These soft pretzel bites are exactly like regular homemade soft pretzels, but shaped into smaller pieces. The 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. Serve plain, cinnamon sugar style, or with your favorite dip such as spicy cheese sauce or stone ground mustard.
I originally published this recipe in 2015 and have since added new photos, a video tutorial, and more success tips. This recipe previously called for an egg wash before topping with salt, but that step is now optional as the pretzels can be salted while they are still wet from the boiling step. The written recipe below reflects that small change.
I’m writing this over 7 years after this recipe was first published and say with 100% honesty that kids and adults alike FLOCK to these pretzel bites. They’re always a massive hit, a favorite party snack, and the fact that they’re surprisingly easy is music to the ears!
One reader, Ali, commented: “Made these for the Super Bowl. I was nervous because I have very little experience with yeast and my last attempt at a yeast recipe turned out terribly. Much to my relief, these were so easy and turned out DELICIOUS! I will absolutely be making them again. I especially loved how short the rise time was… no need to start the process the night before or even hours before. Thank you! ★★★★★”
Another reader, Connie, commented: “So easy and delicious! I put off making these because I thought they would be more involved, but they were so simple! I made half with salt and half with cinnamon sugar, and these will be on all my party menus! ★★★★★”
Tell Me About These Soft Pretzel Bites
- Flavor: If you enjoy soft pretzels, you’ll love these smaller bites. They’re completely homemade, so unlike store-bought frozen soft pretzels, each has that soft, warm, and fresh-from-the-oven taste and texture. You can keep the pretzels traditional with a sprinkling of coarse salt or try the cinnamon sugar version detailed in the recipe notes.
- Texture: The difference between bread and soft pretzels/soft pretzel bites is an alkaline bath. Do you know what that is? I promise it’s a very easy step. This is when shaped soft pretzel dough takes a dip in boiling water and baking soda, a quick step that provides the iconic chewy pretzel texture and adds a deeper, richer color to the baked pretzels. The boiling water also locks in the shape so the pretzels don’t over-puff in the oven. (Without the baking soda bath, you lose texture, that deep brown color, and flavor. So, basically, you will have bite-size bread instead of pretzels.) We do this key step when making regular soft pretzels, soft pretzel rolls, jalapeño cheddar soft pretzels and soft pretzel knots, too.
- Ease: Have you ever made my recipe for regular homemade soft pretzels? It was one of the first recipes I ever published, only to be republished with step-by-step photos a few years later. It’s become a “famous” & popular recipe on this website because the pretzels are relatively quick, extremely easy, and deliver great taste. Same story with these pretzel bites! Though the recipe requires yeast, I always say that this pretzel dough is a terrific starting point for yeast beginners because there’s very little rise time. And shaping the dough into bite-size pieces is easier than shaping into pretzels. Lots of perks about today’s recipe!
Dough for Soft Pretzel Bites
I never stray from my original soft pretzel dough, so that’s what you’ll use for these pretzel bites. You need just 6 basic ingredients to get started including warm water, yeast, a little sugar to feed the yeast, melted butter, salt, and all-purpose flour. (If you have it, the same amount of bread flour works too!). You can use either instant (quick rise) or active dry yeast in this dough. I usually use Platinum Yeast from Red Star, which is an instant yeast.
The dough doesn’t require extended rise time and the baking soda bath is pretty quick, so besides the baking step, the longest stretch of time this recipe requires is shaping.
Baking with Yeast Guide
Reference this Baking with Yeast Guide whenever you work with baker’s yeast. I include practical answers to all of your common yeast questions.
Step-By-Step Pictures
Whisk the warm water, yeast, and sugar together. Cover and let the mixture sit for a few minutes until foamy on top. Waiting for it to foam isn’t totally necessary, but it helps us see that the yeast is ready and active. The right photo below shows the dough before kneading. Review my How to Knead Dough video tutorial if needed before starting the next step.
