Authentic and easy to make, these Bavarian soft pretzels bring the warm, chewy flavor of Germany’s beloved snack right to your kitchen.
If you’ve ever enjoyed the warm, soft, beautifully golden pretzels sold at German festivals and food trucks, then this recipe brings that experience right into your home kitchen.
With approachable ingredients and step‑by‑step instructions (no intimidating lye bath required), the dough in this recipe is made from warm water, brown sugar, yeast, flour, melted butter and kosher salt.
After rising, the pretzels are shaped, briefly boiled in a baking‑soda bath to get that classic chewy crust, and baked to a deep golden brown.
When we lived in Germany, there were food trucks that you would see here and there that had some of the most amazing foods you could imagine. The ice cream truck with the super-creamy fresh, hazelnut ice cream, or the Greek truck with the gyros, or the Pommes Frites – ahh….
Another favorite were these fresh, soft Brezl that we would get at the fests – they are traditionally served with mustard, along side a pint of Bier!
The first time I made these, my husband literally got down on his knees and begged me to make a whole ‘nother batch for him to take to work the next day.
I did.
Where’s my Super Wife cape?
To Make Homemade Bavarian Soft Pretzels You Will Need:
- water
- brown sugar
- kosher salt
- active dry yeast
- all-purpose flour
- butter
- extra virgin olive oil
- baking soda
- egg yolk
- pretzel or kosher salt
- electric mixer with dough hook
- large saucepan
- slotted spatula or spider tool
- baking sheets
- parchment paper
Watch Me Make this Recipe in the Video Below
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Bavarian Soft Pretzels
Ingredients
- 1 ½ c warm water, 110-115°(F)
- 1 Tb brown sugar
- 2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 ½ teaspoon active dry yeast
- 4 ½ c all-purpose flour
- ¼ c butter, unsalted, melted
- 2 Tb extra virgin olive oil, approximately
For the Dip Bath
- 2 quarts water, plus
- 2 cups water
- ⅔ c baking soda
For Topping
- 1 egg yolk
- 1 Tb water
- pretzel salt, or additional kosher salt for sprinkling
Instructions
- To begin, place the 1 1/2 cups of warm water in a mixing bowl with the brown sugar and 2 teaspoons of kosher salt.
- Sprinkle the active dry yeast over the top of the water and let it sit about 10 minutes until it gets bubbly.
- Place your bowl under the mixer, fitted with a dough hook, and add in the flour and butter.
- Let the mixer run for about 4 minutes, until the dough comes away from the bowl and is nice and smooth.
- Form the dough into a ball and place it in a clean, oiled bowl. Turn the dough to coat it with oil. Cover the bowl with a tea towel or plastic wrap and let it rest in a warm place for an hour, or until the dough is doubled in size.
- When the dough is risen, grab a large pot and put 2 quarts plus 2 cups of water in it along with the baking soda. Bring the water to a full boil.
- Meanwhile, preheat your oven to 450 degrees.
- Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper and lightly spray the paper with oil. Set aside.
- Now grab your dough while the water is heating up.
- Turn it out onto a lightly oiled surface. Cut the dough into 8 equal portions.
- Take one portion and roll it into a long snake, about 2 feet long.
- To shape the pretzel, bring the ends up, twist once, and then again.
- Turn the ends down towards the bottom and press the ends gently against the dough where it crosses.
- With a slotted spatula, gently place the pretzel in the boiling water for *30 seconds.*
- Lift the pretzel out and place it on the baking sheet.
- Repeat the process with the remaining 7 pretzels.
- Beat the yolk with a tablespoon of water in a small dish and brush the tops of the pretzels with the mixture.
- Sprinkle with some pretzel salt (if you can find it) or some kosher salt.
- Bake the pretzels for 12-14 minutes or until dark golden brown.
- Enjoy!!
Equipment Used
- spider strainer or slotted spatula
Video
Nutrition
If nutritional values are provided for this recipe, they are an estimate and will vary depending on the brands of ingredients you use. The values do not include optional ingredients or when ingredients are added to taste or for serving. If nutritional values are very important to you, I suggest using your favorite nutritional calculating tool with the brands you use.
Unit Conversions:
Unit Conversion for measurements (if displayed), going from US to Metric is an auto-generated conversion. If you are using the metric measurements, please double-check to confirm that these are accurate with your favorite preferred conversion tool.
This recipe was originally published in 2013, updated in 2025.
Can you use instant yeast?
Yes, just skip the proofing stage and go ahead and combine all of the ingredients :)
So glad that I came across your post. The recipe is easy to follow and the pretzels are amazingly delicious. My whole family loves it. This will be my go to recipe now. Thank you for sharing.
Thank you so much! I am so glad y’all enjoyed them :)
This was an easy and funny recipe with a dough that was very forgiving to work with. Family loved them and I now have this bookmarked!
So glad you liked them!
