I’ve never been one of those “why make it when you can buy it?” people. To me, being able to replicate something you really enjoy eating is the first step toward making it even better. Homemade soft pretzels, regardless of the one-day head start needed, are extremely easy to make, and far better than the ones from the freezer section. Add to that the fact that I stumbled across this absolutely perfect recipe for the ubiquitous cheese goo, and I’m able to share the recipe for the greatest snack known to mankind. I could eat this every day if I weren’t conscious of my own mortality.
The Setup
Pretzel Dough
- 3 1/2 c unbleached all-purpose flour
- 4 tbsp brown sugar
- 2 tsp Kosher salt
- 1 tbsp active dry yeast
- 1 c warm (100-110F) water
- 2 tsp baking soda (for second day)
- Egg wash (second day)
- Melted butter (second day)
Cheese Sauce
- 1/2 lb (1 regular-sized brick) extra-sharp cheddar
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
- 1 can evaporated milk
- 2 tsp Frank’s Red Hot
Cooking
One Day Prior
1. Dissolve in the yeast in the water and let sit for 15 minutes.
2. Put the yeast, brown sugar, and salt into the bowl of your food processor. Pulse a few times to mix thoroughly.
3. Add the flour gradually while processing until a smooth, even dough forms.
4. Let the dough rest in an oiled bowl, covered with plastic wrap, overnight in the refrigerator.
Day of Prezelpocalypse
1. Divide the dough into either 6 or 12 pieces, depending on how big you’d like them.
2. Roll each piece out to a thickness slightly larger than a pencil. Form into pretzel shapes by forming an upside-down U, looping the ends across each other, and pushing the ends back down onto the top of the U. In short, make a pretzel shape out of it. Don’t make me slap you.
3. Rest pretzels at least 45 minutes until they rise further.
4. Preheat oven to 450.
5. Mix the baking soda with 1 c hot (120+F) water in a shallow bowl.
6. Dip the pretzels in the soda/water solution, shaking off the excess, and place them on a greased or mat-lined baking sheet.
7. Mix a teaspoon of water with a beaten egg yolk to create the egg wash, and brush onto tops of pretzels. Add salt to top and bake pretzels for 12-15 minutes, until golden brown.
8. Remove pretzels from the oven, brush with melted butter and more salt, and allow to cool slightly while you make the cheese sauce.
9. Toss the cheese with the cornstarch in a large bowl to coat evenly.
10. Put the starched cheese in a medium saucepan with 1c of the evaporated milk and the hot sauce.
11. Heat the sauce over low heat, whisking the entire time. It’s going to be extremely unappealing-looking at first. Just when you think it will never work, the entire mixture will come together in a glorious symphony of cheesy perfection. If it’s too thick for your taste, just add more of the milk – you’ll have some left over.
12. Open a beer, grab your pretzels, and prepare to eat so much as to lose all motivation to leave the house.
Man, you wasn’t lying when you said “prepare to eat so much as to lose all motivation to leave the house”!! Second try at this, i ate all eight pretzels along with the bat of cheese goo!! Damn delicious, I tell ya! thanks for posting this!! I’ve made this a total of three times (first time was a bust) and will make this again and again and again.
BTW, i saw a stick on a usps mail box here in Chi-town that lead me to this site. Awesome.
That’s awesome. We’re going to have to order a case of stickers immediately.
If I can ask, what happened the first time to scuttle the process? We can add something to the article if it’s a thing I overlooked.
Hey jbmays! the first time bust was on my part. the food processor i tried this on was not able to handle the amount of flour; i kinda figured it wouldn’t but i gave it go anyway. so, it ended up overheating and cooking the dough some. i knew things weren’t right but i went ahead and put it in the refrigerator. the next day i tried rolling the dough and it just crumbled!! tossed it and started aknew. Now i just mix the flour (little at a time) with the yeast, brown sugar & salt mixture by hand until a smooth ball forms. i don’t even let it sit in the refrigerator overnight. i leave the dough out (or in the oven) in a greased bowl to double in size then i go ahead and make the pretzels! I think the brown sugar in this recipe really makes it’s tasty! I’ve tried light with some dark brown sugar and the result was a darker pretzel!! Anyway, this is a fantastic recipe.
I’m BAck and have made this more than five times!! Okay, so I’ve done this recipe several ways and the best way to do it is to FOLLOW THE instructions:) Although, the amount of flour the recipe calls for could be a tad much. Not sure as I”m not a baker, chef, etc. Just love to cook but from what i’ve experienced, it’s best to add the flour a half cup to a cup at a time until the dough “comes” together. I’ve done it with less than three & half cups and it is sticky but workable. i’ve done it also with 3.5cups and the dough kinda separates which i think is b/c not enuf water? Hopefully someone with more dough expertise can chime in. thanks. Still a GRAND recipe. LOVE IT!!
Excellent! Dough can be tricky, as it’s affected by so many environmental factors. Your method sounds like a good one. Eventually you just get the right feel for the dough. I’m not quite sure what you mean by “separates” though. Is it flaky, or is there extra flour?