Knead the dough, divide into 6 sections, and then roll into six 20-inch ropes. The video tutorial located in the recipe shows these steps as well. Cut each rope into 1.5 – 2 inch pieces to make bites. I like to use a (affiliate links) pizza cutter or bench scraper for cutting this dough, but a sharp knife works perfectly fine too. Use what you have.
The photo above shows the pretzel bites after the baking soda bath. At this point, they are ready to bake.
Try Cinnamon Sugar Pretzel Bites
Immediately after the baking soda bath while the soft pretzel bites are still wet, sprinkle with coarse salt. Or if you’d like a different topping, skip the coarse salt and try the cinnamon sugar version. Bake the pretzels completely plain without salt. Once done and still warm out of the oven, brush with melted butter then dip into a mix of cinnamon and granulated sugar. See specific instructions in the Notes below.
By the way, you can have fun with even more toppings such as everything bagels seasoning instead of coarse salt. Heavily sprinkle on the pretzels while they’re still wet from the baking soda bath before baking.
For a larger version, try these soft pretzel rolls. Great for sandwiches!
Make-Ahead Tip
If you are making pretzel bites 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 pretzel bites in an airtight container or bag, it doesn’t take long before you’ll notice water droplets forming inside and the pretzel bites become soggy and wrinkled. Yuck!
If you won’t be serving the pretzel bites 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 pretzel bites 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 minutes, or until warmed through.
Same goes for freezing homemade soft pretzel bites: wait to top with salt until you’re ready to serve them. Cool the unsalted baked pretzel bites completely, then freeze in an airtight freezer-safe container or zip-top bag for up to 3 months. To reheat, brush frozen pretzel bites (no need to thaw) with water and sprinkle with coarse salt, then bake at 350°F (177°C) for 10 minutes or until warmed through.
More Appetizers & Snacks
- Pepperoni Pizza Dip
- Garlic & Bacon Spinach Dip
- Sweet Potato Skins
- Honey Mustard Pretzel Pieces
- Crab Dip
- Homemade Artisan Crackers
- Bacon Wrapped Cheesy Stuffed Jalapeños
- Honey BBQ Popcorn Chicken
- Cranberry Pecan Cheese Ball
Soft Pretzel Bites
- Prep Time: 40 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 5 dozen
- Category: Appetizer
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
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.
Ingredients
- 1 and 1/2 cups (360g/ml) warm water (lukewarm; 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 (14g) unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
- 3 and 3/4–4 cups (469–500g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled), plus more for hands and work surface
- topping: coarse salt/coarse sea salt
Baking Soda Bath
- 1/2 cup (120g) baking soda
- 9 cups (2.1L) water
Optional for Serving
- spicy cheese sauce or your favorite mustard
Instructions
- Make the dough: 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 and a wooden spoon or silicone spatula.) 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 (30g) of flour and continue to beat for 1 more minute. (You can see in the video that I add the remaining flour.)
- Knead the dough: Keep the dough in the mixer (and switch to the dough hook if using the paddle) and beat for an additional 5 full minutes, or knead by hand on a lightly floured surface for 5 full 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.
- 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.)
- 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.
- Shape: 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.
- Baking Soda Bath: 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 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.
- Bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from the oven and serve warm.
- 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.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: If planning to freeze baked pretzel bites, 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 pretzel bites (no need to thaw) with water and sprinkle with coarse salt, then bake at 350°F (177°C) for 10 minutes or until warmed through, or microwave frozen pretzel bites 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 pretzel bites while still cold, but allow some extra time, about 1 hour, for the pretzel bites to puff up before continuing with the baking soda bath and baking.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Electric Stand Mixer | Baking Sheets | Silicone Baking Mats or Parchment Paper | Pizza Cutter or Bench Scraper | Large Pot | Coarse Salt
- Flour: If you have it, the same amount of bread flour works instead of all-purpose flour. Do not use whole wheat flour.
