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These buttery soft pretzel bites are quick and easy to make and irresistibly delicious — especially with some hot cheese dip or honey mustard!
So many of you have made and loved my homemade pretzel recipe over the years. But as much as I love traditionally-shaped pretzels, I have to say that these cute little pretzel bites are what I tend to make most often in my kitchen! ♡
This bite-sized version of the recipe is even quicker and easier to make, with all of the same, buttery, crispy goodness in each bite. They have the perfect ratio of crispy golden exterior to soft and chewy center. They’re perfect for sharing and snacking. And best of all, this recipe comes together easily in about an hour with basic pantry staples — no stand mixer required!
Here in our house, we’re partial to traditional buttery pretzels sprinkled with chunky pretzel salt and paired with my favorite beer cheese dip, but feel free to customize your batch however you’d like! You could top the pretzels with everything from cinnamon sugar to everything bagel seasoning, asiago cheese or herbs. You could dip them in everything from ranch dip to honey mustard, white queso, marinara or garlic butter. There are endless ways to enjoy these pretzel bites, so have fun experimenting with your favorite combinations!
So whether you’re planning a game day spread, need an easy party appetizer, or you’re just craving a fun homemade snack, these buttery soft pretzel bites are guaranteed to hit the spot. Let’s start baking!
Soft Pretzel Bites Ingredients
To make this homemade soft pretzel bites recipe, you will need the following ingredients:
- Milk (or water): I prefer to use cow’s milk as the base of this pretzel dough, which makes each bite extra tender and adds a subtle hint of sweetness. But if you’re avoiding dairy, water works perfectly well as a substitute.
- Sugar: I use brown sugar in this recipe for its warm molasses-like flavor, but white granulated sugar or coconut sugar would work well too.
- Sea salt: We will use fine sea salt to season the dough. Then I highly recommend sprinkling the top of each bite with pretzel salt (or coarse sea salt) for an extra salty crunch.
- Yeast: One packet of active dry yeast is all you need to help the dough rise. As always, be sure that your yeast is fresh and blooms properly in the first step before you proceed with the recipe — this is essential for success!
- Flour: Regular all-purpose flour works beautifully in this recipe to give the pretzels a soft and chewy texture. You’re welcome to substitute white whole wheat flour if you would like, but the pretzels will be slightly more dense.
- Butter: Melted butter adds richness to the dough and gives each bite a golden, buttery finish when brushed on top after baking.
- Baking soda: Yes, 1/3 cup of baking soda is correct — this amount is essential for the boiling water bath, which gives the pretzels their classic golden crust.
- Egg: Finally, we will whisk one egg with water to make an egg wash, which gives each bite a lovely shine and helps the salt to stick.
How To Make Soft Pretzel Bites
Detailed step-by-step instructions are included in the recipe below, but here are a few extra tips to keep in mind when making homemade pretzel bites:
- Use fresh yeast. As mentioned above, be sure to check the expiration date on your packet of yeast before beginning the recipe. Then watch to ensure that it blooms in the first step. If it doesn’t foam up, that means the yeast is inactive and the dough will not rise properly, so it’s best to stop and start over with a fresh batch of yeast.
- Don’t skip the baking soda bath. This step is essential for achieving the iconic golden, chewy pretzel crust on each bite. (Otherwise, these will just taste like basic little bread bites.) Just a 30-second dip does the trick!
- Don’t overcrowd the baking sheet. Give the dough bites plenty of space so that they have room to puff up and brown while baking. You can either use one large baking sheet or two smaller sheets.
- Be generous with butter. A good brush of melted butter adds so much flavor to these pretzel bites right out of the oven! Highly recommend.
- Serve immediately. Homemade pretzels are always best served right away, especially while they’re still warm and pillowy soft.
Recipe Variations
Here are a few fun ways to customize this pretzel bites recipe:
- Add toppings: Sprinkle your pretzel bites with cinnamon sugar, everything bagel seasoning, grated cheese (Asiago, Parmesan, etc), garlic powder, Italian herbs, a thin slice of jalapeño, or whatever else sounds good.
- Add herbs to the dough: Mix your favorite fresh or dried herbs into the dough itself, such as rosemary, thyme or oregano.
- Stuff the bites: Stuff the bites with a chunk of cheese, peanut butter, Nutella, etc.
- Make it vegan: To make vegan pretzel bites, use your favorite non-dairy butter and water in place of milk.
Dips To Serve With Pretzel Bites
If you are looking for some delicious dips to serve with your pretzels, consider one of these favorites:
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Description
This delicious homemade soft pretzel bites recipe is easy to make in about 1 hour with ingredients you likely already have on hand. See notes above for possible variations you can make too.
- 1 1/2 cups warm (110 to 115°F) milk or water
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1 (0.25-ounce) package active dry yeast
- 4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more if needed
- 2 tablespoons melted butter, plus extra for brushing
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 9 cups water
- 1/3 cup baking soda
- 1 large egg (whisked with 1 tablespoon water)
- pretzel salt or coarse sea salt, for sprinkling
- Mix the dough. Whisk together the warm milk and sugar in a large mixing bowl (or in the bowl of a stand mixer). Sprinkle the yeast on top and wait 5 minutes for the yeast to foam up and activate.
- Knead the dough. Add the flour, melted butter and salt. Then either (a) use a spoon to mix everything in until combined, and then use your hands to knead the dough for about 4 minutes until it is smooth, adding a bit more flour if the dough is too sticky or (b) use a stand mixer with a dough hook and mix on medium speed for 4 minutes until the dough is smooth, adding a bit more flour if the dough is too sticky.
- Let the dough rise. Transfer the dough to a lightly-oiled bowl, cover with a damp towel, and let the dough rest for 20 to 30 minutes in a warm place until it has doubled in size.
- Prep oven, baking sheet and boiling water solution. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 450°F. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper, then set aside. Combine the water and baking soda in a stockpot or very large saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
- Form the pretzel bites. Turn the dough out onto a lightly-oiled work surface and divide into 12 equal pieces. Roll out each piece of dough into even 3/4-inch wide ropes. Use a knife to cut the rope into individual pretzel bites, about 1-inch long each.
- Boil the pretzel bites. Very carefully, use a spatula or spider strainer to transfer the the bites into the boiling water, about a dozen or so at a time time, for about 30 seconds per batch. Transfer the pretzel bites to the parchment-lined pan, spaced out so that they’re not touching, and repeat with the remaining pretzel bites.
- Add egg wash and salt. Brush the top of each pretzel bite with the egg wash and sprinkle with the coarse sea salt.
- Bake. Bake until the pretzel bites reach your desired level of golden brown color, about 12 to 14 minutes. Transfer the baking sheets to a wire cooling rack.
- (Optional: Brush with extra butter.) If you would like your pretzel bites to taste extra buttery, brush them immediately with extra melted butter.
- Serve warm. These pretzel bites taste best the day they have been baked, and even better hot out of the oven. So serve warm and enjoy!
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