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
Quick and easy recipe! They came out perfect! Will definitely be making these again.
I had never made pretzels in my life before, so I was definitely anxious about my first ever attempt, but your recipe was indeed easy to follow as well as absolutely delicious. My grown up sons gave the pretzels a 10 out of 10 and they are not that easy to please! Thank you.
These turned out awesome. It was a fun recipe to make with my 5 year old. They turned out perfect. I posted online and shared your link with recipe. 5 stars
I’ve made these a few times now, my family loves them. Still working on getting good shapes but they tasted amazing and my husband is obsessed with the beer cheese! Bravo!!!
Great recipe, but I have a quick question: Why do you not brush beaten egg on these soft pretzels when you do on the pretzel bites recipe since it’s the same dough?
Hi April! No rhyme or reason– brushing these (or any shaped pretzels) with either melted butter or a beaten egg/egg wash helps the topping stick a little more. But if you add the salt/topping when the pretzels are still wet after the baking soda bath, it will stick pretty well anyway. Thanks for asking!
I’ve made the soft pretzels, artisan bread and cranberry nut bread all from your recipes and excellent instructions. Thanks for making me look good and feel talented in the kitchen. I’m looking forward to baking focaccia this weekend. What a perfect pairing for home made meatballs. I’ve shared your recipes with so many and everyone is so thankful to have bread making made easy enough for anyone to attempt. My husband swears the Artisan bread is the best bread he’s ever had. No argument here! Thank you Sally!
Pure genius. I am SO amazed. Magical how the texture is completely different and totally fresh soft pretzel. More magic- they were fast!! I’ll make these a lot more. These were they very best pretzels I have tasted from anywhere including Germany, European Christmas markets, the US. So delicious. I was kitchen challenged and had to roll and form them in the air. HA. But that was fine. Next time I’ll do them in my own kitchen with space to roll them. I would give 10 stars if it were possible.
Love, love, love, love this recipe. Thank you so much for sharing it with all of us. I have made it twice and am going to make it again tomorrow.
I’m a huge fan.
I always have complete success when i try any of your recipes.
I tried two batches, one of these and one of your bite size. The large ones came out very hard.im just wondering why the large pretzels don’t need the egg wash before baking?
I made these pretzels with my Mom and they were delicious! they were easy and fun to make. I had them with no sauce and they were very tasty! highly recommended. 🙂
I didn’t have time to make the beer cheese sauce as well but for the first time, they came out delicious! I used whole wheat bread flour as finding pain white flour is rather tricky at the moment. Brilliant, I will be making again!
There were more steps than I thought there’d be and I felt overwhelmed when my yeast never bubbled. BUT, the recipe really was incredibly easy to make and the results… well, as the chef says in her description, these really are as good or better than any commercially prepared pretzels I or my family has ever had! Now that I’ve made them once, they will be super easy to make again. And again. And again. There’s no reason to ever buy a soft pretzel again!
Wow! I never knew I could make such delicious pretzels at home with so little time and effort. Another great recipe from Sally.
I love these!! It was an easy recipe to follow with excellent results. I struggled some to get the shape right…♀️ I can’t wait to share these with my jr high cooking class next year!
Hi! First time pretzel maker… the recipe was easy and delicious! My daughter husband & I , more or less, just had them hot for dinner. I placed out cheese dip, 3 different mustards, cinnamon sugar & apple butter, we dipped like fondue. Thanks for the awesome recipe.
I made these today because it’s National Soft Pretzel Day and they were delicious! Next time though, I won’t use parchment paper. Some pretzels stuck even though I greased the paper first.
Thank you for the wonderful recipe! I will be making them again soon!
Great recipe! Made them for the first time and they’re super yum. However, I had 2 issues- the dough was very soft and pliable after shaping them so it was hard to get them in the water bath and get them to stay in their shape. They became a ball instead.
Also, the baking soda water bath boiled over and made a huge mess.
How can I keep them the shape when I boil them?
Thanks—they were super yum and will make them again ❤️
Hi Valeska! So glad you enjoyed these soft pretzels. Try using a little more flour when shaping the pretzels so they aren’t quite as soft and sticky. A larger pot will help prevent the water from spilling over the edges next time. Or you can turn down the heat a bit.
These were amazing! First time I ever make pretzels and they came out great! Making our second batch now. I did brush them with melted butter after they came out and it made them taste just like that place we all love. Hehe
Hi Sally. Can I use bread flour instead? I ran out of all purpose flour and I want to bake something right now. What do you suggest?
Sure can! Same amount, 1:1 swap.
This recipe was everything you promised it would be! I have never used the dough blade on my miser or worked with yeast, but they are very yummy! My husband heats them in the toaster . Thanks
This is simply THE BEST soft pretzel recipe! I actually use 4 Tbs (half a stick) of unsalted butter though! Makes it soooooooo buttery and delicious!
I’ve baked these so many times over the past few months, to rave reviews each time!
19 shut down has me in the kitchen baking a LOT and these were the bomb. I’m seriously floored by how quick, easy sand incredible they came out. Kids and I agree this is one of the best things we’ve made yet. The other best thing? Your lemon bars!!! Gah! Dreamy.
Omg so so good!!!! I’ve been wanting to make pretzels for so long and these are perfect!!!
I substituted the regular flour for gluten free Cup4Cup all purpose flour and these turned out perfect!
First time making pretzels… had a little quarantine craving.. and man.. these did not disappoint! My husband and daughter went wild for them. Will be making again for sure. Such an easy recipe.
WOW this was my first time making pretzels and they came out so great. Looked just like the picture and my family went nuts over them. Anyone want pretzels use this recipe
I made this recipe over the weekend with my kids. They came out so tasty. We will definitely be making more in the future.
Hi, I’ve made this a couple times now and live them! I have recommended it to a few friends who have made it as well. My question is can use my starter instead if active and let it sit longer? Shall I just use a cup and a half of starter?
I’m thrilled you enjoy the recipe so much, Jacqueline. I haven’t tested this dough with a yeast starter so I can’t give a confident answer. Let me know if you test anything!
These are so good! Unsure of my baking skills and not wanting to waste ingredients if these didn’t turn out good, I made only half a batch. That was a big mistake because these are so easy to do and so so good!
These were so much fun to make. Like others I struggled a bit to get the pretzels stretched enough to make them big but the shape was easy to achieve. They were just a bit puffed together in the end. Couldn’t believe how quickly they came together.