freeze the shaped, unbaked pretzels, we do find it’s best to do the baking soda bath right before baking– even drop them into the bath while frozen. That being said, we have frozen these shaped pretzels AFTER the bath too. It doesn’t make a huge difference either way. Baked and cooled pretzels freeze well up to 2-3 months. To reheat, bake frozen pretzels at 350°F (177°C) for 20 minutes or until warmed through.
Love this recipe. We have made these several times. The last time the pretzels browned nicely but the the exterior cracked a lot during baking. Was the dough too moist? We time the baking soda wash down to the second. Thoughts?
Hi Chuck and Robin, we’re so glad you enjoyed the pretzels! Some cracking is totally normal—you can see many of the pretzels pictured in the post have cracks. Sometimes the length of time the pretzels sit between the baking soda bath and going into the oven can impact it. But in short, nothing wrong at all!
I made soft pretzels 30 years ago when my kids were little. It was a very time consuming recipe. I was skeptical about this recipe, but they were delicious. So much easier to make. Great recipe.
Well done with these easy to follow directions. These turned out so good l.
Fabulous! Will definitely make these again!
Turned out so good, and I haven’t made anything dough related for over a decade! Rolling it into shape was slightly tricky but it all worked out!
These were delicious! We loved the chewiness! My kids helped make them and added too much flour but they still turned out great.
I am so excited to try this recipe but can’t find vegan butter in my small town. Can I make vegan butter or can I use coconut oil?
Hi Andrea, We haven’t tested it, but you could try try melted coconut oil or other oil instead. The flavor will be different!
Great recipe. Came out well the first time. Then I made it again sour dough style, starting with a sponge made from a cup of starter and a cup of flour made into a soft ball, then poured a cup of water and the sugar over that. Let that sit 12 hours or so in a warm place, then finish the recipe as written, taken into consideration that the water is fully added and a cup and a half of the flour is in the sponge.
Made them gluten free. Simply swapped the flour. Used Caputo Fioreglut. Amazing flour for anything with yeast. Perfect.
I use this recipe all the time! It is absolutley delicious! Recommend 100%. For the most part its easy if you can multi task, and Definitely worth the work!
Easy and very yummy! 🙂
Me and my son enjoyed making these together, easy and delicious (with jalapeno nacho cheese)
I made these using gluten free flour but otherwise followed instructions ans written and they are delicious!
It tasted like when I was on vacation at SeaWorld or on a cruise definitely will make again.
Have made this pretzel recipe twice, cut in half each time. The chewiness and quality thanks to the soda bath is amazing! Great for when in the mood to bake something quick and yummy. Love it!
Dear Sally,
I love every recipe I have ever tried from you- you are very talented ! I was curious about your pretzel recipe. I would really like to use a lye bath instead of baking soda to get that dark crispy crust and that particular pretzel flavor, can you recommend how to go about it? Thanks so much.
Hi Bunnie, we haven’t tested a lye bath method, so we’d recommend doing a quick search for a tutorial before trying. Let us know if you do any experimenting!
45 minutes my lower backside! Still the pretzels were good.
Has anyone made this recipe with bread flour instead of all purpose? Is that possible?
Hi REE! You can definitely use bread flour instead of all-purpose flour in this pretzel recipe. Same amount with no other changes to the recipe. Bread flour yields even chewier pretzels.
I made these twice with bread flour and they turned out really good! I have not made them with all purpose flour, so I don’t know how those compare. But the pretzels I made were so good!!
I’ve made these twice now and they are a HUGE hit in my house. The ONLY change I made was after rolling my “logs” I cut bite sized pieces (about an inch and a half) then baked as per the recipe. My family LOVES them!
Can I do this for pretzel nuggets? Would the recipe be the same?
Yes, here is exactly how we use the recipe to make Soft Pretzel Bites.
I love making these pretzels and my family and friends love to eat them! I noticed it was suggested to eat the cinnamon sugar pretzels the same day as baked. My question is it could I freeze them after they are cooled.
Hi Vera! We wouldn’t freeze them with the butter and cinnamon sugar coating, but you could bake the pretzels, freeze them plain, then thaw and brush with butter and cinnamon sugar when you’re ready to enjoy them.
This was such a fun baking experiment! Sally and Team, I’m wondering if you have tried the option of refrigerating after the boiling step, as mentioned in your recipe. That’s what I did. My pretzels did not turn a deep brown color like your photos, and I think the refrigeration might be the reason. I don’t know enough about the science behind soft pretzels to be sure! However, they tasted absolutely amazing!
Hi Emily, we’re so glad you loved the pretzels! The quick baking soda boil gives the pretzels their traditional flavor and lovely browned color—was the bath time shortened at all? Otherwise they may just need a few additional minutes in the oven. Thanks for giving these a try!
Some of them looked better than others LOL but all tasted great. Thanks.
Loved this recipe. I used too much salt though and left them in like a minute and a half too long. Other than that thank you for sharing this amazing recipe and clear instructions
Thank you for the recipe and instructions. It turned out amazing. It was my first time ever making pretzels. Too much salt and left in about a minute too long but they taste amazing