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.
118K 24 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: Chocolate and matcha tea biscuits, Pesto crackers, Liège waffles, Nanou's tuna tart, Bechamel sauce, ... All |
 | Milk: You can get more informations, or check-out other recipes which use it, for example: Cornmeal baps for Anne, Blackcurrant, vanilla and lime verrine , Household cake (Gâteau de ménage), Flognarde, Jam doughnuts, ... All |
 | Butter: You can get more informations, or check-out other recipes which use it, for example: Baked sea bass fillet with lemon and tarragon, Eggs "en cocotte" with spinach, Chocolate muffins, Checkerboard biscuits, Pan-baked hash brown (Hash-brown casserole), ... All |
 | Poppy seeds: You can check-out other recipes which use it, like for example: Canapés of red mullet with poppy seeds, Mixed seed grissini, Fish in a seed crust, Seeded loaf, Poppy seed and lemon cake, ... All |
Other recipes you may also like
Pear tart with almond cream
This is a very quick and easy tart to make, as everything (or almost) can be done in advance. A piece of sweetcrust pastry, some almond cream and pears? You have "everything you need".341K4.3 1 hour 14 min. March 17th 2011
Finger biscuits
These small biscuits, that look a bit like savoy biscuits, are delicious alone or with Champagne, but are also the base for charlottes or Tiramisu.317K5 50 min. July 30th 2021
Macarons (the original French macaroons)
This recipe really is "of the moment": the success of these small, highly-coloured cakes, in an infinite variety of flavours, is impressive. It's a recipe which needs some care, in order to produce a result worthy of a professional pastrychef. No problem, I will guide you through the recipe,...1.5M 714.6 2 hours 38 min. October 3rd 2019
Bouquet garni
Used very frequently in French cuisine, a secret of French chefs, it adds flavour to a lot of recipes, and it's easy to prepare. The basic principle is to make a small bundle of herbs, bind them in green leek leaves and to tie it up, so that the whole thing can be removed and discarded easily after...388K3.5 12 min. March 21th 2017
Tartiflette
A personal version of a classic recipe from Savoy.563K 14.6 1 hour 27 min. September 16th 2019
News list of cooking-ez.com
Sign up to receive the latest recipes (next batch due to be sent on 2023-02-05)
Note: We'll never share your e-mail address with anyone else.
Post your comment or question
Follow this recipe
If you are interested in this recipe, you can "follow" it, by entering your email address here. You will then receive a notification immediately each time the recipe is modified or a new comment is added. Please note that you will need to confirm this following.
Note: We'll never share your e-mail address with anyone else.
Alternatively: you can subscribe to the mailing list of cooling-ez.com , you will receive a e-mail for each new recipe published on the site.