Sourdough pretzels are so easy to make… and fun! You can make a plate of pretzels that will be loved. These are the size of Pennsylvania Dutch pretzels and with the harder crunchy texture, if you’re familiar. You can also make gigantic softer pretzels like you see at festival stands or in New York City along Central Park. I’ll share the difference below… and it’s not in the water!
…It’s not in the sourdough either, but these and traditional Pennsylvania Dutch style pretzels do have sourdough.
And I know sourdough pretzels are fun for adults to make because once upon a time I worked at cooking classes as the marketing photographer and saw how a laugh and smile was part of the the participant experience rolling food to be baked. And sometimes rolling into the bin.
It was meal prep they happily signed up for.
And today sourdough pretzels can be rolled out at home.
Because once you have your bread dough and some sourdough to incorporate in, you can start rolling like you did with Play-Doh when you were younger. And doh!…how fun 🤩
To make the pretzels, divide dough evenly for each pretzel, and roll each into long dough strands. Then you twist 🎗️and flip, and your knotted pretzel shapes magically appears on the other side. 🥨 Add a little salt.
And then they’re ready to bake.
What flour should I use?
If you use whole wheat flour, it will be less sticky. And you can use a combination of bread and wheat flour for the nice color, texture, and tastes that both together bring to the table. You can make Pennsylvania Dutch pretzel shapes. If all you have is all purpose flour on hand, it will work, but the pretzels will be softer and not hold shape as well so you’ll need to lay out on a hard surface and gently flip over and stretch and lay out like you would if you were working with fabric.
So your best bet with gluten all-purpose flour is you’d want to make longer dough strands, and then you can make gigantic pretzels like the ones sold by outdoor vendors in American cities (or along NYC Central Park).
For the sourdough, you can use any flour you like. I usually stick with the same ones in the recipe as they stick together better. 😊
What type of salt is best?
Himalayan sea salt is one I used on these pretzels. They add mineral benefits. But you can use traditional kosher salt or a coarser sea salt that add a shiny dimension and crunch.
If you like this, give sourdough bagels a try where you’ll also learn the steps on how to make easy set-and-forget sourdough. You can even add in matcha (healthy green tea) if you like! Or a home oven vegetable pizza where you add in sourdough healthy points. 😋
Homemade Sourdough Pretzels
Ingredients
- 2 cups bread or wheat flour flour + instant yeast
- 1 cup water
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/4 cup sourdough (leave water and flour mixed and covered out for two days or until bubbling)
- 3 tbsp baking soda
- 1 egg
- Coarse Himalayan Sea Salt or Kosher salt (optional)
Instructions
- Mix flour, yeast, water, and salt ingredients. Knead into dough. Let double in size. Proof under a towel or in a plastic container with a lid.
- In a pot, boil water and baking soda. Let rest.
- Shape pretzel dough into long dough logs. Have fun. Then easy twist them into a simple ribbon (like a Breast Cancer Awareness ribbon). Fold down. And you will see the knotted pretzel shape.
- Dip them in the water-baking soda.
- Brush egg wash over pretzels. Add coarse salt of choice.
- Bake in 350°F oven until golden brown or about 50 minutes.