Soft Pretzel Dough
Legend says that pretzels were invented by an Italian monk in 610 A.D

Version 1
  • This is a two-day recipe utilizing a biga (Italian style pre-ferment that adds depth and complexity to the dough’s flavor and also strengthens the final dough.) The biga will need time to develop overnight.
  • The recipe calls for the use of food-grade lye. Lye is the classic pretzel wash that creates a rich brown sheen with thin crust. The lye bath breaks down the gluten and gelatinizes the surface of the pretzel. In the oven, the sodium hydroxide reacts with carbon dioxide to form sodium carbonate, which is edible. You can use baking soda instead, but it doesn't work as well. Both lye and concentrated baking soda are caustic materials. Please be careful when using them.
Ingredients
Biga (Make the day before) 
  • 5 oz (144 grams) AP flour    
  • 3.3 oz (94 grams) water
  • ½ tsp (2.8 grams) salt
  • 1 pinch instant yeast
Pretzel Dough 
  • 20.3 oz (578 grams) AP flour
  • 12 oz (340 grams) water
  • 3 tsp (12 grams) kosher salt
  • 2 tsp Instant yeast
  • 1.25 oz (36 grams) unsalted butter
  • 1 tsp (7 grams) dry baking malt
  • 8.5 oz (240 grams) biga
Lye Dip 
  • 44 oz (1250 grams) warm water (5.5 cups) 
  • 1.76 oz (50 grams) food grade lye
 
Instructions 
Biga 
1. Combine the ingredients in a bowl and mix for one minute. Cover the bowl and let it sit at room temperature overnight. 
Pretzel Dough 
  1. In a stand mixer mix the dough ingredients together (except the biga) for 3 minutes.
  2. Add the biga in chunks and mix for 5 minutes. Move to work table and knead for five minutes.
  3. Let the dough rise for 1 hour, covered. Then remove it from the bowl and fold it. Dough can be refrigerated over night at this point or return it to the bowl, cover, and let it rise another hour.
  4. Roll out approximately 4 oz. of dough into a rope about 18 - 20 inches long. Shape the pretzels into the traditional crossed-end shape.
  5. Freezing the pretzels for about 20 minutes will help them firm up and be easier to handle.
Lye Bath & Baking  
  1. Preheat oven to 450°F.
  2. Add the lye to the water (not the other way around) in a glass bowl or other non reactive bowl. Do not use aluminum. Stir gently until all of the lye is dissolved. Even food-grade lye is caustic and can burn if it comes into contact with your skin or eyes. It is a good idea to wear safety glasses and rubber gloves to protect your eyes and skin. If it gets on your skin it will feel soapy. If left on your skin it starts to dissolve the epidermis and causes a burn. You can wash it off with running water or soap and water. It will burn very quickly if it splashes in your eyes, so wearing safety glasses is recommended.
  3. Do not drop or throw the pretzels in the lye bath. Using a large skimmer or slotted spoon, GENTLY lower the pretzels one at a time into the solution for 10 seconds and then remove from the solution, pat the bottoms on a paper towel, and place on lightly oiled parchment paper. Drying off the bottoms by patting with a paper towel helps to keep them from sticking to the parchment. Sprinkle with coarse sea salt or other toppings. 
  4. Bake in the oven at 450°F for 10 minutes or until brown. They will stay crispy outside and soft and chewy inside.
Recipe Notes 
The alkaline lye bath changes the color and flavor of the pretzels, affecting the way the Maillard reaction plays out when the pretzel bakes. A Maillard reaction is the chemical interaction between small sugars, proteins, and amino acids that happens when dough bakes. Lye baths have been used for centuries in traditional pretzel baking to give them their unique taste. 
It is important to avoid touching the dough with your bare hands after dipping it into the lye mixture. Also, keep it off of aluminum surfaces because of the caustic nature of the chemical. 


Version 2
Ingredients: 
  • 6 ounces cold water
  • 2 ounces unbleached bread flour
 
  • 14 oz unbleached bread flour
  • 1 tsp dry baking malt (diastatic malt)
  • 3.5 oz lukewarm water
  • 1 tablespoon barley malt syrup, molasses, brown sugar, or honey
  • 1 teaspoon (3 grams) instant yeast
  • 2 1/2 teaspoons (10.5 grams) kosher salt
  • 1 oz butter (softened)
  • Olive oil or nonstick cooking spray
For dipping pretzels
  • 1 quart water 
  • 1 ounce food grade lye (about 2 tablespoons) 
Instructions: 
  1. In a ten inch saute pan, stir 6 ounces cold water and 2 ounces flour over medium heat until it reaches approximately 150F and forms a paste that sticks to the spoon. Cool until 80 degrees. For more information about this process see this article about tangzhong.
  2. Combine the sugar, salt, yeast and remaining flour in a bowl; add the water, cooked flour/water paste, and softened butter and mix until well combined. This step can be done in a food processor or mixer. This is very stiff dough and will be difficult to knead. Pour dough onto table and knead until the dough is smooth, approximately 8 to 10 minutes. Cover the dough and let sit in a warm place for approximately 50 to 55 minutes or until the dough has doubled in size.
  3. Refrigerate.
  4. Line 2 half-sheet pans with parchment paper and lightly brush with the vegetable oil. Set aside.
  5. Turn the dough out onto a slightly floured work surface and divide into 6-8 equal pieces (3-4 oz approx). Roll out each piece of dough into a 18-inch rope. Make a U-shape with the rope, holding the ends of the rope, cross them over each other and press onto the bottom of the U in order to form the shape of a pretzel. Place onto the parchment-lined half sheet pan. Freeze until firm. Two hours to over night.
  6. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. 
  7. Lye is the classic pretzel wash that creates a rich brown sheen with thin crust. To make enough wash (approx 4% solution) for one batch of pretzels, dissolve 1 ounce (about 2 tablespoons) food-grade lye in 1 quart of warm water (add the lye to the water, not the other way around). Wear gloves and goggles while using this wash; lye is caustic and can burn if it comes into contact with your skin or eyes. When the lye solution is hot, dip each pretzel in the lye solution for 10 or 15 seconds, then remove to your baking pan. Repeat with the others, sprinkle them with salt, and bake for 12 to 15 minutes.
  8. Alternatively, baked soda does a good job of approximating true lye-dipped pretzels. Place one package on lined sheet pan and bake in 250 degree oven for one hour. Dissolve 2/3 cup (about 100 grams) in 2 cups of water, immerse the formed raw pretzels in this solution for three to four minutes, rinse off the excess dipping solution in a large bowl of plain water, sprinkle with the pretzel salt. Let rise until soft. Bake until dark golden brown in color, approximately 12 to 14 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack for at least 5 minutes before serving.