I have always had a soft spot for warm, soft, salty, chewy pretzels with cheese sauce. I mean, there is something so comforting about eating a freshly baked pretzel. And the cheese sauce just puts it over the top. Do you have to make the cheese sauce? No. Will you be sad you didn't? Probably. It seriously only takes about 5-10 minutes so you can make it while the pretzels are baking.
Speaking of baking/ making the pretzel... It starts out like any other roll recipe. You add in your water, sugar, and yeast then let it sit for a bit. Add a bit of melted butter, salt, and flour and keep mixing it up till it forms a nice, soft dough. Tacky, but not so much that it sticks to your finger. Here's where it takes a different path from traditional rolls. Instead of waiting for the bread dough to double, you only need to let it rest for 10-20 min. Meanwhile, get the soda and water boiling. After they dough has rested you just divide the dough up, roll it out like you're making a snake with Playdough, tie it in a knot, and tuck the ends under. Next, it goes into the boiling soda water for 20 seconds, gets sprinkled with some Kosher salt, and it's ready to bake!
I've made these twice now for an after school snack for the Brynlee and Danny. The first time was a pleasant surprise, and the second time they were both excited to see them again!
Soft Pretzel Knots
slightly modified from Sally's Baking Addiction
2 and 1/4 teaspoons (7g) instant or active dry yeast (1 standard packet)
1 Tablespoon brown sugar or granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 Tablespoon unsalted butter, melted and slightly cool
3 and 3/4 – 4 cups (469-500g) all-purpose flour (spoon & leveled), plus more for hands and work surface
toppings: coarse salt/coarse sea salt or toppings described in notes
Baking Soda Bath
1/2 cup (120g) baking soda
9 cups (2,160ml) water
Instructions
Make the dough: Whisk warm water, yeast, and sugar together in the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with a paddle or dough hook attachment. (If you do not have a stand mixer, just use a regular large mixing bowl.) Cover yeast mixture and allow to sit for 5 minutes or until foamy on top. Add salt, melted butter, and 3 cups (375g) of flour. Beat on low speed for 1 minute, scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula if needed, then add 3/4 cup (95g) of flour. Beat on low speed until the dough comes together and pulls away from the sides of the bowl, about 2 minutes. If dough is extremely sticky after 1 minute of mixing, add remaining 1/4 cup of flour and continue to beat for 1 more minute. (You can see in the video that I add the remaining flour.)
Knead the dough: Keep the dough in the mixer and beat on low speed for an additional 2 minutes or knead by hand on a lightly floured surface for 2 minutes. Cover lightly with a towel and allow to rest for 10-30 minutes. (Meanwhile, I like to get the water + baking soda boiling as instructed in step 5.)
Preheat oven to 400°F (204°C). Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Silicone baking mats are highly recommended over parchment paper. If using parchment paper, lightly spray with nonstick spray or grease with butter. Set aside.
Shape: With a sharp knife, pizza cutter, or bench scraper, cut dough into 14-15 pieces, which is about 1/4 cup (2 ounces) of dough each. Sprinkle work surface very lightly with flour. (Tip: The heavier you flour the work surface, the harder it is to roll the dough. A little stickiness actually helps. You only need *a very light* dusting of flour.) Roll each piece of dough into a 14-inch rope. Tie the ropes into a knot, then tuck the ends underneath. The ends are quite long so rather than tucking the ends straight underneath, I curve them around the pretzel before tucking under. You can see that in the video below.
Baking Soda Bath: Mix water and baking soda together in a large pot. Bring to a boil. Place 2-3 pretzels into the boiling water for 20-30 seconds, flipping halfway through. (Any longer than 30 seconds and your pretzels could take on a metallic taste.) The knot shape makes the dough heavy, so if the pretzel knots are sinking, use a spatula to get them off the bottom of the pot. Using a slotted spatula or spoon, lift the pretzel knots out of the water and allow as much of the excess water to drip off. Place pretzel knots onto prepared baking sheets. Sprinkle each with coarse sea salt while each are still wet or leave plain if using other toppings detailed in the notes below (you still need to salt them if doing the jalapeño cheddar pretzels). Repeat baking soda bath with remaining pretzel knots. If needed, you can cover and refrigerate the boiled/unbaked pretzels for up to 24 hours before baking.
Bake for 20-24 minutes or until golden brown. I usually bake mine for the full 24 minutes to obtain a very deep color as pictured.
Remove from the oven, rub all over with butter, and serve warm.
Cover and store leftover pretzels at room temperature for up to 3 days. They lose a little softness over time. To reheat, microwave for a few seconds or bake in a 350°F (177°C) for 5 minutes.
Spicy Nacho Cheese Sauce
Note: I omitted the cayenne pepper and used 1 TBSP Siracha Sauce in place of the 2 TBSP of hot sauce.
Ingredients
1/4 cup (60g) unsalted butter
1/4 cup (31g) all-purpose flour (spoon & leveled)
2 cups (480ml) whole milk
2 cups sharp cheddar cheese, grated
2 Tablespoons hot sauce
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
salt + pepper to taste
Instructions
Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Sprinkle the flour over the top, stirring constantly until a thick paste forms, 1 to 2 minutes.
Slowly add the milk to the flour/butter paste in a steady stream, whisking constantly. Continue cooking, whisking constantly until the mixture thickens, about 5 minutes. It should be thick but still pourable. Add the cheese, whisking constantly until it is melted. Add the hot sauce and cayenne. Taste, then add salt and pepper to taste. Add more cayenne and/or hot sauce if preferred.
The sauce will thicken upon cooling. Store leftovers covered tightly in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Heat over stovetop or in the microwave before serving again.
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