Chewy and soft sourdough pretzel bites are super delicious and only uses wild yeast to rise, no instant yeast. They are the perfect snack or appetizer.
Pretzel lovers rejoice! Sourdough soft pretzels are baked into the perfect snack sized bite. Serve with honey mustard, beer cheese dip, or even some ranch dressing.
The other day, the kids and I were ranking the months of the year from our favorite to least favorite. And the consensus was the January was consistently ranked at the bottom three by the majority.
Luke on the other hand, doesn’t agree. He loves the winter and finds that it has the best hiking and everything is so clear.
Whatever your take is during the winter months, one thing is for sure, these sourdough pretzel bites will help pass those very short and chilly days.
Serve them as an appetizer or fun snack. Or even with a bowl of hearty soup. They do not dissapoint.
Tips:
- You want to use active sourdough starter so the dough will rise well.
- This is the perfect master recipe that is delicious with just a little salt or you can totally customize with additional delicious toppings.
- Sourdough discard may be able to be used if you let the dough ferment much longer.
- Learn to make traditional soft sourdough pretzels here.
- New to sourdough? Learn how to make a sourdough starter here.
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Sourdough Pretzel FAQ:
Are sourdough pretzels a healthy snack?
Yes. They are the perfect salty snack. Since the dough is fermented, the vitamins and minerals are more bio-available for your body to absorb, and there is less gluten making them easier to digest.
What makes pretzel dough different than bread?
The real main difference is that pretzel dough is boiled in baking soda bath before it is baked. This gives it that yummy crust that is similar to bagels.
Can sourdough pretzels be frozen?
Yes. Freeze after baking in an air-tight container or Ziploc bag. Pop in a warm oven for a few minutes to reheat.
Or freeze the pretzel dough after they have shaped the dough. Place on a parchment lined cookie sheet and freeze for at least 2-3 hours. Transfer into a Ziploc bag or an air-tight container. Allow the dough to thaw completely and then rise for another hour. Boil and bake as directed.
What do you eat sourdough pretzels with?
They can be served with a variety of sauces (like cheese sauce, ranch, pizza sauce, garlic butter sauce, mustard, etc) or eaten all on their own.
Are sourdough pretzels better?
In my opinion, yes. Sourdough pretzels are far superior than regular pretzels. They offer more complexed and delicious flavor while still having all the same delicious texture. Plus, they are healthier since the nutrients in the grain are more bio-available compared
Do I have to boil my pretzels before baking?
You can technically skip this step, but it will not give you that same type of crusty, chewy texture you are used to.
Tools you may need:
Stand mixer with dough hook attachment
Measuring cups and spoons
Large bowl
Pot
Slotted spoon or spider strainer
Pastry brush (optional)
Ingredients:
Dough Ingredients:
Sourdough starter – Active and bubbly. There is no commercial yeast in this recipe. The art of fermenting is what gives this authentic sourdough pretzel recipe.
Water – Preferably filtered. Chlorine can inhibit the yeasts and bacteria from working their magic and helping the dough rise.
Honey – Could also substitute with maple syrup
Salt – Sea salt for the dough and course salt to sprinkle over the top.
Unbleached all-purpose flour – Store-bought or fresh milled.
Water Bath
Water
Baking soda – This gives the pretzels that well-known exterior. It is just like making sourdough bagels. The baking soda makes the water alkaline and gelatinizes the outside which prevents it from fully rising during baking.
Brown sugar
Egg Wash
Egg – Gives it that beautiful deep golden color. This is totally optional, and you can still get that golden color without it. You may just need to bake them a little longer.
Other Topping Options:
Before adding toppings brush the cooked pretzels with melted butter.
- Cinnamon and sugar. Pumpkin spice and sugar is a really yummy option for fall.
- Parmesean or cheddar cheese. Bake for a few minutes until the cheese is melted.
- Everything but the bagel seasoning
How To Make Sourdough Pretzels:
Add active sourdough starter, room temperature water, honey, salt and flour to the bowl of a stand mixer.
Mix the dough on the low speed for 10-15 minutes with the dough hook. You could also knead by hand. The dough should pass the window-pane test. Take a small amount of dough and stretch it between your fingers into a square. If it can stretch it to the point where it’s thin enough to see through, then it is ready.
Cover the bowl with a lid or plastic wrap and let the dough rest in a warm place for 8-12 hours.
Shaping Pretzels
Divide the dough into 6 equal pieces.
Roll each piece into about 15” rope.
Cut into equal portions and place on a baking sheet with parchment paper
Cover the dough and allow them to rise for about an hour or two.
Boiling And Baking Pretzel Dough
Preheat the oven to 425°F.
Bring water in a large stockpot to a boil and add baking soda and brown sugar.
Place a few pretzel bites at a time into the boiling water and allow to boil for 15-20 seconds. I like to do 8 pretzel bites at a time. You don’t want to overcrowd them.
Remove with a slotted spoon or kitchen spider strainer, shaking off excess water and place on a parchment lined baking sheet.
Brush egg wash onto each pretzel bite (optional) and sprinkle with coarse salt.
Bake 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown.
Baking Schedule
10 AM-12 PM: Feed your sourdough starter.
8 PM : Mix the dough together. Cover and ferment.
8 AM the next day: Shape dough and allow to rise for a hour covered. Preheat oven and bring water to a boil.
9-10 AM: Boil and bake pretzels.