- Cinnamon Sugar: Bake the pretzel bites completely plain without salt in step 7. As the pretzel bites bake, melt 4 Tablespoons (60g) unsalted butter. Set aside. Combine 3/4 cup (150g) granulated sugar and 1 and 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon. Set aside. Once the pretzels are done and still warm out of the oven, brush each with melted butter then generously dip into cinnamon sugar. Cinnamon sugar pretzels are best served that day 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.
- Egg? This recipe used to call for brushing the boiled pretzel bites with a beaten egg before sprinkling with coarse salt. Now you can skip the egg and sprinkle the salt on the pretzels while they are still wet from the boiling step. If you prefer them the old way, feel free to continue brushing with the beaten egg before salting and baking.
Reader Comments and Reviews
Hands down, THE BEST pretzel recipe with tips attached. The recipe was easy and turned out amazing. I ended up only using 3 1/2 cups of flour, but they are AH-MAZING. Couldn’t have satisfied this pretzel bite craving in any better way.
I would like make a whole wheat version of this recipe using KAF white whole wheat. I am assuming I will need some white flour as well. Any suggestions on the amounts of whole wheat and white? Also should I use KAF AP or bread flour for the white?
Hi Kristin, we haven’t tested this recipe with whole wheat flour, but we’d recommend starting with half whole wheat, half all-purpose flour and then adjusting as needed for future batches. Expect the pretzels to be a bit denser.
This recipe sound amazing! I can’t wait to try it!
I have one question: Could I dip the pretzel bites in cinnamon sugar when they’re still wet after the baking soda bath? Or do you have to add the cinnamon sugar After baking? If so, could you wet them with water instead of butter?
Thanks!
Hi Reina! The cinnamon sugar may burn if added before baking. Dipping the baked pretzel bites in water may result in soggy pretzels, we recommend sticking with butter if at all possible!
Hi Sally,
I followed to the recipe exactly. Why does it taste yeasty? Thanks
Will this recipe work with gluten free all purpose flour? Thank you!
Hi Emily, we haven’t tested this recipe with gluten free all-purpose flour, but let us know if you give anything a try!
Hi Sally,
2 questions for you.
1. Can I substitute honey for the sugar. (dietary restrictions)
2. Everything bagel mix seems like it might make a good variation on the salt to reduce sodium. Thoughts?
Hi Jan, everything bagel seasoning is excellent on soft pretzels or pretzel bites. Use it in place of the coarse salt topping. And I’ve used honey to replace the sugar in the dough before with no problem.
I froze my bites and most of the salt came off with the handling. Before I reheat them, can I do another egg wash and add more salt?
Hi Shirley, That should be fine. Enjoy!
Love this recipe. I’ve tried shortcut pizza dough pretzel bites but they weren’t that great. These were amazing with a little honey mustard dipping sauce, or just lightly buttered! Thanks!
Will these work with cinnamon sugar – same way you suggested for the pretzels? Similar style to the pretzel suggestion that we would use for baking these bites?
Thank you!
thank you Trina! We’ll try it out Thurs/Fri!
Great recipe! My fellow Vegans… works great with vegan butter and brushing with Just Egg! So yummy! (Wish I could post my pic).
I have made another pretzel recipe from Sally, I think it is the same dough but it tastes so much better in bite form!! My recipe made 74 bites because I rolled the ropes a tad too long, so I baked them for 12 minutes. The tray that I did 13 came out crispy but still yummy! Definitely recommend using the egg wash. Will be making again!
Thank for sharing this recipe. I made some for my friend on her birthday and she loved it a lot.
These came out great! I didn’t make the cheese sauce as I didn’t have the ingredients on hand but will try that another time. I skipped the egg wash as one household member doesn’t eat eggs. Still came out looking and tasting like ones you’d get while out. In fact probably tasted better! It makes a lot, so will be freezing some to enjoy later.
