Homemade Pretzel Bites That Vanish Fast

Pretzel bites surround a bowl of Hot Honey Mustard dip with napkins in the background on bottles of beer on the side.

5 from 1 vote

Homemade Pretzel Bites That Vanish Fast

Fresh from the oven, these Homemade Pretzel Bites have that deep golden crust, a tender, chewy center, and a Hot Honey Mustard Dip that you won't believe - I can eat it by the spoonful.

Prep Time1

Cook Time15

Rising Time1

Total Time2 15

Course: Snack

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Hot Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce, Pretzel Bites

Servings: bites

Calories: 48kcal

Author: Helen S. Fletcher

Equipment

Stand Mixer
Large Dutch Oven or Stock Pot

Ingredients

Pretzel Bite Dough

2 ¼ teaspoons instant yeast
1 ½ cups water
1 tablespoon barley malt syrup or brown sugar
1 tablespoon vegetable oil or melted butter
3 ⅔ to 3 ¾ cups all-purpose flour (515 to 540 grams)
1 teaspoon salt

Baking Soda Bath and Finishing

6 cups water
¼ cup baking soda
1 tablespoon barley malt syrup, optional
1 large egg
1 tablespoon water
coarse salt, optional
Swedish Pearl Sugar, optional

Hot Honey Mustard Dip

½ cup coarse ground mustard
½ cup mayonnaise
3 tablespoons honey
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

Instructions

Pretzel Bite Dough

Sprinkle the yeast over the warm water and stir it in.
Add the barley malt syrup or brown sugar and oil, stirring them in.
Combine the smallest amount of flour and salt in a mixing bowl. Pour the liquid over and beat on low to bring together. Beat on the Knead setting of the mixer for 3 minutes or until a smooth dough forms that cleans the side and bottom of the bowl. Add 1 tablespoon of the reserved flour at a time if the dough seems sticky. It should be tacky but it should not stick to your hands.
Place the dough in a container sprayed with a non-stick baking release. Place the dough in it and cover it with plastic wrap until doubled which should take about an hour. At this point it can be used immediately or it can be refrigerated overnight or frozen for a couple of months. If frozen, thaw it overnight in the fridge and continue.
Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line 2 half sheets with parchment paper and spray them very well with a non-stick baking release. Set them aside. Place the oven racks in the lower third and upper third of the oven.
To make it easier to roll the ball into a rope have a small bowl of water and a ruler ready. If the dough doesn't have enough tension on it when rolling it out to a 10" rope, dip a finger or two into the water, shake it off and rub the remainder into the palms of your hands. They should not be wet, but damp.
Shape the ball into a rope and press down while rolling from the center out until it is about 11" long. Pick it up and allow it to shrink back to 10". Under no condition should you flour the surface. With the ruler placed behind the rope cut it into 7 - 1 ½" pieces of dough with a bench scraper or knife.
Place them on a parchment lined baking sheet. Continue rolling and cutting the ropes.
When you get to the last one or two, put the 6 cups of water on to boil Put a lid on the pan so the water doesn't evaporate. Finish rolling and cutting the dough.

Baking Soda Bath and Finishing

Using a large Dutch oven or stock pot, bring 6 cups of water to a boil. Very slowly add the baking soda. It will bubble up furiously. Stir it down. Continue until all of the baking soda is added. Last add the barley malt syrup. If not using the syrup don't add anything.
Using a slotted spoon or spider, add as many of the bites as the pan will hold without overly crowding the. Stir for 25 to 30 seconds and remove them to one of the prepared half sheets. Continue until all of them have been through the bath. They will have enlarged at this point.
Spread them out about ½ to 1 inch apart. They won't rise anymore.
Beat the egg in a small bowl until it is completely mixed. Add the 1 tablespoon of water. Brush each pretzel with the egg wash and sprinkle lightly with coarse salt for savory or Swedish Pearl Sugar for sweet.
It is best to double pan the bites to prevent them from getting overly browned on the bottom. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes until deeply browned. Switch the pans top to bottom halfway through and turn them so they brown evenly.
Remove the bites from the trays within 5 minutes as they will stick to the paper if they get cool.

Hot Honey Mustard Dip

Stir all of the ingredients together. This can be made a day or two ahead.

To Make Ahead

The bites can be rolled and cut then put through the water bath. Place them on a tray and freeze for about an hour or until hard. Do not egg wash them. When hard, transfer to a freezer proof bag or container. To bake them, place them on a sprayed, parchment lined tray spacing them about an inch apart. Brush then with egg wash and sprinkle with salt or sugar. Add a few minutes more to the baking time.

Notes

There is always an abundance of photos to guide you in the post above. If you have questions, look at the photos or read the header of the article. Many of them will be answered there.

As always, I recommend using a scale for accuracy and consistency. Flour, in particular, is difficult to measure by volume. For my recipes, I use 140 grams per cup of unsifted all-purpose, bread or whole wheat flour and 125 grams of cake flour. Others may use different weights so use whatever they suggest.

Unless otherwise noted, salt refers to table salt.

Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.

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Brown Sugar can be substituted for the Barley Malt Syrup in the yeast dough.

Vegetable oil can be substituted for the canola oil.

If not you using the Barley Malt Syrup in the baking soda bath, don't use anything.

Brushing the pretzel bites with the egg wash is not mandatory but gives a nice shine to them. I strongly suggest it and it only takes a few minutes. In addition, it holds the salt or sugar in place better than water.

I like the extra bite the coarse ground mustard gives to the Hot Honey Mustard Dip but dijon or another mustard can be substituted. However, it will change the taste of the final dip.

I was originally going to add the vinegar (as seen in the ingredients photo) to sharpen the taste but it was unnecessary and would also thin out the dip so I omitted it.

The dough should not be too soft or too firm when mixed. Softer is easier to roll into ropes but is more bready tasting, but firmer tastes like a pretzel. Both should clean the sides and bottom of the mixing bowl.

While the baking soda water bath is not mandatory, the bites won't taste like pretzels if it isn't used. So I very much recommend it.

Softening the instant yeast in liquid ensures it is completely dissolved and also gives a head start to the rising process.

Use a very large pot for the water bath even though there isn't a lot of water. The baking soda will really rise up in the boiling water. And add the baking soda very slowly to help control it. Sir it and it will subside but get very bubbly when the bites are added.

Flour should not be used to roll out the ropes. See Step 11 if there is not enough tension to roll out the ropes.

The Hot Honey Mustard Dip is something you will find many other uses for such as a salad dressing, as a binder for a chicken salad or eat by the spoonful when you need a pick me up.

Nutrition