Storage:
Place in an air-tight container for up to 3 days. Or freeze up to 3 months.
Reheating Pretzels:
To reheat pretzels, gently moisten the pretzels with a little bit of water, and place in a 325°F for 5 minutes until warm.
You can also reheat in the microwave. Cover with a damp towel and reheat in 30 second intervals until warm. This is definitely not the preferred way as the results will leave something to be desired.
Find More Of My Favorite Sourdough Recipes:
- Sourdough Ciabatta Bread
- Sourdough Potato Bread
- Rosemary Sourdough Bread
- Easy Sourdough Focaccia
- Sourdough Sugar Cookies
If you make this recipe and love it, I would love if you gave it 5 stars! Tag me on Instagram @farmhouseonboone with your delicious creation.
Sourdough Pretzel Bites
Ingredients
- ½ cup sourdough starter, active and bubbly
- 1 cup water
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1 ½ teaspoons salt
- 3 cups unbleached all purpose flour
Water Bath
- 9 cups water
- 2 tablespoons baking soda
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
Egg Wash
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1 tablespoon water
- Coarse sea salt to top
Instructions
- Add active sourdough starter, room temperature water, honey, salt and flour to the bowl of a stand mixer
- Mix the dough on low speed for 10-15 minutes with the dough hook. You could also knead by hand. The dough should pass the window-pane test.
- Cover the bowl with a lid or plastic wrap and let the dough rest in a warm place for 8-12 hours.
- Divide the dough into 6 equal pieces.
- Roll each piece into about 15” rope.
- Cut into equal portions and place on a baking sheet with parchment paper
- Cover the dough and allow them to rise for about an hour.
- Preheat the oven to 425°F.
- Bring water in a large stockpot to a boil and add baking soda and brown sugar.
- Place a few pretzel bites at a time into the boiling water and allow to boil for 15-20 seconds. I like to do 8 pretzel bites at a time. You don't want to overcrowd them.
- Remove with a slotted spoon or kitchen spider strainer, shaking off excess water and place on a parchment lined baking sheet.Brush egg wash onto each pretzel bite (optional) and sprinkle with coarse salt.
- Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown.
Notes
- The dough should pass the window-pane test. Take a small amount of dough and stretch it between your fingers. If you can stretch it to the point where it’s thin enough to see through, then it is ready.
- Use an active sourdough starter so the dough will rise well.
- This is the perfect master recipe that is delicious with just a little salt or you can totally customize with additional delicious toppings.
- Sourdough discard may be able to be used if you let the dough ferment much longer.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I want to make the dough at night but I can’t make the pretzels until the afternoon or evening. Will they still work?
Yes! I would make the dough at night, let it rise all night. In the morning, stick the dough in the fridge. When you have time in the afternoon, take it out of the fridge (may want to let it sit out at room temp for an hour or so to make shaping easier), then shape, let rise, boil and bake.
Do you think if I could use discard and let sit double the time? House is around 73 degrees.
Sourdough discard may be able to be used if you let the dough ferment much longer.
I made these they tasted great. I did not boil the bites and I did not do egg wash. I used butter brushed on before baking with salt. They came out just like I wanted.So light crispy crust so soft and light inside, wonderful sourdough flavor. We make again next time I will try the Boil, Easy and a great way to bring in the new year 12/31/23
Can I boil the pretzels and then let them sit for a few hours until I cook them in the oven? I proofed them over night and they rose so much! Should I just let them proof longer until I am ready to fully cook them this afternoon?
You would run the risk of them over proofing, you could maybe stick them in the fridge after boiling to slow down the fermentation process.
Can these be made without the brown sugar?
The brown sugar is just for the water bath before you bake them.
Every time I try the recipe my dough is always so sticky. I’ve tried using cups and weighing in grams but nothing changed how the dough mixes. Not sure why this is happening. Any tips? I live in Florida if that makes a difference. I still use the dough and it makes amazing tasting pretzels just the dough is so sticky!
My dough is super sticky too! Not sure why.
It could be multiple factors including how you feed your starter, the environment you are in, over fermentation, etc. Add a little more flour to reduce the stickiness. If they were over fermented they may not rise well.
The dough is extremely sticky when first mixing all the ingredients together. I will add more flour and see how that works!
These came out great! i have never made pretzels before but this was a very easy recipe to follow and they came out delicious. I read the comments because my dough was very sticky, I saw that it is supposed to be a dry dough so I added flour and kept kneading until it seemed right. Rolling them out was so much fun! the dough was so light and airy.
Question tho, what is the purpose of the boiling water with the baking soda and sugar? just curious about that.
So glad it worked for you and you figure it out. So the boiling creates that quintessential skin that forms on the pretzels. Otherwise they won’t have be very pretzel like texture.
I think I am going to try making bagel bites stuffed with cream cheese. I have had some out of the freezer section before and they are yummy but pricey. I have been looking for a recipe to try and make them myself. I think this will work as a perfect base. If they work out I will serve them at baby and bridal showers.
That sounds delicious. I do have a bagel recipe too that may work!
Would love the recipe in grams? I feel like it’s hard to measure active starter.
I have a blog post all about converting measurements into grams!
These pretzels bites are really good!They have that crispy touch with that delicous sourdough in it with the goey egg wash on top!
Wonderful!