These delicious sourdough pretzels are crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside – with the characteristic chewiness of artisanal, handmade pretzels. If you already know how to make sourdough bread, you can definitely make these sourdough pretzels, no commercial yeast required.
Ingredients You’ll Need to Make These Sourdough Pretzels
- Bread Flour: The higher protein content in bread flour gives bagels a chewier texture than all-purpose flour. Any type of white bread flour should work if it has around 13% protein content. For this particular recipe, I used the King Arthur brand of bread flour in the blue bag.
- Water: Plain, unchlorinater tap water is best. Use filtered water or bottled spring water if your city’s tap water contains harsh ingredients or has a bad taste. You’ll use water both for the pretzel dough and for making a baking soda solution to brush on top of the sourdough pretzels right before baking.
- Sourdough Starter: I used my regular sourdough starter for this recipe that I fed with bread flour. You can use almost any type of sourdough starter as long as it is 100% hydration (equal parts flour and water by weight).
- Butter, softened: You’ll need just two tablespoons of softened butter for this recipe. I used salted butter, because that’s what I usually have on hand, but you could also use unsalted butter if you want to. Since this recipe calls for a relatively small amount of butter, the small amount of salt that salted butter contains won’t negatively effect the recipe.
- Salt: I used Kosher salt in this recipe. You can use any sea salt, plain table salt, or kosher salt and it will work just fine.
- Baking Soda: You will use baking soda (not baking powder) and water to create a baking soda solutions (you’ll dip your sourdough pretzels into this solution before baking them). This will cause the pretzels to turn dark brown in the oven. Traditional pretzel recipes use a solution made with food-grade lye, but lye is not common in many home kitchens and it can be dangerous to use if you aren’t familiar with it, so I prefer to use a baking soda solution for most pretzel recipes like this one.
Note: See recipe card below for full ingredient amounts and quantities.
Substitutions and Additions
- Using Oil instead of Butter: You can use 28 grams (2 Tbsp) of olive oil or vegetable oil in place of the 28 grams of butter called for in this recipe. You’ll need to squeeze the oil into the dough thoroughly before kneading the dough on the kitchen counter.
Ingredient Amounts
Starter Feeding
- Sourdough Starter, leftover – 25 grams
- Water – 50 grams
- Bread Flour – 50 grams
Main Dough
- Bread Flour – 450 grams
- Water – 225 grams
- Sourdough Starter, active – 100 grams
- Salt – 10 grams, plus extra for sprinkling on the pretzels
- Butter, softened – 2 Tbsp (28 grams)
Baking Soda Solution
- Water – 2 cups (480 grams)
- Baking Soda – 4 tsp (24 grams)
Suggested Timeline
| Time | Step |
|---|---|
| 10:00 PM (Day 1) | Feeding the Sourdough Starter |
| 6:00 AM (Day 2) | Mixing the Dough |
| 6:05 AM | Kneading and Adding the Butter |
| 6:30 AM | The First Rise (Bulk Fermentation) |
| 12:30 PM | Dividing and Shaping the Sourdough Pretzels |
| 1:00 PM | The Second Rise (Final Proof) |
| 3:00 PM | Applying the Baking Soda Solution |
| 3:10 PM | Baking |
How to Make Sourdough Pretzels – Grant Bakes
Step-by-Step Instructions
Feeding the Sourdough Starter
Take 25 grams of sourdough starter out of the fridge. Add 50 grams of water and 50 grams of bread flour to the jar, along with the leftover sourdough starter, and mix it thoroughly to combine. Mark the top of the starter with a rubber band and close the lid of the jar loosely. Leave the starter to rise on your counter overnight for 6-8 hours, or until it roughly doubles in size.
Mixing the Dough
In a mixing bowl, combine the water and risen sourdough starter and stir thoroughly to dissolve the starter into the water. Then, add the bread flour and salt and mix to form a shaggy dough. Once the dough comes together, you can begin kneading.
Kneading and Adding the Butter
Turn the dough out onto your un-floured kitchen counter and knead it by hand for about 5 minutes, or until it forms a smooth ball. Cover the dough and let it rest for 10 minutes. Then, press the dough down into a flat disc and press two tablespoons of softened butter into the dough. Stretch and fold the dough around the butter, and then knead the dough on the counter for 8 minutes total. At first the butter will cause the dough to break apart, but eventually the dough will come back together again, and after 8 minutes of kneading, the dough should form a smooth ball.
The First Rise (Bulk Fermentation)
Transfer the dough to an oiled glass bowl and cover it with an airtight lid or a sheet of plastic wrap. Let the dough rise at room temperature for 5-6 hours, or until it almost doubles in size.
Dividing and Shaping the Sourdough Pretzels
Transfer the dough to your kitchen counter and press it down lightly into a circle. Divide the dough into eight pieces with a knife or bench scraper.
Next, shape each of the eight pieces of dough into a pretzel shape:
- Flip the piece of dough over so that the sticky side is facing up.
- Tuck the edges of dough into the center and then gently roll the dough into a thick cylinder.
- Roll out the dough into a thin rope measuring 18-20 inches in length (46-51 cm).
- Arrange the strip of dough into a U shape.
- Flip the left end of the dough over the right end of the dough.
- Twist the dough one more time so that the left end goes over the right end.
- Bring the two tips of dough down and stick them into the bottom loop of the dough.
- Stretch out the two upper loops of dough with your fingers and the pretzel shape should become apparent.
- Finish the shape by pressing down the two tips of dough so that they firmly seal themselves into the lower pretzel loop.
Transfer the shaped pretzel onto a metal baking sheet lined with a sheet of parchment paper. Repeat this shaping process until all eight pretzels are shaped and arranged on the baking sheet.
