Want Easy Homemade Soft Pretzels? Skip the Boil. | undefined (2025)

ATK Kids

It’s possible to get that perfect outer crust just by using your oven.

Want Easy Homemade Soft Pretzels? Skip the Boil. | undefined (1)By

Published Jan. 21, 2022.

Want Easy Homemade Soft Pretzels? Skip the Boil. | undefined (2)

For most of my life, the process of making soft pretzels was a complete mystery to me.

Every time I bit into a warm, salty pretzel (usually dunked in beer cheese), I’d wonder: How did the bakers get that hard, shiny crust on the outside with a satisfyingly chewy inside? And could I replicate it in my own kitchen?

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It turns out that most pretzels are boiled, often in a lye solution, before baking to ensure that the exterior comes out just right. Thinking that sounded like too much of a hassle for your average home baker (e.g., me), I went looking for a shortcut.

In ATK Kids’ The Complete Baking for Young Chefs, I found a recipe that takes boiling out of the equation entirely. That makes it easier, faster, and safe enough for kids to do, too.

Want Easy Homemade Soft Pretzels? Skip the Boil. | undefined (3)

The Complete Baking Book for Young Chefs

Think baking fun starts and ends with cupcakes? Think again! From breakfast to breads and from cookies to cakes (yes, even cupcakes!), kids can learn to bake it all with the help of this cookbook.

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The key ingredient that allows for the shortcut is baking soda. Like lye, baking soda is an alkaline substance, and when mixed with water and brushed over the pretzel dough, it changes the pH of the dough and gelates the surface starch. In the oven, the starch gel hardens and the alkaline baking soda makes browning happen fast. When you take the pretzels out of the oven, they’ve got the perfect dark, shiny finish—ballpark-worthy pretzels without the boil.

You can find the full recipe for Soft Pretzels—as well as our recipe for Pretzel Rolls—on the ATK Kids website.

Want Easy Homemade Soft Pretzels? Skip the Boil. | undefined (4)

Recipe

Soft Pretzels

You can make ballpark-worthy soft pretzels with with this easy recipe adapted especially for kids.

Get the Recipe

Want Easy Homemade Soft Pretzels? Skip the Boil. | undefined (2025)

FAQs

What happens if you don't boil pretzels before baking? ›

Like bagels, pretzels are made in boiling water prior to baking to give them their snappy outsides and chewy insides (messy!). Soft pretzels must be boiled, or dipped in a baking soda bath (or lye if you're gusty and strict with your pretzel traditions).

Do pretzels need to be boiled? ›

It turns out that most pretzels are boiled, often in a lye solution, before baking to ensure that the exterior comes out just right.

What is the secret ingredient which makes a pretzel taste like a pretzel? ›

On the one hand, lye gives pretzels their distinctive flavor, kind of a sharp flatness, if that makes sense. It's what keeps a pretzel from tasting like pretzel-shaped bread.

What does baking soda in boiling water do for pretzels? ›

As noted above, baking soda is a staple ingredient for making homemade pretzels. Dunking your pretzels in a baking soda bath prior to baking is what enables them to develop their distinctive color and crispy-on-the-outside, chewy-on-the-inside texture.

Why put baking soda in boiling water? ›

When you combine alkaline compounds such as baking soda with an acid, they produce carbon dioxide bubbles which helps cooking batter to rise.

Do you bake pretzels with baking soda or lye? ›

For baking newbies, the Maillard reaction is a chemical reaction that happens between the amino acids and sugars in bread dough that gives bread products their color while also imparting flavor. You can achieve similar pretzel results with this trick using baked baking soda—but a lye solution is best.

Are Auntie Anne's pretzels boiled? ›

Instead, they mix hot (but not boiling) water with baking soda until the baking soda dissolves, then dunk the pretzels in that solution prior to baking. According to The Daily Meal, the baking soda solution slapped onto each pretzel is what gives them that signature Auntie Anne's crust.

How do you keep soft pretzels warm and soft? ›

Keeping Pretzels Warm with a Slow Cooker

Place a clean, damp towel at the bottom of the slow cooker. Arrange the pretzels on top, avoiding overcrowding. Cover them with another damp towel and set the cooker to 'warm'. The moist environment inside will keep the pretzels soft and warm.

How do you store soft pretzels so they don't get soggy? ›

Storing Freshly Baked Soft Pretzels

For those times when you have freshly baked soft pretzels, here's how to keep them tasting great: Cool Before Storage: Let pretzels cool completely to avoid moisture build-up. Individually Wrapped: Wrap each pretzel in plastic wrap to protect against dry air.

What's the difference between a pretzel and a soft pretzel? ›

Soft pretzels are large and have a chewy texture. They're usually served individually and are commonly sold at concession stands, restaurants, and bakeries. Meanwhile, hard pretzels are small and crunchy and can be eaten by the handful, depending on their shape.

What makes Auntie Anne's pretzels sweet? ›

Bite-size pretzel pieces tossed in sugar and cinnamon make these little twists impossible to resist.

Does Auntie Anne's fry or bake their pretzels? ›

Products sold at Auntie Anne's franchise locations are baked fresh in-store. In order to provide you with a great Auntie Anne's experience at home, we use the same proprietary blend of flour used in our stores.

Why do you have to boil pretzels? ›

This bath essentially gelatinizes the outside of the pretzel, preventing it from fully “springing” during baking (as bread does) and giving pretzels their signature chewy crust. It also gives them their unique and indelible “pretzel” flavor. Fancy! Traditionally this alkaline bath was made using food-grade lye.

Why are my soft pretzels bitter? ›

The lye, a strong alkaline solution, is used to give the pretzels their characteristic dark brown colour and chewy exterior. However, the lye also contributes to the unique flavour of the pretzels, giving them a slight tanginess and a hint of bitterness.

What can I use instead of baking soda in soft pretzels? ›

For the lye bath:

2 tablespoons (40 grams) food grade lye, see notes for baking soda alternative. 1 liter (1000 grams) water, room temperature. Pretzel salt or coarse salt.

Why boil before baking? ›

This works because the boiling water sets the exterior crust before it hits the oven, preventing the bagels from rising very much while further developing that browned exterior.

What does boiling dough before baking do? ›

One of the most important steps in making bagels. is boiling before baking. Baking the dough right away gives a bagel with a matte. finish and an open interior structure. Boiling the bagel pre gelatinizes the crust.

Why did my pretzels come out hard? ›

Soft pretzels have a shorter baking time

Soft pretzels can usually be baked in 15 minutes; hard pretzels, meanwhile, must be baked for up to an hour. The longer baking time further dries out the pretzel. And, as we have discussed, the lack of moisture is what gives the hard pretzel its brittle texture.

Why are my homemade pretzels so dense? ›

Baking Tips

Let the dough rest before you shape it. If you don't let the dough rest, you run the risk of over working it, which would result in tough, dense pretzels. Don't omit the sugar from the recipe. This gives the yeast something to feed on so you can tell if it's good.

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