Bake

Pretzel Rolls

September 15, 2021
4
2 Ratings
Photo by Brinda Ayer
  • Prep time 1 hour 40 minutes
  • Cook time 30 minutes
  • makes 8 sandwich buns
Test Kitchen Notes

Bake It Up a Notch is a column by Resident Baking BFF Erin Jeanne McDowell. Each month, she'll help take our baking game to the next level, teaching us all the need-to-know tips and techniques and pointing out all the mistakes to avoid along the way. —The Editors

What You'll Need
Watch This Recipe
Pretzel Rolls
Ingredients
  • Pretzel Dough
  • 5 1/2 cups (660 grams) bread flour
  • 2 tablespoons (25 grams) sugar
  • 1 tablespoon (9 grams) instant dry yeast
  • 2 teaspoons (12 grams) kosher salt
  • 1 1/3 cups (301 grams) warm water (between 95°F to 100°F/35°C to 38°C)
  • 4 tablespoons (56 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature
  • Neutral oil, for greasing
  • Assembly
  • 18 cups (4.25 kilograms) water
  • 2/3 cup (160 grams) baking soda
  • Egg wash (1 large egg plus 1 tablespoon water), for brushing
  • Coarse or flaky sea salt
Directions
  1. Pretzel Dough
  2. In the large bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, mix the flour, sugar, yeast, and kosher salt to combine, for 30 to 60 seconds.
  3. Add the water and butter and mix on low speed for about 3 minutes, until the dough comes together. Increase the speed to medium and continue to mix for about 4 minutes more, until the dough is very smooth.
  4. Transfer the dough to a greased bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise for 60 to 90 minutes, until noticeably puffy and nearly doubled in size.
  5. Divide the dough into 8 even pieces (about 130 grams each). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Working with one piece of dough at a time and loosely covering the remaining dough, cup your hand over a piece of dough and roll in a circular motion on the work surface to form into a tight round. Transfer to the prepared sheet as you go.
  6. Cover the rolls with greased plastic wrap and let rise for 30 to 45 minutes, until noticeably puffy.
  1. Assembly
  2. In a large pot over medium-high heat, bring the water to a boil. Stir in the baking soda, then reduce the heat to low. Working in batches, add the dough to the water and let soak, flipping once halfway through with a slotted spoon or spider, for about 1 minute.
  3. Return the soaked pretzels to the parchment-lined sheet, leaving at least ½ inch around each piece.
  4. Arrange racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven; heat the oven to 425°F/220°C.
  5. Brush the pretzels with the egg wash and sprinkle with coarse salt. Bake the rolls, rotating the pans from front to back and top to bottom halfway through, for 18 to 22 minutes, until deeply golden brown (an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest portion should register at least 195°F/90°C). Let cool for 10 minutes before serving.

See what other Food52ers are saying.

  • Dwebb
    Dwebb
  • Mcerecedes
    Mcerecedes
  • MyNaturesArt
    MyNaturesArt
I always have three kinds of hot sauce in my purse. I have a soft spot for making people their favorite dessert, especially if it's wrapped in a pastry crust. My newest cookbook, Savory Baking, came out in Fall of 2022 - is full of recipes to translate a love of baking into recipes for breakfast, dinner, and everything in between!

3 Reviews

Dwebb November 1, 2022
Not really a baker but found this recipe very easy to manage. I too proofed my dough a little longer than the instructions but was quite happy with the size and structure of the rolls. The taste and crumb we also very good. My only help would be maybe on the soak as the look didn't come out as brown on the top and the pretzel taste was more subtle than I hoped
 
Mcerecedes January 17, 2022
I was disapointed that my rolls deflated when i went to boil them. They ccame out much flatter in shape as the picture. They lost their shape when i removed them from the parchment paper. What can i change next time
 
MyNaturesArt October 22, 2022
It sounds as though you may have over-proofed them. If left a bit too long the over expand then deflate while baking.