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
When I applied the coarse sea salt to the boiled pretzels in step 7, they seemingly cooked right into the dough? How can I ensure they stay at the surface? Overall this recipe did not work for me at all, and I followed it to a tee.
Hi Peter, were the crystals/granules of coarse salt particularly small? Usually coarse-ground sea salt has crystals large enough to stay intact on top of the dough. I also wonder if the pretzels were just too wet from the baking soda bath, perhaps not enough liquid dripped off of each?
We live abroad and soft pretzels are impossible to find anywhere. So my son and I love making these together and keeping in the freezer for when a craving sets in. After baking, ours don’t look as dark brown as yours. Do you put butter or egg on the pretzels before baking? If so, do you do that first, then sprinkle with salt? Thanks!
Hi Jessica, the deep brown color comes from the baking soda bath and then baking for long enough. If yours are still looking a little light in color, extend the baking time a few more minutes to deepen it. No need to brush with butter or egg–just baking soda boil and then salt!
Thanks for the reply! We followed the recipe to a tee and also extended baking time. Only the bottoms start to brown but the tops do not. They look yellow-ish. They taste great! We just wondered why they didn’t look the same.
My boys loved these!! Any recipe I’ve made from Sally is always awesome!!! Thank you for yet another great recipe!
Hi, haven’t made yet but right now only have self rising unbleached flour. Can I use this?
Hi Joanne, we don’t recommend using self rising flour in this recipe. It would take additional recipe testing to ensure accurate results.
Wow, these came out exactly like the pictures and they were delicious!
this was sooo good! i ran out of flour 3 cups in so i used wheat flour and my picky 7 year old still devoured these which is a high compliment
Hello! Love this recipe! Is it ok for the dough to rise for a couple hours if I want to make it ahead?
Hi Annie, we don’t recommend letting it rest at room temperature for that long, but the prepared pretzel dough can be covered and refrigerated for up to one day. See recipe notes for more make ahead details.
How quickly do you need to get the pretzels in the oven after boiling?
If desired, you can bake the pretzels right away or cover and refrigerate the boiled/unbaked pretzels for up to 24 hours before baking in step 8.
To clarify, for next-day baking, we should do the baking soda bath FIRST, then refrigerate over night, then bake the next day? My Oktoberfest party is such a labor of love, getting a bit done the day before is a life saver!
Hi Cassie, that’s correct!
I made this recipe today! It is amazing. Thank you so much for making it so easy to follow and delicious!!
Do you have a recipe for Gluten Free Pretzels?
Hi Audrey, we’re so glad you enjoyed the pretzels! We haven’t tested a gluten free version, but let us know if you do any experimenting.
Omg so so so good
Hi, can we substitute the sugar for honey or maple syrup? Or should we omit all together? Thanks!
Hi Caroline, we don’t recommend omitting the sugar altogether. In addition to flavor, the 1 Tbsp of sugar is necessary to help feed the yeast. You could use honey or agave instead of the white/brown sugar.
I ended up swapping out the sugar for honey per your suggestion and these were fabulous! Will definitely be my go to recipe now, my family loved these pretzels
So yummy!
Made these today and they were so easy and delicious. I used half bread flour and half all purpose flour. Next time I’ll try gluten free flour. Thank you for this easy to follow recipe.
Looking forward to making for my son’s classroom snack… can I double the recipe without problems?
Hi Leah, for best results, we recommend making 2 separate batches rather than doubling. Hope they’re a hit!
These turned out great!
Can I use this recipe to wrap around hotdogs, if so, how do I do w
Hi M, we haven’t tested it ourselves, but several readers have reported success doing so. We’re unsure of the exact bake time. Let us know if you try it!
This was my first time making it & they turned out so good! It only lasted 10 minutes before my children ate them all!
I made this today with my kid (9 yo) where I did most of the guiding. It was very managable, easy to follow recipe. End product was delicious. A brush of butter and a dusting of parmesean cheese put this over the top!
I made the full recipe and these pretzels lasted 20 minutes in my house!
I loved this recipe but I accidentally bought whole wheat flour instead of all purpose this time. Does whole wheat flour work?
Hi Akasha, we wouldn’t swap for all whole wheat flour. You could try swapping half of the flour for whole wheat flour, but the pretzels still may taste a bit heavy and dense.
Never made pretzels before. Have only ever made one type of bread from scratch. These were great. My husband made beer cheese to go with them… and now they’re a staple. Thank you so much for a great recipe!
Love this recipe! I will add that I have been told that Philly pretzels do not have sugar nor butter. I add just a little butter on the parchment paper before baking and these turn out amazing. At least they’re gone lol. Ps. I half the recipe only because they are best fresh out of the oven.
Can bread flour be used? Thank you for the great recipes!
Hi Marti, 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. Enjoy!
I love it it helped me so much
This recipe was amazing!
I do love this recipe!! The touch of butter is amazing!! Always fun to make!
This one just wouldn’t come together for me. I added almost 5 cups of flour and it was still sticky, tried mixer kneading it and it was a total mess. Not sure what I’m doing wrong.
Hi Rosey, is it particularly humid and hot where you live at this time? Because that can affect how the dough comes together. If you need to add more flour, it doesn’t necessarily mean that you’re doing anything wrong; it’s just that the dough is wet and needs more flour to help.
Hi, I don’t have parchment paper or silicone mats, (very tight budget here). If I put on cookie sheets will they burn?
Hi Joanne, you may experience a little sticking/burning without a layer of protection between the pretzels and baking sheet. Keep a close eye on them, and you could try gently lifting them with a spatula a few times throughout baking to make sure they don’t stick.
I just made these and they were so good on their own. But I made a cheese dip to go along with it. No dip needed for these pretzels though, because they are just that good! I was nervous at first that the dough wouldn’t turn out right because it only rises once for ten minutes. But was I mistaken, they were delicious! Definitely make these!
I don’t have baking soda can I use baking powder for the boil?
Hi Joanne, if you don’t have baking soda, you can skip the bath but the pretzels will lose their signature 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.
Amazing and super easy recipe! Only thing I had to tweak was how long I had the pretzels in the oven for, I found 20min was perfect.