Homemade German Pretzels (Laugenbrezeln)

In only two hours you can make these authentic German Pretzels. Enjoy them with Obatzda (German cheese dip) and a cold beer.

If you come to Germany, you will find that Brezeln (German Pretzels) are omnipresent. They are a favorite snack at Christmas Markets, Oktoberfest, and of course bakeries. We eat New Year's Pretzels on New Year's day, Heart Shaped Pretzels on Valentine's Day, and Sugar Cinnamon Pretzels during St. Martin's.

What is a German pretzel?

A German pretzel is a bread made from either sweet or salty yeast dough. It is formed from one long dough roll and looped into an elaborate knot.

Pretzel in German is called "Brezel". The name is derived from the Latin word "Brachium" which means little arms. The pretzel shape is meant to resemble the folded arms of monks paying.

There are various types of German pretzels, both sweet and savory. The best-known variety is the "Laugenbrezel" which, we are discussing today. "Lauge" in German means "lye" in stems from the process of dipping the uncooked pretzel in a lye solution before baking. This is how they get their characteristic taste and their famous chestnut color. This is a traditional fasting bread and is made from salty dough.

Sweet varieties include the "New Year's Pretzels" and the "Sugar Pretzel", reserved for special occasions.

History and origin

Pretzels evolved from the Romans who used to eat ring-formed bread at special occasions and festivities. This habit was later adopted by the Christians, who later baked these bread during the fasting period. The form changed with the years and what was originally round, became a heart-shaped mosaic in the 11th century. The pretzel came to the United States in the 17th century with German immigrants who settled in Pennsylvania.

However, there are different claims on how the original pretzel was invented, by the Italians, Bavarians, and Swabians. Most of these are very unlikely, but for those who have been reading my articles for a while now, will know I love a good legend.

Italian Legend

A Monk invented the pretzel around 610. He wanted to reward his pupils by baking them something that resembles a prayer pose of crossed arms.

Swabian Legend

This one is my favorite: In 1477 a baker called Frieder aus Urach invented the Brezel to save his life. He was sentenced to death by his feudal Lord. His only chance was to bake a bread, within three days through which the sun could shine three times. And this is how he came up with this elaborate knot with three openings. His invention was successful and his life was spared.

Bavarian Legend

The Bavarians have a great story explaining how the pretzel became dipped into lye. In 1839 a baker from Munich called Anton Pfannenbrenner, brushed the pretzels he was baking with lye instead of sugar water. The lye was actually meant to be used for cleaning the baking trays. However, not noticing his mistake they were delivered to the court. The courtiers liked the taste so much that they ordered more.

How to make German Pretzels

This german pretzels recipe is made with baking soda instead of lye. The main reason is that lye is toxic and you have to be careful when baking with it. When you use lye you should wear safety gloves and glasses, and lye should not come into contact with metal.

I make my pretzels at home with baking soda, and I live in Germany. My children are used to lye pretzels from the bakeries but prefer my homemade versions, as they taste "fresher".

Ingredients:

• instant yeast
• milk
• flour
• salt
• sugar
• butter
• baking soda
• coarse salt
• bicarbonate of soda

Pretzel Recipe Step by Step

1. Start by activating the yeast. Remove 4 tablespoons of the milk and add them to a little bowl. Heat until lukewarm, and stir in the sugar and instant yeast. Leave for 10 minutes. You should see small bubbles appearing on the surface. If not, the milk might have been too hot and you should start again.
2. While you wait for the yeast to activate, melt the butter and let it cool down. You do not want the butter to be too warm when you add it to the dough, as you don't want the dough to get too fluffy.

3. Add the flour, salt, melted butter, remaining milk, and yeast mixture to a large bowl. With a stand or hand mixer knead the dough for approximately 10 minutes until you achieve a smooth dough.
4. Cover the bowl with a teatowel and leave it to rest for about 45 minutes until the dough visibly rises.

5. After the resting time, knead the dough again briefly on a floured surface and then portion it into about 10 (each about 80 g heavy) pieces.
6. Roll each portion into an even ball, before rolling them to 40 cm long ropes. The rope should be tapered at the end.

7. To form the pretzel, lay the rope out in a U shape. Take both ends and pull them towards the middle. Twist them around each other. The ends get pressed against the pretzel belly (the lower part of the pretzel). You should be able to see 3 "openings".
8. Leave them to rest for another 20 minutes.
9. In the meantime preheat the oven to 220 degrees. Line two baking trays with parchment paper.
10. In a large pot bring the water to a boil and carefully pour in the bicarbonate of soda. CAREFUL it bubbles! Let the soda bath cool down a little.

11. Using a slotted spatula submerge each pretzel in the soda bath for 30 seconds. Ideally, you would dunk them frontside down, but then you have a greater risk that the knot opens. I like to let it swim and then push it down a little with the spatula, so it is completely submerged.
12. Place each pretzel on the baking tray with a little distance between each one of them. Note, that once it is placed on the baking parchment, it is difficult to move it again.
13. Sprinkle with salt or seeds as you desire. Then bake in the preheated oven for 12-15 minutes.
14. Leave to cool before serving.

What to eat Pretzels with?

Pure: Pretzels in Germany are traditionally eaten by themselves, just sprinkled with a little sea salt. They are great as they are, especially when fresh.

With butter: The second most popular choice is to spread the pretzels with butter. "Butterbrezeln" is what they are called in Germany. They are sold as a snack at gas stations or corner shops. If you look closely some of them have little holes around the sides. This is where little amounts of butter are "injected" into the pretzel with a syringe. However, normally you would just slice it lengthwise and spread the butter on the cut side.

With butter and chives: A popular variation of the buttered pretzel, is to serve it with freshly cut chives on top of the butter. This adds a great refreshing taste to it.

With Weisswurst: Brezeln is a traditional side dish for Weisswurst. The famous Bavarian sausage.

With dips: A popular pretzel dip is Obatzda, which is a German cheese spread made from soft cheese mixed with spices. Another traditional dip is Spundekäs, which comes from the Rhineland region. Here quark and cream cheese are mixed together. Another popular dip is Kräuterquark - a simple quark dip with herbs.

As a sandwich: Pretzels are often just sliced open and filled with anything that you would also fill a bread roll with. Ham, cheese, and slices of sausages. Even sweet varieties are popular. Some like the salty and sweet contract and would eat it with chocolate spread. (I am not one of those)

Make ahead

German pretzels taste best freshly baked. To enjoy them for breakfast, without having to wake up at 5 am, I suggest freezing them individually, after they have been dipped into the soda bath. Then you can just bake them in the oven from frozen.

Storage Requirements

Pretzel will always taste best the same day that it is baked. This is because it is made from yeast dough. You can store it at room temperature in an airtight container. One tip is if you have sprinkled it with salt, to remove the salt before storage. This is because the salt will soak out the moisture of the bread and make it soggy. This is why salted laugenbrezeln should not be stored in the same container as other bread. The salt will also affect the other bread and make it soggy.

Stale Pretzels can be reused to make delicious Pretzel Dumplings (Brezenknödel). Simply replace the bread rolls with Pretzels.

Recipe