Photo Collage of How to Make Soft Pretzel Recipe

These Homemade Soft Pretzels are fluffy and buttery, baked up just like the ones you get at the mall, but homemade with from-scratch ingredients! The dough is very easy to make.

Have you ever waited in one of those really long lines at the mall for a soft pretzel?

Homemade Soft Pretzels - On a Sheet Pan with salt On Top

You know…the ones for Auntie Anne’s, or Wetzel’s Pretzels? You just can’t help it, right?

You can smell that darned cinnamon sugar and butter wafting over from like 100 feet away.

Well try these at home, and you’ll never buy those mall pretzels ever again.

Soft Pretzels - On a Baking Sheet with Sea Salt on Top

These homemade soft pretzels taste much better and only cost a buck or two to make a whole tray.

Not to mention there aren’t any artificial ingredients or preservatives when you make them yourself. And all the ingredients are the simple ones that you’d expect.

I love prepping a fresh batch on football game-watching days, along with a fresh pan of Buffalo Chicken Dip and Baked Chicken Wings. So good!

Pretzel Recipe Baked On a Sheet Tray and Sprinkled with Salt

How to Make Homemade Soft Pretzels:

Start by making a simple yeasted dough, and shape it into a ball.

Raw Dough Ball on Wax Paper

Let the yeast work its magic and create these gorgeous bubbles.

Sometimes I just stare at the dough because it’s sooooo prettyyyyyy…

Cut Dough Clumps to Show Air Bubbles Inside

Divide up the dough into pieces, and roll each into a long rope.

Partially tied rope shape for shaping pretzels

Shape into pretzels by looping the rope through.

Making Pretzels by Tying It In a Loop

Sprinkle each pretzel with coarse sea salt and send them into the oven.

Raw Shaped Homemade Pretzels on Sheet Pan with Salt

Bake until golden and puffed, then brush with butter.

Brushing Freshly Baked Home Made Pretzels With Butter on Sheet Pan
Enjoy while they are hot!

UPDATE: I have posted a 100% Whole Wheat Version of these pretzels (cinnamon sugar ones!):

whole wheat pretzels coated in cinnamon sugar on wooden board

There’s a full video below the recipe card if you want more guidance on how the pretzels are made. Happy baking!

More Snacks:

Soft Pretzels on a Sheet Pan with Salt

Homemade Soft Pretzels

Servings: 8 pretzels
Prep Time: 20 mins
Cook Time: 10 mins
Total Time: 30 mins
These Homemade Soft Pretzels are fluffy and buttery, baked up just like the ones you get at the mall, but it’s homemade with from-scratch ingredients! The dough is very easy to make.
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Ingredients

For the Dough:

  • 2.25 tsp instant quick rise yeast
  • 1 cup warm water 110 degrees F
  • 1 tsp sugar
  • 12.5 oz all purpose flour, by weight (2.5 cups, if measuring)
  • 1/2 tsp sea salt

For the Topping:

  • 1/2 cup warm water
  • 1 tbsp baking soda
  • vegetable oil for greasing the sheet pan
  • coarse sea salt for sprinkling
  • 3 tbsp unsalted butter melted

Instructions 

  • Combine the yeast, warm water, and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer, and let sit for 10 minutes until foamy. This indicates the yeast is alive and working. Add the flour and salt. Mix with the dough hook by hand for a few seconds to roughly combine, then fit the hook and bowl on the mixer and knead on medium low for 5 minutes. The dough should feel soft and smooth, not sticky to the touch.
  • Cover the dough and let rise for 30 minutes.
  • Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F, and lightly grease a baking sheet with vegetable oil. You could use parchment paper or a silicone mat.
  • Place the dough onto a lightly oiled countertop. Divide the dough into 8 pieces (just cut it with a knife).
  • Whisk to combine the warm water and baking soda and cook in the microwave for 1 minute. FYI it’s not going to dissolve completely, and that’s okay.
  • Roll each of the eight pieces into a long rope, and shape each one into a pretzel (see the step-by-step photos on the blog post to see how to do this). Dip each pretzel into the soda wash and place onto the greased baking sheet. Sprinkle with coarse sea salt, then let them rest for 10 minutes.
  • Bake for 9 to 10 minutes until the pretzels are golden brown. Brush the pretzels with the melted butter while they are hot out of the oven. Enjoy while they are hot, and keep in mind these don’t taste as amazing the next day. Enjoy!

Notes

Recipe adapted from King Arthur Flour.

Nutrition

Calories: 197kcal, Carbohydrates: 31g, Protein: 5g, Fat: 6g, Saturated Fat: 3g, Cholesterol: 11mg, Sodium: 476mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 1g

Nutrition is estimated using a food database and is only intended to be used as a guideline for informational purposes.

Course: Snack
Cuisine: American
Keyword: homemade soft pretzels, pretzel recipe

Post updated in December 2017. Originally published 2011.