How Pretzels Are Made

Some historians have said that the pretzel is the oldest snack food ever developed. It is believed that the pretzel was first developed during 610 A.D. by a monk in southern France or northern Italy. Using the dough left over from bread making, he formed the pretzel shape, which was meant to look like a child's arms folded in prayer. He used these creations as treats for children that learned their prayers. He called the snacks pretiola, which means little reward in Latin. However, these specific origins are often debated. However, we do know that the pretzel was invented sometime in the 6th century. The pretiolas eventually found their way into Germany and Austria where they became known as pretzels.

The pretzel made its way to America with a group of German-speaking settlers who entered Southeastern Pennsylvania. These settlers (now referred to as the Pennsylvania Dutch) brought a wealth of culinary traditions, one of which was pretzel baking. The Pennsylvania Dutch community played a pivotal role in popularizing pretzels in the area, transforming them from a European novelty to a Pennsylvania staple.

The first pretzels were of the soft variety. It’s said that the PA Dutch pretzel we all know and love started by accident. In the mid-19th century, a baker noticed that pretzels that had cooled too long became hard, making them a durable and innovative treat. This hard pretzel was widely popular among Union troops during the Civil War, who took the long-lasting pretzels with them throughout the east coast, further popularizing the snack.

Flour

The flour used for pretzels is called soft wheat flour and has a protein content of about 9%. It is the largest component in the dough making up about 65-70% of the total recipe.

Water

The pretzel dough would not be possible without the use of water. While there is less water in pretzel dough than in bread dough, it still makes up about 30-35% of the recipe. Water is important because it lets the dough flow and allows the yeast to contact the sugars for fermentation. It also causes the chemical leavening agents to activate.

Yeast and leavening agents

Pretzel dough is unusual in that it contains both yeast and chemical leavening agents. The yeast is put in the dough and it produces carbon dioxide gas as it metabolizes the sugar during fermentation. This gas creates tiny air pockets in the batter, which helps make the pretzels lighter and crispier. Yeast is typically supplied as a dry, granular product. Dry yeast is desirable because it can be stored for a long time at room temperature. Leavening agents have a similar effect as fermenting yeast, however they have less effect on the final taste. Chemical leavening agents include materials such as sodium bicarbonate and ammonium bicarbonate. In the presence of water, they breakdown chemically to produce carbon dioxide gas.

Sugar

Sugars such as sucrose or corn syrup are used for about 2% of the pretzel dough in commercial baking. The sugar has the primary effect of providing food for the yeast cells. Additionally, it will give a slightly sweet taste although this is very minimal in pretzel making. Sugar also contributes to the brown color of the pretzel. Recipes for making pretzels at home often call for Barley malt syrup. This helps give the pretzels that distinct deep yet slightly bittersweet flavor. If you can’t find this, simply use brown sugar (light or dark – the difference won’t be noticeable as it’s a small amount).

Salt

Salt is used in the batter at about 1%. It helps to make the dough stronger in addition to improving the taste.

Dipping in Water Bath

The pretzels are dipped in a bath made of water and food grade lye for 10-20 seconds and typically float when they are finished. This process gelatinizes the starch on the pretzel's surface making it gummy and sticky, allowing the salt to adhere more readily. Home bakers usually use baking soda or, more recently, a baked baking soda bath.

Lye has a pH of around 13 whereas baking soda has a pH of around 8. This extra alkalinity accelerates the Maillard reaction, allowing that caramelization to develop on the exterior of the pretzels. That ultra-deep color and slightly crispy, crunchy exterior crust is only made possible with lye. Lye is what professional bakers use, and it’s what’s authentic in a traditional Bavarian pretzel!

Home bakers can use baked baking soda, which is closer to lye, but a lot safer. Sodium carbonate (what you get after baking) is a dangerous caustic. Never touch with bare hands, wear a mask, use proper ventilation, and definitely keep away from pets and children. Heating the baking soda will break it down from sodium bicarbonate (the chemical name for baking soda) to sodium carbonate, making it even more alkaline. Sodium carbonate has a pH of 11, closer to that of lye.

Salting

As soon as the pretzels come out of the bath, they get a sprinkling of pretzel salt. Generally, the aim is to add about 2% salt to each pretzel. Pretzel salt is a course salt designed specifically to use on pretzels. Where your normal salts are just different sizes of whole salt crystals, pretzel salt is pulverized and then compressed back into the shape. It'll be opaque white and squarish, not a clear salt crystal. This makes it more brittle (crunch), lighter (less sodium per serving), while still retaining the look of big salt-crystals. Regular course salt works OK, but the specialized pretzel salt works better. If pretzel salt is not an option, use coarse sea salt instead. Just note it’ll dissolve into the dough more.

Baking of Hard Pretzels

The cooking temperature varies from 350-550° F (176.7-286.1° C) and this baking step takes from about 4-8 minutes. In the front of the oven, the temperature is significantly higher than at the end. The initial high heat caramelizes the gelatinized starch, which produces the characteristic dark brown pretzel color. The temperature is gradually raised at the start because if heated too fast, the structure of the pretzels will be weakened which could cause cracking and breaking during shipping. At the end of the oven the temperature is cooler to allow moisture in the pretzel to be released. During this entire baking cycle, the moisture content is reduced to about 15%. In the next baking phase, the pretzels are kiln dried or oven dried at about 250° F (119.4° C) for anywhere from 20-40 minutes. This further reduces the moisture content to below 4%.