Soft Pretzels
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Fun to make and even more delightful to eat, these buttery, slightly sweet soft pretzels taste just like Auntie Anne’s.
Every parent and grandparent should have a go-to soft pretzel for those rainy days when you need a fun baking project—just be prepared for a light dusting of flour all over the kitchen! My kids adore these homemade soft pretzels. They’re slightly sweet, buttery, and almost identical to Auntie Anne’s famous mall pretzels. The real enjoyment for kids comes from rolling and twisting the dough into classic pretzel shapes, though can shape the dough into pretzel bites, too. While I prefer using a stand mixer, kneading the dough by hand is just as effective.
“I made these for a party. They were amazing. I love Auntie Anne’s pretzels and these tasted just like them.”
Homemade soft pretzels are easily customized. For those who love the traditional salted version, follow the recipe as is. If you’re in the mood for something sweet, skip the coarse salt, brush the pretzels with butter after baking, and then sprinkle generously with cinnamon sugar. And for the adults, pair these pretzels with mustard or beer cheese dip for extra flavor.
What You’ll Need To Make Soft Pretzels
Step-by-Step Instructions
Warm the milk and 2 tablespoons of the butter in the microwave until the butter is just melted, about 90 seconds; do not boil. (Alternatively, warm the butter and milk in a small saucepan.)
Add the brown sugar and stir until dissolved; set aside.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the flour with the yeast and salt.
Mix on low speed until well combined, about 1 minute.
With the mixer on low, gradually add the warm milk mixture to the bowl.
When the dough forms a cohesive mass, switch to the dough hook.
Knead, adding more flour as needed, until the dough is smooth but still slightly tacky, about 5 minutes.
Shape the dough into a ball, place in a clean, lightly greased bowl, and cover with plastic wrap.
Let rise in a warm spot until doubled in size, 1 to 2 hours.
Punch the dough to deflate it, then turn it out onto a clean work surface. Shape the dough into a log and cut into six equal pieces.
Roll and stretch each piece with the palms of your hands into a 24-inch rope, holding the ends and slapping the middle of the rope on the counter as you stretch.
Combine the baking soda with warm water in a 2-quart baking dish and stir until dissolved. Gently dip each “rope” into the soda solution. This alkaline solution is what gives the pretzels their signature dark brown, shiny crust and distinctive flavor. The solution causes a chemical reaction called the Maillard reaction, which results in browning and a distinctive taste. Without this step, the pretzels would not have the same taste, texture, or appearance that we associate with them.
Let any excess liquid drip off, then form the dough into a pretzel shape directly on the prepared baking sheet (form a U-shape, then holding the ends of the rope, cross them over and under each other — making a twist in the middle — and press the ends onto the bottom of the pretzel). Sprinkle evenly with the coarse salt.
Bake until golden, 8 to 12 minutes. Melt the remaining three tablespoons of butter and brush on the baked pretzels.
Enjoy the pretzels warm out of the oven, or reheat them in an oven or microwave.
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Soft Pretzels
Fun to make and even more delightful to eat, these buttery, slightly sweet soft pretzels taste just like Auntie Anne’s.
Ingredients
- 1 cup milk
- 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
- 3 tablespoons light brown sugar, packed
- 2¼ teaspoons instant/rapid-rise yeast (1 package)
- 3 cups all-purpose flour, spooned into measuring cup and leveled-off
- 1 teaspoon fine salt
- ¼ cup baking soda
- ¾ teaspoon coarse salt
Instructions
- Warm the milk and 2 tablespoons of the butter in the microwave until the butter is just melted, about 90 seconds; do not boil. (Alternatively, warm the butter and milk in a small saucepan.) Add the brown sugar and stir until dissolved; set aside.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the flour, yeast, and salt. Mix on low speed until well combined, about 1 minute. With the mixer on low, gradually add the warm milk/butter mixture to the bowl. When the dough forms a cohesive mass, switch from the paddle attachment to the dough hook. Knead on medium-low speed until the dough is smooth but still slightly tacky, about 5 minutes. (Alternatively, the dough can be mixed and kneaded by hand.) Shape the dough into a ball, place in a clean, lightly greased bowl, and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm spot until doubled in size, 1 to 2 hours.
