Pretzels
Pretzels are bread sticks looped into a knot, probably with origins in southern Germany. The tops are sprinkled with poppy seeds or grains of coarse salt. Here is a fairly straightforward recipe that is simple to prepare.
115K 23 4.8
Last modified on: October 24th 2017
Keywords for this recipe:For 12 Pretzels, you will need:
- 1
100 ml milk - 2
500 g flour - 3
100 g butter - 4
20 g yeast - 5
9 g fine (or table) salt - 6
50 g Soured dough (optional) - 7
50 g poppy seeds - 8
50 g Bicarbonate of (baking) soda - Total weight: 829 grams
How long does it take?
Time required for this recipe:
| Preparation | Resting | Cooking | Start to finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 hour 21 min. | 3 hours 30 min. | 30 min. | 5 hours 21 min. |
At what time:
- When will I finish if I start the recipe at ... ?
When should I start for the recipe to be ready at ... ? - Work this out...
Step by step recipe
Stage 1 - 5 min.
Put in a food-processor bowl: 100 ml milk, 500 g flour, 100 g butter, 20 g yeast, 9 g fine (or table) salt and, if possible, 50 g Soured dough.
Stage 2 - 10 min.
Knead for 10 minutes on slow speed.
Note: For the best way to knead, see: A few tips for effective kneading at home.
Note: For the best way to knead, see: A few tips for effective kneading at home.
Stage 3 - 2 hours
Gather the dough into one large ball and transfer this to another bowl, cover with a sheet of plastic.
Leave to rest for 2 hours, it's pointage (starting).
Leave to rest for 2 hours, it's pointage (starting).
Stage 4 - 5 min.
After this time, cut and weigh the dough into 100 g portions.
Stage 5 - 8 min.
Roll these into balls. You can see the gesture in this video.
Stage 6 - 30 min.
Cover the balls of dough with a sheet of plastic and leave to rest for 30 minutes.
Stage 7 - 10 min.
After this time, roll out a ball of dough into a long "sausage" about 50 cm (25 inches) long, then wind it into the traditional pretzel shape. You can see how in the video at the side.
Make all the pretzels like this.
Make all the pretzels like this.
Stage 8 - 1 hour 30 min.
Arrange the pretzels on a baking sheet, cover with a sheet of plastic and leave to rest for 1 hour 30 minutes.
Stage 9 - 10 min.
After this time, preheat the oven to 230°C (450°F).
Bring a pan with 1 litre of water to the boil and, when boiling, add the 50 g of bicarbonate of soda (be careful, as this reacts and may well make the pan boil over, so add it a little at a time).
Bring a pan with 1 litre of water to the boil and, when boiling, add the 50 g of bicarbonate of soda (be careful, as this reacts and may well make the pan boil over, so add it a little at a time).
Stage 10
Turn off the heat under the pan and plunge a pretzel into the water containing the bicarbonate of soda. It will sink, then rise back up to the surface...
Stage 11 - 10 min.
...take it out with a skimmer and place it on the baking sheet.
Do this with all the pretzels.
This bath of bicarbonate of soda in water gives a sharp flavour to the pretzels.
Do this with all the pretzels.
This bath of bicarbonate of soda in water gives a sharp flavour to the pretzels.
Stage 12 - 3 min.
Scatter poppy seeds or coarse salt crystals over the top of each pretzel.
Stage 13 - 20 min.
Put in the oven immediately. It is important that the pretzels are still wet when they go into the oven, so that they will turn a lovely golden brown.
If you have to wait and your pretzels dry out, wet them again with a brush dipped in the pan of water and bicarbonate of soda.
If you have to wait and your pretzels dry out, wet them again with a brush dipped in the pan of water and bicarbonate of soda.
Stage 14
Bake until they are just starting to brown and are still soft, about 20 minutes.
Leave to cool on a wire rack.
Leave to cool on a wire rack.
Remarks
To give that famous piquancy, professionals use caustic soda (well-diluted, of course), rather than baking soda.
And to drink?
To set the right mood, a good beer.
Keeping
A day or two in an airtight tin.
Nutritional information
| Whole recipe | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Energetic value | Proteins | Carbohydrates | Fats |
| 2,938 Kcal or 12,301 Kj | 71 gr | 404 gr | 115 gr |
| 147 % | 27 % | 38 % | 17 % |
| Per 100 g | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Energetic value | Proteins | Carbohydrates | Fats |
| 354 Kcal or 1,482 Kj | 9 gr | 49 gr | 14 gr |
| 18 % | 3 % | 5 % | 2 % |
| Per piece | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Energetic value | Proteins | Carbohydrates | Fats |
| 245 Kcal or 1,026 Kj | 6 gr | 34 gr | 10 gr |
| 12 % | 2 % | 3 % | 1 % |
How much will it cost?
- For 12 Pretzels : 4.84 €
- Per Pretzels : 0.40 €
Note: Be careful, these prices are only an estimate, you can consult the table of prices by ingredients used for this estimate.
Source
Home made.
This recipe uses (among others)
 | Flour: You can get more informations, or check-out other recipes which use it, for example: Soft apple cookies, Chestnut cake, Fish in a sesame crust, Moist chocolate cake, Chestnut Fudge Cupcakes, ... All |
 | Butter: You can get more informations, or check-out other recipes which use it, for example: Chestnut moelleux, Tyrolean apple crumble, Toasted-flour biscuits, Butter cream, Hollandaise sauce, ... All |
 | Milk: You can get more informations, or check-out other recipes which use it, for example: Potimarron (Japanese chestnut pumpkin) purée, Chaud-froid of grapefruit, pineapple and lime custard , Toasted almond cake, Ciabatta, Gougères, ... All |
 | Poppy seeds: You can check-out other recipes which use it, like for example: Fish in a seed crust, Seeded loaf, Canapés of red mullet with poppy seeds, Mixed seed grissini, Poppy seed and lemon cake, ... All |
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