Recipes
Bavarian salted pretzels

Bavarian salted pretzels

Name: Bavarian salted pretzels
Prep time: 40 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 1 h
Yield: 8 portions
Ingredients: 500 g plain flour; 280 ml water; 21 g yeast; 1 teaspoon granulated sugar; 2 teaspoons salt; 30 g butter; 2 l water; 4 tablespoons baking soda; 2 tablespoons coarse salt

Eduard LáskaBakeryGerman Cuisine x se líbilo

Bavarian salted pretzels are known for their glossy dark brown crust and soft pale center. The secret is a quick bath in a soda solution, which gives the bread its characteristic color and flavor. At home you bake them from a yeasted wheat dough and coarse salt, which you scatter over them before baking. They go well with beer, with breakfast, or simply as a snack. They smell of fresh bread and taste best while still warm.

Příprava: 40min

Vaření: 20min

CELKOVÝ ČAS: 1h

Step by step process

Preparing the dough

1
Start the salted pretzels with the dough. Crumble the fresh yeast into lukewarm water, add the sugar, and let it stand for five minutes until foam appears on the surface.
TIP:
Crumble the yeast, add sugar and lukewarm water (37-40°C). Leave it in a warm place for 10-15 minutes until a foamy cap forms, this indicates the yeast is ready to use.
2
Mix the flour with the salt, pour in the yeast starter and the softened butter. Work it into a smooth, elastic dough that does not stick to your hands. Knead for about ten minutes.
3
Cover the dough with a cloth and let it rise in a warm place for roughly an hour, until it doubles in volume.

Shaping and the soda bath

4
Divide the risen dough into eight pieces. Roll each into a thin rope that is thicker in the middle and tapers at the ends. Twist it into a pretzel shape and press the ends down.
5
In a large pot, bring water with baking soda to a boil. Stir the solution until the soda dissolves, then lower the flame to a gentle simmer.
6
Dip the shaped pretzels one at a time into the hot soda solution for thirty seconds. Lift them out with a slotted spoon and let them drain on a rack.

Topping and baking

7
Transfer the pretzels to a tray lined with baking paper. Score the thicker part of each one with a sharp knife and sprinkle the damp surface generously with coarse salt.
8
Bake in an oven preheated to 220 degrees for about fifteen to twenty minutes, until they take on a deep brown sheen. Let them cool for a moment and serve them warm.