Hi! These look delicious and I am going to give them a shot this weekend, but my niece is gluten free. Have you ever tried making a gluten free version?
Hi Stephanie, we haven’t tested these with gluten free flour, but let us know if you do!
Sally, you’ve done it again! Every recipe of yours that I make is INCREDIBLE! You are my go-to source for baking, and these pretzel bites were no exception. Thank you for all the hard work, time and effort you put into perfecting these recipes for us. You’re the best!!!
If making ahead of time and freezing should I do the water bath or do that before I am due to cook them? Thanks in advance
Hi Rebecca! See recipe notes for detailed make ahead and freezing instructions. Enjoy!
Currently the dough is in a bowl, but I had a very hard time getting it like dough. It was very dry and had to add a lot of water. Does anyone know why?
Hi Ivy, Make sure you are spooning and leveling (or weighing) your flour and not scooping it. Scooping the flour can lead to using too much which would try out your dough. But, there are a lot of variables that go into the consistency of dough, even down to the weather and humidity in the air. There’s nothing wrong with adding just a little more water dough if you need to.
This is hands-down the best pretzel recipe ever. I make these at least once a week and they’re gone within 24 hours. Love how the rise time isn’t super long yet the end result is still fabulous!
Can I make just half the recipe?
You can halve the recipe for a half batch, yes.
Bad news is I made a huge mess in the kitchen. Good news is they turned out so good. I didn’t think they would work because the dough seemed so sticky. I rolled one batch in cinnamon and sugar. My hubby loved them too. Thanks so much for the recipe.
Another great addition to our go to recipes. Son having a no Covid birthday celebration for four college buds. Wanted the boys to have some post dinner nibbles. Big hit!
The pretzel bite recipe was easy, delicious, and turned out right on the first try! I will definitely be making these bites again.
Hi Sally, I noticed that you use malt syrup, or honey, in your regular soft pretzel water bath. Is there a reason why you don’t use that method with this recipe? Would you recommend not using it for the pretzel bites?
Hi Tanya, we use the same baking soda bath in this recipe and in the regular soft pretzels recipe. It gives the signature pretzel color and chew. Could you be thinking of our bagel recipe? The sweet malt syrup or honey adds extra caramelization and crisp for homemade bagels. Hope this helps!
Thank you Trina. I apologize, I was confusing it with your bagel recipe. Thanks for the clarification. Looking forward to trying this recipe! Everything I’ve made from this site has been wonderful!
I made these today. They are fantastic! We are eating them with your beer cheese dip. Everything I have made from your site has turned out very well. Thank you for all the recipes and easy to follow directions!
Can you fry the pretzel dough?
I can’t see why not!
Have you ever stuffed them? Was thinking about trying pepperoni stick and cheddar cheese stick bites inside.
These were so tasty and super easy to make! My dough was a little sticky even after adding the max amount of flour because of the super high humidity where I live. Just made shaping and cutting them up a little difficult but once I did the baking soda/boiling water dip and the baking, they turned out great! Also, this is so much cheaper to make them yourself rather than go out and spend $10 for a little box of them—definitely a bonus! Thanks, Sally!!
This recipe worked for me!! (I even accidentally doubled the butter.) I was worried since I have little yeast experience.
Fresh baked pretzel recipe for the win. Thanks for sharing Sally.
I used bread flour to make them extra fluffy! I prefer sweet pretzels over salty ones so I put less salt in the dough and did not sprinkle sea salt before putting them in the oven. Made a cream cheese glaze to accompany them… AMAZING! Definitely will do this again! Thank you!
Hi Sally! Will this recipe be the same as the soft pretzel roll?
I’m thinking of using this recipe to do cinnamon sugar pretzel bites with half of the dough, freeze the other half and then use it for pretzel rolls the following week!
Thanks in advance!
Hi Fiona! I recommend my soft pretzel rolls. A very similar recipe!