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These homemade soft pretzel bites, or pretzel nuggets, are easy to prepare and perfect for dipping! They’re great for snacking or parties! Try them with some cheese sauce or your favorite dip or dressing.
So, I have good news and I have bad news.
The good news is that I made these perfect soft pretzel bites, or pretzel nuggets, because I love soft pretzels but I’m not a big fan of the frozen ones.
The bad news is that now there is nothing stopping me from eating pretzel bites every day of the week. I sense danger.
I’m sure you know the feeling of uncontrolled pretzel lust every time you enter a shopping mall and make your way near an Auntie Anne’s. Now we’re skipping the mall and just making our own homemade pretzel bites anytime the urge strikes.
I’m utterly obsessed with dipping these in our beer cheese dip. It’s my most popular dip recipe and with good reason!
Of course, these are also tasty dunked in our honey mustard or cheese sauce for fries!
Ingredient Notes:
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Dry Ingredients – You’ll need active dry yeast, all-purpose flour, bread flour, brown sugar, baking soda, and salt. If you don’t have bread flour you may use only all-purpose flour. Kosher salt or pretzel salt works here!
Wet Ingredients – Nothing major here, just some warm (and hot) water along with melted butter. Simple!
What We Love About This PRETZEL BITES RECIPE:
- Texture: These pretzel bites have just the right soft, chewy texture that you’d expect from a pretzel! You’ll dip the dough in a baking soda solution to help promote the pretzel texture and flavor!
- Parties: When you need lots of snacks without breaking the budget these pretzel bites are a great choice! This recipe makes a ton and you can serve them up with your favorite party dips.
How To Make Pretzel Bites:
Yeast: To get started you’ll need some warm water, yeast, and sugar. Add those to the bowl of a stand mixer and let sit for 10 minutes. The mixture will turn a bit foamy.
Combine: Stir in both of the flours and the salt, then mix with a paddle attachment on medium speed for about 8 minutes, or until the pretzel dough is soft, smooth, and elastic!
Rise: The pretzel dough will need to rise. Transfer it to an oiled bowl in a warm place free of drafts and let the dough rise until it has doubled in size. We usually pop our dough in the oven with the light turned on. It’s a warm environment that’s perfect for dough to rise.
Shape: Roll a handful of dough into a long, thin snake about 1/2 inch thick. Cut that into 1 inch pieces.
Baking Soda: Pour the hot water and the baking soda into a medium bowl and stir together to dissolve. This baking soda solution will give these the characteristic chewy texture and flavor of a pretzel!
Use a slotted spoon and dunk each of the pretzel bites into the mixture.
Rise: Transfer to a paper towel lined plate to dry for about 30 seconds before removing to a well greased baking sheet. Set the sheet aside when full to allow the dough to rise for another 15 minutes.
Bake: Bake the pretzel nuggets, one baking sheet at a time, in a 400 degree over for 10 minutes or until they’ve turned golden brown.
Finish: Brush the pretzel nuggets with some melted butter, sprinkle on some kosher salt or pretzel salt, and serve with your favorite dip!
Pro Tips for Working With Yeast:
Working with yeast can be a bit intimidating at first, but it’s really quite simple once you dive in! Here are a few of our tips:
Let the Yeast Bloom: You’ll want warm water that is around 110 to 115 degrees to active the yeast. If your water is too cold, it won’t bloom. If your water is too hot, it will kill the yeast. Use a thermometer for the most accuracy.
Rise in a Warm Environment: Your yeast doughs will rise best in a warm and cozy environment. We always pop our bowl of dough in the oven with the oven light turned on. It’s not too hot, but just the right amount of warmth.
Don’t Rush Things: The dough should double in size for the best texture of your bread. This will usually take around an hour.
Serving Suggestions:
My favorite part about these pretzel nuggets are that you get to serve them with just about any kind of dip, dressing, or sauce there is. The cheesy kind, the savory kind, even the sweet kind all work here.
Try with some of my favorite homemade dips, dressings, and sauces:
- Chili Cheese Dip
- Avocado Ranch Dressing
- Copycat Chick-Fil-A Sauce
- Jalapeno Cream Cheese Dip
- Rotel Dip
- Chipotle Ranch Dressing
- Homemade Queso Dip
Or try turning the pretzel nuggets into dessert! Instead of adding kosher salt, brush with butter and then top them with some cinnamon and sugar!