- Preheat the oven to 450°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper and spray lightly with nonstick cooking spray.
- In a 2-qt baking dish, combine the baking soda with 2¼ cups warm water. Stir until the baking soda is dissolved; set aside. (Dipping the pretzel dough in a baking soda solution gives the pretzels a nice golden brown crust.)
- Punch the dough to deflate it, then turn it out onto a clean work surface. (If the dough seems sticky, you can dust it with a bit of flour as needed.) Shape the dough into a log, then cut into 6 equal pieces; cover with a damp dishtowel so the dough doesn't dry out. Roll and stretch each piece with the palms of your hands into a 24-inch rope, holding the ends and slapping the middle of the rope on the counter as you stretch.
- Using two hands, gently dip each "rope" into the soda solution. Let any excess liquid drip off, then form the dough into a pretzel shape directly on the prepared baking sheet (form a U-shape, then holding the ends of the rope, cross them over and under each other -- making a twist in the center -- and press the ends onto the bottom of the pretzel). Sprinkle evenly with the coarse salt. Bake until golden, 8 to 12 minutes; watch the bottoms carefully as they can burn.
- Melt the remaining 3 tablespoons of butter and brush on the baked pretzels. The pretzels are best enjoyed warm out of the oven or fresh on the same day (reheat in the oven or microwave).
- Note: Active dry yeast may be used instead of instant yeast, however, the dough will take longer to rise. To give active dry yeast a boost, you can dissolve it in the warm milk and butter, let it sit until frothy, about 10 minutes, and then proceed with the recipe.
- Note: If you prefer a cinnamon sugar topping, omit the coarse salt. Brush with butter after baking and sprinkle generously with cinnamon sugar (½ cup sugar plus about ¾ teaspoon cinnamon)
- Make-Ahead Instructions: After the dough has risen, it can be refrigerated for up to three days or frozen for a few months. Thaw the frozen dough in the refrigerator before using. The dough can be shaped into pretzel bites while still cool, but allow about 30 minutes for the bites to puff up a bit before dipping and baking.
Nutrition Information
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- Serving size: 1 pretzel
- Calories: 331
- Fat: 12 g
- Saturated fat: 7 g
- Carbohydrates: 49 g
- Sugar: 9 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 7 g
- Sodium: 2540 mg
- Cholesterol: 30 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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So amazingly easy to make and equally delicious! These pretzels were a HUGE hit with my kids (and myself)! That is an accomplishment in itself with 6 picky eaters!! We can’t wait to make them again! Thanks for sharing!
One of my favorite recipes ever. I feel like it should be top secret cause it’s so yum.
Simply delicious! Thank you for the recipe.
These were simple to make and delicious. They seemed to be more bread-like than Auntie Anne’s pretzels (I forgot to add the butter after they were done, which may be why) and they rose quite a bit more than I was expecting, but everyone was happy with how they turned out.
The only other deviation I made from the recipe was using a silicone baking mat instead of a sprayed sheet of parchment paper, and I didn’t have any trouble with pretzels sticking.
This recipe is definitely a keeper in my house! Next time I plan to divide the dough into more pieces to see if I can get the pretzels more snack-sized 🙂
These pretzels came out perfect, although they only took 5 minutes in my convection oven. Easy recipe to follow. My husband loved them😋. Is there a recipe for honey mustard dipping sauce that you like?
Glad you liked them! You could give the dipping sauce from these chicken tenders a try. 🙂
Soooooo good!
First attempt at pretzels! Great tasting though had major issue getting them off the paper, even with spraying non-stick spray on it. Any ideas?
Hmmm….they really shouldn’t stick. Are you sure you used parchment paper and not wax paper?
Oh my these are soooooo good! They were easy to make thanks to your great directions!!
It’s my second time making pretzels with this recipe, but for some reason my dough keeps coming out very dry. When I try to form it into a ball, it’s not sticking together because the dough is so dry. I’ve been following the recipe to a T, so I’m not quite sure what I could be doing wrong? Should I use less flour? Please help!