The Second Rise (Final Proof)
Cover the shaped pretzels with a sheet of plastic wrap brushed with oil. (This will keep the low-hydration pretzels from drying out during the second rise). Let the pretzels rise at room temperature for 1.5-2 hours until they look puffy and risen.
Applying the Baking Soda Solution
30 minutes before the pretzels are done rising, preheat your oven to 450°F (232°C). Bring two cups of water to a boil on the stove and add 4 tsp of baking soda to the boiling water. Whisk thoroughly to combine and then turn the heat off.
Pick up a risen pretzel and place the dough into the pan of baking soda solution. Place 3-4 pretzels into the pan at a time (as many as can fit in your pan). Allow them to float in the solution for 20-30 seconds upside-down, then remove them from the pan and arrange them back on the baking sheet. Repeat this floating and soaking process with the remaining pretzels and arrange them all on the baking sheet. Finish the pretzels with a sprinkle of Kosher salt or coarse pretzel salt and then move them to the oven.
Baking
Bake the sourdough pretzels for 15-20 minutes at 450°F (232°C) in the middle rack of your oven, or until the pretzels are a golden brown color. Remove from the oven and allow the pretzels to cool directly on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, and then enjoy with your favorite dipping sauce or cheese.
These sourdough pretzels are crunchy on the outside and soft and buttery on the inside. They also have the satisfying stretchiness and chewiness that is characteristic of traditional pretzels.
Sourdough Pretzels
These delicious sourdough pretzels are crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside, and they have the characteristic chewiness of artisanal, handmade pretzels. If you already know how to make sourdough bread, you can definitely make these sourdough pretzels - no commercial yeast required.
Ingredients
Sourdough Starter Feeding
- Sourdough Starter, leftover - 25 grams
- Water - 50 grams
- Bread Flour - 50 grams
Main Dough
- Bread Flour - 450 grams
- Water - 225 grams
- Sourdough Starter, active - 100 grams
- Salt - 10 grams
- Butter, softened - 2 Tbsp (28 grams)
Baking Soda Solution
- Water - 2 cups (480 grams)
- Baking Soda - 4 tsp (24 grams)
Instructions
Feeding the Sourdough Starter
Take 25 grams of sourdough starter out of the fridge. Add 50 grams of water and 50 grams of bread flour to the jar, along with the leftover sourdough starter, and mix it thoroughly to combine. Mark the top of the starter with a rubber band and close the lid of the jar loosely. Leave the starter to rise on your counter overnight for 6-8 hours, or until it roughly doubles in size.
Mixing the Dough
In a mixing bowl, combine the water and risen sourdough starter and stir thoroughly to dissolve the starter into the water. Then, add the bread flour and salt and mix to form a shaggy dough. Once the dough comes together, you can begin kneading.
Kneading the Dough and Adding the Butter
Turn the dough out onto your un-floured kitchen counter and knead it by hand for about 5 minutes, or until it forms a smooth ball. Cover the dough and let it rest for 10 minutes. Then, press the dough down into a flat disc and press two tablespoons of softened butter into the dough. Stretch and fold the dough around the butter, and then knead the dough on the counter for 8 minutes total. At first the butter will cause the dough to break apart, but eventually the dough will come back together again, and after 8 minutes of kneading, the dough should form a smooth ball.
The First Rise (Bulk Fermentation)
Transfer the dough to an oiled glass bowl and cover it with an airtight lid or a sheet of plastic wrap. Let the dough rise at room temperature for 5-6 hours, or until it almost doubles in size.
Dividing and Shaping the Sourdough Pretzels
Transfer the dough to your kitchen counter and press it down lightly into a circle. Divide the dough into eight pieces with a knife or bench scraper. Next, shape each of the eight pieces of dough into a pretzel shape:
- Flip the piece of dough over so that the sticky side is facing up.
- Tuck the edges of dough into the center and then gently roll the dough into a thick cylinder.
- Roll out the dough into a thin rope measuring 18-20 inches in length (46-51 cm).
- Arrange the strip of dough into a U shape.
- Flip the left end of the dough over the right end of the dough.
- Twist the dough one more time so that the left end goes over the right end.
- Bring the two tips of dough down and stick them into the bottom loop of the dough.
- Stretch out the two upper loops of dough with your fingers and the pretzel shape should become apparent.
- Finish the shape by pressing down the two tips of dough so that they firmly seal themselves into the lower pretzel loop.
Transfer the shaped pretzel onto a metal baking sheet lined with a sheet of parchment paper. Repeat this shaping process until all eight pretzels are shaped and arranged on the baking sheet.
The Second Rise (Final Proof)
Cover the shaped pretzels with a sheet of plastic wrap brushed with oil. (This will keep the low-hydration pretzels from drying out during the second rise). Let the pretzels rise at room temperature for 1.5-2 hours until they look puffy and risen.
Applying the Baking Soda Solution
30 minutes before the pretzels are done rising, preheat your oven to 450°F (232°C). Bring two cups of water to a boil on the stove and add 4 tsp of baking soda to the boiling water. Whisk thoroughly to combine and then turn the heat off.
Pick up a risen pretzel and place the dough into the pan of baking soda solution. Place 3-4 pretzels into the pan at a time (as many as can fit in your pan). Allow them to float in the solution for 20-30 seconds upside-down, then remove them from the pan and arrange them back on the baking sheet. Repeat this floating and soaking process with the remaining pretzels and arrange them all on the baking sheet. Finish the pretzels with a sprinkle of Kosher salt or coarse pretzel salt and then move them to the oven.
Baking
Bake the sourdough pretzels for 15-20 minutes at 450°F (232°C) in the middle rack of your oven, or until the pretzels are a golden brown color. Remove from the oven and allow the pretzels to cool directly on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, and then enjoy with your favorite dipping sauce or cheese.