World’s Greatest Soft Pretzels
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
World’s Greatest Soft Pretzels – huge pretzels that are soft, buttery and salty, you know the ones I’m talking about.
My husband and I love our pretzels and we make them quite often. But for some reason we’re not quite pleased with them, we’re looking for that special soft pretzel that you get at the mall, or at the ball game. You know the one I’m talking about, eh? Those huge pretzels that you just can’t stop eating, they’re salty, they’re buttery, they’re just amazing. Well I think we finally hit the jackpot.
After the hundreds of experiments and hundreds of pretzels eaten, we’ve finally done it. We made the pretzel of our dreams. The world’s greatest soft pretzels. Don’t let the pictures fool you, these pretzels are huge, just like the ones you buy at the ball game. Just writing about them now makes me drool and wished I had one to enjoy, but hey we made these a couple weeks ago, so no pretzel for me now. But I have the memories, and most importantly I have the recipe.
Pretzels are not hard to make, so don’t get discouraged by the fact that you have to make a water bath with baking soda and dip them in there, that’s child’s play. The dough is super easy to make too, just use your mixer, let it do all the work. And the fun part, is rolling out the long ropes and I swear my ropes were 3 or 4 feet long, just because I wanted the largest pretzels.
Now let me just tell you for a minute here how good these are, especially if you eat them right out of the oven. When they come out, brush them with some melted butter, and before you take a bite, dip that piece in the butter again and then eat it. The saltiness from the coarse Kosher salt and the buttery pretzel, well this just doesn’t get any better. You’ll just want to keep on eating, so don’t let me stop you.
If you guys love this recipe, and most importantly make it yourselves, please let us know. Take a picture and tag it #jocooks on Instagram so we can see it. I always love to see what you guys come up with!
Looking for more recipes? Follow on... My Newsletter Pinterest Facebook Instagram
World's Greatest Soft Pretzels
Prep: 1 hr 30 mins
Cook: 10 mins
Total: 1 hr 40 mins
Serves: 9
World's Greatest Soft Pretzels - huge pretzels that are soft, buttery and salty, you know the ones I'm talking about.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups water lukewarm
- 1 tbsp active dry yeast
- 4 1/2 to 5 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup milk lukewarm
- 2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp sugar
- 5 tbsp baking soda
- butter for brushing
- sea salt for sprinkling
Instructions
- In the bowl of your mixer, combine the warm water with the yeast and lightly stir. In another large bowl, mix the salt, sugar and flour together. When the yeast dissolves, add the flour mixture and the warm milk. Using the dough attachment, mix everything until the dough comes together and is no longer sticky. Let the dough rise until it doubles in size in a greased bowl, and covered with a damp towel. It should take about an hour.
- Punch down the dough and divide it into 9 pieces. Take each piece and roll it into a long rope, about 3 to 4 feet and about 3/4 of an inch in diameter. Shape each rope into a pretzel shape and place them onto greased cookie sheets and let them rise again for about 15 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 500 F degrees.
- In a large pot, make a bath with baking soda and boiling water. Using a large spoon, lower each pretzel into the water and leave in for about 30 seconds to a minute. You don't have to wait until they float. Return the pretzels to the cookie sheet and brush them with melted butter and sprinkle them generously with the Kosher sea salt.
- Bake until golden brown, about 10 minutes, depending on the oven. When you take them out of the oven you can brush them again with butter and serve them hot and/or with mustard.
Recipe Notes
Prep time includes time to allow the dough to rise.
Cook time is per one cookie sheet at a time. I was able to place 2 pretzels per cookie sheet, so I baked 4 times.
Nutritional information is for 1 pretzel. Please keep in mind that nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary greatly based on products used.
Nutrition Information:
Calories: 242kcal (12%)Carbohydrates: 49g (16%)Protein: 7g (14%)Fat: 1g (2%)Saturated Fat: 1g (6%)Cholesterol: 1mgSodium: 2351mg (102%)Potassium: 98mg (3%)Fiber: 2g (8%)Sugar: 1g (1%)Vitamin A: 22IUCalcium: 26mg (3%)Iron: 3mg (17%)
Nutrition Facts
World's Greatest Soft Pretzels
Amount Per Serving
Calories 242
Calories from Fat 9
% Daily Value*
Fat 1g2%
Saturated Fat 1g6%
Cholesterol 1mg0%
Sodium 2351mg102%
Potassium 98mg3%
Carbohydrates 49g16%
Fiber 2g8%
Sugar 1g1%
Protein 7g14%
Vitamin A 22IU0%
Calcium 26mg3%
Iron 3mg17%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
More delicious recipes from my kitchen
Michal says
Amazing as usual!! Made it with a cheese sauce and it was delicious!!
Loved your Cinnabons recipe as well., especially since we don’t have Cinnabon stores here in Israel!
Jo Cooks Team says
There’s nothing quite like homemade! Enjoy 🙂
Becky says
Haven’t made this yet- planning on it asap- however I’m wondering if I can substitute instant yeast for the active dry yeast… I’m not much of a baker and am scared of yeast haha
Jo Cooks Team says
Yes you can use instant yeast!
Abbey Stanley says
These look sooo good! It’s just my husband and me at home, and we won’t go through this many pretzels. Can I half the recipe?
Jo Cooks Team says
Yes you can!
Debbie says
How do you keep the pretzels shape when you put it into the water bath?
Jo Cooks Team says
Keep the water at a simmer rather than a rolling boil, and very gently place the pretzels into the water.
Christina says
Wow. I have been searching a long time for pretzels this good. I try a different random recipe everytime because I’m never quite satisfied but I will for sure be making these again!
Shelley says
Just made these. I’m so impressed! I’ve never made pretzels before and these turned out exactly as I hoped. My family loves them! I’ll definitely be making these again.
Kimberly says
Could you make with whole wheat or sprouted flour instead of all purpose?
Jo Cooks Team says
You can, but just make sure you convert the amount of flour properly as whole wheat and sprouted flour are more dense than all purpose.
Ashley says
I‘ve made this recipe before, and LOVED them!! Just wondering if you think once I roll the dough into a rope I can cut it into “bites” instead of shaping into a pretzel. I think they’d be a fun Super Bowl appetizer!
Jo Cooks Team 2 says
Absolutely! Great idea for a super bowl party!!
Annabelle says
I have made these before and we’re a huge hit. I have a question, can make the dough and shaped them ahead of time and the next day do the baking soda bath and baking?
Joanna Cismaru says
I think it should be fine, but keep them in the fridge over night.
Rebecca says
My first try last week was such a success, my neighbor, who tried three(!) last week asked me to make her some today. So I am making more!
Nicole Beaulieu says
There really is nothing better than homemade pretzels! Happy baking 🙂