German Pretzel Bites Recipe
Serves 40
30 mins prep
12 mins cook
45 mins Resting Time
0 mins total
Pretzel bites are a simplified version of my famous German pretzels, and come together super quickly! I make them for parties all the time and they are always gone in no time!
Pretzel Dough
ozall-purpose flour
ozbrown sugar
ozbutterroom temperature
ozsea salt
ozactive dry yeast½ pouch
fl ozwaterluke warm
Lye Solution
ozfood-grade lyeI am using food-grade lye granules with a concentration of 100%. Your lye-water solution (once mixed) should have no more than 4% lye. You could use baking soda instead of lye. See notes below.
fl ozwaterCOLD water
Topping
pretzel saltKosher salt can be substituted, although pretzel salt makes your pretzel bites really authentic and it's inexpensive and lasts forever.
Stir together the lukewarm (barely warm) water, brown sugar and yeast and allow to bubble up, this should take 5 minutes. If it's not getting bubbly, your water may have been too hot or your yeast is bad. You'll have to repeat this step.
oz brown sugar
oz active dry yeast
fl oz water
Sift together the flour and salt, and add in the butter and the bubbly yeast mixture. Knead the dough on the low setting for 8 to 10 minutes using the dough hook.
oz all-purpose flour
oz sea salt
oz butter
Cover the dough with a piece of wax paper (or a clean linen towel) and let it rest for 5 minutes. This is to help prevent a skin from forming.
Now it’s time to cut your bites! Divide the dough into 4 equal-ish portions (you can weigh it out if you'd like to be exact). Now roll each dough piece in a long, even-thickness log of about ¾ inch thickness (1.5 cm). Cut each log into 10 pieces. I start by cutting it in half, then I cut each half into 5 pieces. I like using a dough cutting tool (this one's my favorite dough set).
Transfer the pretzels on sheets of wax paper or silicone baking mats, cover with a clean linen towel, and let them rest and develop for about 30 to 45 minutes. The bites should have increased some in size, but not a lot.
Prepare your lye solution in a well-ventilated area (like standing under a vent hood set to high or ideally being outside) because of potential fumes. I also recommend wearing a cloth or medical grade face mask and rubber gloves to be extra safe (luckily everyone should have these at home by now). Add the premeasured lye (it comes in dry granules) into COLD water, not the over way around. At this point, I like to step to the side for about 10 to 15 seconds to let potential fumes evaporate. Then carefully combine with a whisk until the solution is clear.
oz food-grade lye
fl oz water
Now dip the dough pieces using a steel skimmer (you could also use two forks) for about 8 seconds each before transferring them using your skimmer onto a baking sheet covered with a silicone baking mat (I have found the baking mats work best in releasing the pretzels after baking, so it may be time to invest in some).
Then sprinkle with the pretzel salt.
Alternatively, sprinkle with shredded cheese or seeds. Pumpkin seeds are my favorite seeds to add.
pretzel salt
Bake at 355° Fahrenheit or 180° Celsius (convection/Umluft setting) for about 12 minutes or until golden brown (I like to rotate them after 6 minutes.
Allow to cool for a few minutes before enjoying on their own, with butter, Obatzda, a Bavarian cheese spread for this creamy dip that I love so much!