The pretzels have come out delicious by the way, but not very pretty aesthetically because my dough is so hard to work with 🙁
Hi Amy, Yes, it does sound like the dough has too much flour. Did you use the spoon and level method to measure the flour? Even a few extra ounces can make a big difference. This article/video explains it nicely.
These were the bomb and reminiscent of Auntie Ann’s! The pretzels were so fluffy and delicious. Easy to make with the step by step photos and instructions. My kids have always loved Auntie Ann’s pretzels and we’d always get them on mall outings way back when. It was such a fun activity making these with my twenty year old daughter today during this crazy time. We are especially enjoying trying new recipes from your site during these challenging times. Jenn, thank you again for your awesome recipes!
I forgot to also add we made 3 salted pretzels and 3 cinnamon sugar pretzels. They all were yummy!
I made these pretzels tonight for our movie night and they were fabulous! My kids inhaled them so fast I only got a taste. I sprinkled minced garlic and parmesan cheese and one and the flavor was great. Thank you for a great recipe.
These pretzels are amazing! They are the best pretzels I’ve ever had, hands down. We made half the recipe sweet and the other half salty. The pretzels were fluffy, not too dense. We will definitely be making these again.
I just have to say we loved these pretzels! I just made them an hour ago and they turned out awesome! I was a little scared to roll out the dough too skinny and being my first time ever making pretzels, although I bake on a regular basis, I didn’t want them to turn out to thin and crunchy. But they absolutely turned out amazing I have to say. So soft! They were more on the thick side which I do prefer anyways. My son loves pretzels and he really enjoyed these! I made garlic and herb on some and a few plain and the rest cinnamon! Oh yes! I doubled the recipe to make a DOZEN because 6 is not enough! Thanks for sharing this wonderful recipe. I will be making these again and again. I even passed it on to my friend as she was impressed with them!
This recipe was easy to follow and so so delicious! Thank you!
Hi Jenn,
I love your site and all the recipes that I have tried, thus far (and let me tell you, that is a lot!!!) Quick question, I don’t have parchment paper to bake these pretzels on, can I use aluminum foil, instead?
Thank you,
Amy
So glad you like the recipes! 🙂 Non-stick foil would work if you don’t have parchment paper on hand.
Hi Jenn, Thank you for your quick response, we made them yesterday, and they were fantastic!!! They were a lot easier than I thought it was going to be. Your recipes and pictures are so easy to follow. Thank you so much!! We have been cooking a lot and your blog is such a great thing to be armed with! 🙂
Thank you for sharing your love of cooking and baking with us!!!
Amy
Could this recipe be made with a sourdough starter? If so, what would be the adjustments to the ingredients?
Hi Jessica, I don’t have any experience with sourdough starter so I can’t confidently weigh in — sorry!
WOW!!!! I had to use active dry yeast and dark brown sugar but it was a huge hit! My teenagers 18 and 15 were like mom these taste like “Auntie Anne’s”! My daughter wanted to know how to make them herself. I did bites and only 2 pretzel shapes, which were actually easy as well.
Thanks!
Can I use active dry yeast?
Sure – I’d add it to the warm, wet ingredients and then proof for 15 minutes. Hope you enjoy!
Can I omit butter for vegetable oil or olive oil? Thanks
Sure, Anna, either of those should work. Hope you enjoy!
This recipe was great! I made it on a whim with the help of my kids for National Pretzel Day since soft pretzels aren’t easy to find these days. My family loved them! I don’t bake breads so I had to borrow some yeast but I will definitely be making them again soon. Thank you so much for your delicious recipe!
Hi,
I love your recipes. Will it work if I make pretzel bites instead?
Thanks,
Sure, Melanie, that should work. Please LMK how they turn out! 🙂
Hello! Can oat milk be substituted here with a similar result? Thanks for the recipes!
Yes, I think that will work fine. Hope you enjoy!
