These tender, chewy homemade Pretzel Bites taste professionally made but are a beginner-friendly recipe you can easily make in the comfort of your own home. Dip them in cheese sauce, mustard, or your favorite creamy dips as a delicious game day appetizer or special treat. Just be warned — you'll be on the hook for making them for every party!
There's something so perfect about soft pretzels in general, and these soft Pretzel Bites are the best. They're surprisingly easy to make, requiring just a handful of simple ingredients, and they're boiled in a baking soda bath for that authentic texture and flavor. Think of these homemade pretzels as a blank canvas. They're just as good with savory toppings as they are with sweet ones. They're such an easy appetizer and you even up with perfect soft pretzels every time!
Why You'll Love These Pretzel Bites
- Great texture and flavor. Making pretzel dough isn't hard, but many recipes rush you through the process. You need to give the dough plenty of time to rise and puff up, and you need to boil them just right. Your efforts will be rewarded with the most perfectly chewy homemade soft pretzel bites that taste absolutely amazing!
- Perfect party food. We love to serve these easy pretzel bites as a fun appetizer at casual parties. They're seriously good with a beer cheese dip or even fondue! They also make a nice snack to serve with a cold beer or just because.
- Easy to customize. Toss these little pretzel bites in coarse sea salt for a classic flavor or try bagel seasoning, your favorite spice blend, or shredded Parmesan cheese and Italian herbs. Every combination tastes delicious with these hot, chewy dough bites!
Ingredient Notes
To make these delicious Pretzel Bites, you will need the following ingredients (full measurements in recipe card below):
- active dry yeast - this instant yeast has a rapid rise, so you can bake pretzel bites quickly.
- water
- brown sugar - the sugar helps feed the yeast and gives these pretzels a little sweetness.
- all-purpose flour - although this is a yeasted dough, you can still get a deliciously chewy texture with regular flour.
- salt - this is key for highlighting the flavors in the pretzel dough.
- butter - add melted butter to the dough for a tender, fluffy texture.
- egg - brush egg wash on top of each piece of dough before baking.
- salt flakes - sprinkle with coarse salt for that classic pretzel flavor.
- water bath - you will also need water and baking soda for the water bath. The baking soda will give the pretzels that classic brown color and a nice crust.
You will also need measuring cups and spoons, a large mixing bowl, silicone spatula, stand mixer with Dough hook (optional), plastic wrap, bench scraper, baking sheet, and a wire cooling rack.
How to Make the Best Pretzel Bites
First, prepare the dough.
- Activate yeast. In a large mixing bowl, combine yeast, water, and sugar, and stir to dissolve. Let the yeast mixture rest for 5 minutes until it turns foamy.
- Make dough. Add flour, salt, and melted butter. Use a silicone spatula to stir well to combine until it forms a shaggy dough and no dry flour is visible in the bowl. Make sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl with the spatula.
- Knead. Knead the dough on a clean surface for 5 to 7 minutes until the surface of the dough is smooth. You can also knead the dough in a stand mixer with the dough hook attached on medium speed for 3-5 minutes.
Tips for Kneading Dough
- How to knead dough: Knead the dough by pushing it down and outward using the palms of your hands. Fold the dough in half toward you and press down. Repeat this motion by pushing the dough down and outward, and then folding over towards you. This helps build up gluten strength in dough that is responsible for making the bread fluffy.
- How to test if dough is well-kneaded: A well-kneaded dough is smooth and can hold its shape. You can test the dough by giving it a firm poke with your finger. The indentation should bounce right back. If it doesn’t bounce back and stays like a dimple, keep kneading for a few more minutes.
- Rest. Transfer the dough back into the bowl and cover with plastic cling wrap. Let it rest for up to 1 hour at room temperature until the dough doubles in size. Tip: Lightly brush some oil over the dough ball to prevent it from losing moisture.
Next, shape the pretzels.