AHHHH-MAZING!!!
Thank you so much for sharing your recipe! They turned out fabulous!
What do you do if you only have an electric hand mixer?
These are delicious! I made a bunch to serve at a German themed dinner party – how do you recommend storing them and for how long?
I’m glad you liked them! We never have them for more than a day or two. Uneaten ones are stored in an airtight container.
These turned out great! Chewy and soft. I ended up with 13 pretzels.
Family loved them, as did I! Very soft bread and tastey. Recommend a soft boil, though, since a full boil unravelled the pretzels when I was doing them.
WowZa! These are AMAZING! My son loves German pretzels and gives these 10/10 ⭐️! We did lessen the baking time to 10 minutes and they were perfect. Thank you so much… we will do these again soon!
These turned out wonderful! I did make a couple changes/additions. I used Guinness for my liquid instead of water. I added a bit of nutmeg, crushed red pepper flakes, and celery seeds into my dry mixture. After the dough came together, I put in about a cup of shredded cheddar and let my mixer knead it smooth. Delicious!
I make these all the time! My husband and I love them! So easy and so delicious. I tried several different recipes and this is the best!
Thank you Jill!
I made these and they were really good! I twisted the dough before I put them in a knot and they looked really pretty!
If you bake the baking soda by itself in the oven at 450 for an hour before you make the bath, you simulate the lye bath (heating baking side coverts it from sodium bicarbonate to sodium carbonate- more caustic than baking soda itself but not as caustic as lye)
Thank you for that tip, I had never heard that before!
So very delicious! Best recipe I’ve used ever!! We are having brats for dinner and these will complement to the meal. Thank you so much!
Wonderful!
I tried your recipe and it was awesome! Thanks!
Maybe the pretzels you are familiar with were from a different part of Germany than where we lived. Or could be you are looking for the type that are given a lye bath. I'm sorry you were disappointed, but these are a huge hit around here :)
You have me craving those wonderful German pretzels! Oh how I miss them and hope to get back to Germany next year. Until then, I need to try your recipe.
Constance, you definitely deserve that "kick ass wife cape". Your pretzels are absolute perfection – even better looking than the ones you find in bakeries! I've always been intimidated by pretzel making and your recipe and step by step photos are totally helpful. Maybe I can master pretzel making too! I adore your giant marble slab, it must be awesome using it to prep food.
Mom recently commented when we were dining out how much she liked soft pretzels. i'll be making her a batch of these as soon as I can stand to turn on the oven again. Your hubby's co-workers are a lucky group.
WOW!! I think you just gave me the encouragement to make homemade pretzels!! These look amazing :)
Oh these look gorgeous!!I love pretzels but never knew how they were made!Thanks for showing the process and yes you do need a cape :)
Constance! I am shocked to hear you don't already have a cape. If anyone deserves one, it is you, for all you do! That is the most gorgeous soft pretzel I think I have ever seen.
G'day! Your pretzels look very yum, true
I now have these on my list to do! Thank you!
Love love LOVE soft pretzels!
I LOVE pretzels. They always go so quickly when I make them, I think if I try this recipe I'll have to hide them! Yum.
These are beautiful! Our pretzels never turn out that pretty!
Oh my! Your pretzel looks fabulous. I haven't had a soft pretzel in years! Now you've got me craving one!
Those pretzels looks beautiful! You make it look so easy, but I know they're a lot of work!
I lovvvvvvvvvvve soft pretzels and have always wanted to make them, but never have. These are gorgeous! Bobbi ~ Bobbi's Kozy Kitchen
I wonder if I could figure out a way to make those gluten free. That looks delightful.
Gorgeous pretzels! i could totally put down a couple of these! My eyes totally bugged out at all the different pretzel shops when I visited Colgne last year. I couldn't get enough.
Oh my, I want one of those right away, especially with the mustard. YUM!!!
Yes! We love pretzels around here! I always make a double batch…for emergencies and all. ;)
How do you store the dough if you don’t make them all at once can you save it for another day
Hi Debra! You can either make them all and freeze the extra pretzels, or stick the unbaked pretzel dough in the fridge. It is best to used it within 24-48 hours though.
PERFECT pretzels! I must make these for my youngest!!!
Oh my gosh, these pretzels look amazing! I am in love. Need to make ASAP
One of my favorite things in the whole wide world! These look amazing…and only confirm my deep desire to wander the streets of Germany, eating all the while. ;)
I always have street salty pretzels when in NYC. These look awesome Constance, no wonder the begging…lol!
Yummy! Your pretzels are the real deal… Straight out of the oven with a bit of salt or mustard…Mmm that would be fabulous just about now.
These sound and look like the perfect Brezel to me :) – We like to eat ours with butter and I make sure to have a "Butterbrezeln" whenever I am back home :) Thank you for sharing, Constance ~ Bea @ The Not So Cheesy Kitchen