Make German-style soft pretzels at home with this simple recipe using flour, sugar, salt, yeast, butter, egg yolk, and water. Knead and let the dough rise before forming into pretzel shapes, brushing with egg yolk and salt, and baking for 15-20 minutes. Enjoy with a dipping sauce of your choice.
Soft pretzels are a treat for many people when shopping or attending a carnival or circus. The chewy crust combined with the salty, buttery taste help make pretzels a favorite quick snack. But did you know that it is possible to make large German pretzels at homeHere is a simple recipe with ingredients found in almost any kitchen.
To prepare these gourmet pretzels, assemble your ingredients. You will need unsifted flour, a little coarse salt and a small amount of sugar. Butter, an egg yolk and a little water are also part of this basic recipe.
For a simple batch, combine one cup (240 mL) of flour, a couple of tablespoons (30 mL) of granulated sugar, a single teaspoon (5 mL) of rock salt, and a cake of dry yeast. Mix all dry ingredients thoroughly and set mixing bowl aside for a moment.
Heat one cup (240 mL) of water until the liquid reaches approximately 130 degrees Fahrenheit (54.4 degrees Celsius). Stir in the butter until it is completely mixed with the water. Slowly add the liquid to the dry ingredients, stirring as you go. Use a mixer to beat the ingredients together for a couple of minutes, then add another half cup (120 mL) of flour and beat for another two minutes. If the mixture still seems thin, incrementally add more flour until you have a soft dough.
The next step in making soft pretzels is kneading the dough. After flouring a board with flour, transfer your pretzel dough to the board and start kneading. Keep kneading the dough for about five minutes, then turn it into a greased bowl. Flip the dough over so all sides are coated with fat. Cover the top of the bowl with cheesecloth and let the dough rise for half an hour to forty-five minutes.
After the dough has risen, it’s time to start forming the soft pretzels. Remove the dough from the bowl and place it on a clean cutting board. Divide the mixture into twelve equal sections. Gently roll each section into a rope that is roughly the same length as the distance from your middle finger to your elbow. On a greased baking sheet, arrange each string in the shape of a pretzel. Once all the pretzels are placed on the baking sheet, cover and let them rest for about five minutes.
As a final touch to the soft pretzels, brush them with a mixture of egg yolk and a small amount of water. Sprinkle coarse salt on the surface of each of the pretzels, then bake at 375 degrees Fahrenheit (190 degrees Celsius) for fifteen to twenty minutes. After you remove the pretzel sheet from the oven, place each pretzel on a cooling rack and allow them to cool to room temperature.
While soft pretzels take a while to make, they’re a real treat to whip up on a rainy weekend afternoon. To add some variety to the basic recipe, you can make a simple dipping sauce using any combination of sweet and savory ingredients you like.
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