FAQ’s:
You can keep any leftover baked pretzel bites stored in an airtight container at room temperature for about 4 to 5 days. You could also freeze them for up to a few months!
Sure! You can prepare the pretzel dough ahead and store it in the refrigerator until ready. Let it come to room temperature before shaping and baking the dough.
I’ve only tried this with the active dry yeast but I think it’d be fine to use instant yeast.
MORE PRETZEL RECIPES!
Pretzel Nuggets
Ingredients
- 2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 1/2 cups warm water about 110 degrees
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup bread flour may use all-purpose
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups hot water
- 2 tablespoons baking soda
- 2 tablespoons butter melted
- Kosher salt for sprinkling
Instructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the yeast, sugar, and warm water. Let sit for 10 minutes.
- Stir in both flours and the salt. Mix on medium speed, about 8 minutes, or until dough is soft, smooth, and elastic.
- Transfer dough to an oiled bowl and let rise until doubled in a warm place free of drafts, about 1 hour.
- Add the hot water and baking soda to a medium bowl and stir to dissolve the baking soda.
- Grab a handful of dough and roll it into a long, thin snake, about 1/2 inch thick. Cut into 1-inch pieces.
- Dunk each piece in the baking soda solution using a slotted spoon. Transfer to a paper towel lined plate to dry for about 30 seconds. Remove to a well greased baking sheet. When the baking sheet is full, set aside to rise for 15 more minutes.
- Continue filling baking sheets with pretzel nuggets and bake, one sheet at a time, in a 400 degree oven for 10 minutes or until golden brown.
- Brush with the melted butter and sprinkle with salt.
- Serve with warm cream cheese, queso dip, or your favorite sauce for dipping.
Savannah says
I love this recipe, how long are they good for?
Karly Campbell says
They’ll last around 3 days at room temp or around a week in the fridge. 🙂
Nick says
The only issue I have here is the stated time. It’s not 30 minutes of prep time. It’s 20 minutes to make the dough, an hour for the rise, and then 20-30 minutes to slice, roll, cut, soda dip, drain, and finally tray. After the bake you then have to dip or brush all the nuggets with butter and try to get the salt to stick ( I ended up just grinding sea salt over the buttered nuggets). The end result is equal to or better than Auntie Anne’s and well worth the time. Give yourself 2 hours at a minimum to get your pretzel nugget fix.
Karly says
Hey Nick! You’re totally right! Back in the day, the recipe cards only had slots for prep (hands on time) and cook time, so it wasn’t easy to add all that info. But we have more options now and I’ll update that. 🙂
Dianne says
Wish I knew if GF 1 to 1 flour would work. The flour is $$$$, so I don’t want to waste it on something that won’t “turn out” right.
Karly says
We don’t have gluten issues, so I’ve never worked with the GF flour myself. Not sure how it would work here.
Kelley says
haha! I totally understand cooking when the kids are not around. Mine are the same way. If I could cook and photograph at night while they were asleep.. I just might. ha! These look delicious too! Love a good pretzel nugget!
Josh says
Any ideas how I could make these without a stand mixer? Would a stainless bowl and elbow grease do the trick? I think my wife and kids would go nuts for these, especially with some queso.
Karly says
@Josh,
Yep, I think it would work just fine so long as you’re sure to knead it until it’s smooth and elastic. 🙂 Have fun!
Joanne says
Well given how much I want to stick my hands through the computer and into that bowl to grab some…I totally understand where your daughter was coming from.
tori says
These look so good! I have some brothers who would go crazy for these. Totally going to make them.
Katrina @ WVS says
lol, as if she ate them ALL!! Too funny. I would too though, I mean, they look freaking perfect!
tahnycooks says
I don’t blame your daughter for eating them all! I would’ve too! Put a pretzel in front of my face and I have no will power! These look perfect!
Matt Robinson says
Karly, these are awesome! We buy these all the time at the mall and I had no idea they were so easy to make. Can’t wait to try these with my boys, thanks!
Belinda@themoonblushbaker says
That sauce and those little bites are making so hungry right now!
Medeja says
They look so cute 🙂 and addictive
Chloe @ foodlikecake says
Mmm, I love Auntie Ann’s Pretzels. Totally need to make these 🙂