- Divide dough. Use a bench scraper to divide the dough into 6 equal pieces.
- Roll. Use your hands to shape each piece into a ball. Then, roll each dough ball into a long rope approximately 20-inches long. Cut each rope into 2-inch pieces. Cover the shaped pretzels with plastic cling wrap, as you prepare the water bath. Lightly flour the dough pieces if needed.
Boil in the water bath.
- Boil. Add water and baking soda in a large pot and bring it to a boil. Drop 5 pretzel bites into the boiling water at a time, making sure that they have enough room to float around. Boil the pretzel bites for about 20 seconds. The longer you boil the pretzels, the chewier and browner the pretzels get after baking.
- Remove. Use a slotted spoon to remove the pretzel bites. Transfer them onto a large baking sheet lined with parchment paper, slightly spaced apart to prevent sticking. Let them dry for 5 minutes.
- Add egg wash and salt. Brush the egg wash over each piece and sprinkle salt flakes on top. Egg wash makes the pretzels brown during baking and also helps the salt flakes stick to the pretzels.
Finally, bake the pretzel bites.
Bake the pretzels (in batches) in a 400F preheated oven for 15 minutes until golden brown. Then, transfer the pretzels to a wire rack to cool completely.
Recipe Variations
- Make cinnamon sugar pretzels. Toss the warm pretzel bites in a mixture of cinnamon and sugar for a snickerdoodle-like flavor.
- Bake pretzel sticks. Cut the pretzel dough into larger strips before baking. They're perfect for dipping!
- Use bread flour. This is entirely optional, but the higher protein content in bread flour can give you more professional tasting results.
How to Serve
These pretzel bites are delicious served on their own, or paired with a creamy dip for dipping. Some of my favorite dips to serve with these soft bread bites are:
- Cheese Fondue
- Creamy Artichoke Dip
- Pizza Dip
- Queso Mexican Cheese Dip
- Baked Spinach Dip
- French Onion Dip
For more ideas, see our 20 Best Dip Recipes.
Recipe Tips and Tricks
- Let the dough rise. To get the best texture, you must let the dough double before you punch it down. If you roll too soon, they'll have a dense texture.
- Boil carefully. It's very easy to over-boil dough, which leads to soggy pretzels instead of nice chewy ones. Pull them out right after 20 seconds and shake off as much of the excess water as possible.
- Don't skip the egg wash. Although this is somewhat of an optional step, it makes such a big difference! The egg wash really gives you a wonderfully golden color and a fantastic texture.
Storing and Freezing Instructions
How to Store
Store leftover pretzel bites in an airtight container at room temperature for 3-4 days.
How to Reheat
To keep that chewy, delicious crust, wrap the pretzel bites it a damp paper towel and microwave for 30 seconds. They'll taste freshly baked!
How to Freeze
Allow the pretzels to cool completely, then freeze them in a freezer-safe bag for several months. Thaw in the fridge before reheating.
FAQ
Pretzel dough is a very simple dough made from flour, sugar, salt, yeast, water, and butter. After kneading and raising the dough, roll it into a log, then cut it into little bites. The secret to great pretzels is to boil them in a hot baking soda water bath. We like to brush them with an egg wash, then sprinkle a nice flaky salt for that traditional salty pretzel flavor.
Like bagels, pretzels need to be boiled. The boiling process gives the dough that deliciously chewy texture on the outside while preserving the light and fluffy dough on the inside. Without it, the pretzel bites will still taste great, but they'll have the texture of little rolls instead.
We highly recommend that you don't skip the boiling process. If you don't boil the dough, your pretzels won't have the same color or texture and really won't look or feel like pretzels at all. It's a crucial part of the pretzel-making process.
More Bread Recipes
- 50 Best Bread Recipes
- Easy Salted Soft Pretzels
- Garlic Knots
- Buttermilk Biscuits
- Parker House Rolls
- Garlic Breadsticks
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