I am new to bread making so this was out of the box for me. However, your recipes are so easy to follow I made perfect pretzels!! Thank you for sharing and making it so easy to recreate. I have yet to fail with any of your recipes, and I’ve made several and love them all.
Finally got around to making these for my two teens as a virtual learning “snack break”. I did half the traditional way and half with cinnamon sugar. They were a hit! I will be making these again and again. I have made several of your baking recipes and they always turn out beautiful and delicious! Thank you for inspiring us all to get back in the kitchen and create lovely dishes for our family and friends.
It tasted the same as Auntie Anne’s which was good. My only problem was I had a hard time lengthening the dough and thinning it out evenly as it kept on breaking, so I ended up with pretzels chubbier than I wanted. I hope you have a suggestion for this problem. Lastly, I added the yeast after waking it up in warm water. I don’t know for sure if that made it harder to handle since the recipe mentioned you added it dry.
Hi Celine, The method you used for adding the yeast shouldn’t have had an impact on the texture of the dough. I know you hydrated the yeast in water — did you reduce the amount of milk accordingly? Also, kneading makes dough more elastic – is there any chance you didn’t knead it long enough?
Hello! I’ve made these a few times and they are delicious! I want to try them in a “bites” form and wanted to ask if there is anything I should change to the baking process (possibly less time in the oven?).
Thank you for your help!
Hi Kathryn, Glad you like these! I think you could definitely make pretzel bites with this. Bake time should be less but it’s hard to say how much so I’d just keep a close eye on them. Enjoy!
This was a great recipe. Easy to make and were delicious.
Great recipe! Turns out tasty even for people like me who never made pretzels before and don’t have much experience making bread.
I’m thinking about how I might make different flavors with this recipe. How might it change the recipe to add things like spices, cheese, or veggies (say, jalapeño or garlic) to the dough before baking? I imagine you’d have to adjust the moisture somehow.
Thanks again for the recipe!
Glad you liked these, Abby! I think you could add spices and/or some cheese without other modifiations, but not sure about the jalapeno or garlic. To get the most predictable results, you may want to find a recipe that incorporates those.
Hi Jen – I want to make these but haven’t replaced my American Kitchenaid with a UK version since we moved to London. So I don’t have one right now! Still possible to make? Would a good processor help? Or a hand mixer?
Hi Lauren, You can just mix and knead the dough by hand. Hope you enjoy!
Made these today- so good! I didn’t have instant yeast so used active yeast and added to the warm milk. Worked great. My kids loved them!
My son and I loved these pretzels.!!!! I look forward to making them again but this time I’m gonna wrap the pretzel around a hotdog like the one from Auntie Annes. 🙂
For my milk I used Good Karma FlaxMilk. For my butter I used Earth Balance Vegan Sticks and for my brown sugar I used Swerve Brown Sugar.
Hello Jenn, Love your recipes and I would love to try this one, however I really do not like the buttery version of soft pretzels. I prefer the traditional soft pretzel, with that said how would I adjust this recipe to do that? Thanks! Dawn
Hi Dawn, so glad you like the recipes! If you prefer the traditional version of soft pretzels, I’d actually use a different recipe as you’d need to make too many modifications to this one to get to the version you want. Sorry!
These were amazing! I’m obsessed with them. They are still good 24-48 hours later (not that they last that long!) – I just warm them up and soak them in butter.
I made these a couple of years ago and while they tasted great, I ran into one problem. Once the pretzels were formed, they were very airy. I felt like they were going to dissolve when I put them in the baking soda bath. They also really puffed much more than they should have while baking.
Should I have pressed more air out of the dough before rolling the segments into ropes, or was the issue somewhere else. I followed the recipe exactly.
Im getting ready to make these again with my niece in a few days. Any thoughts on what might have gone wrong?
Hi Steven, it sounds like perhaps you let the dough rise for a bit too long. Next time I’d cut the rise time back a little bit or, if you find the dough has puffed up a lot, punch it down a few times before rolling it out into pretzels. Hope that helps and that you enjoy doing this with your niece!
These are superb. Great for school lunches as although they are delicious warm from the oven, they are still good for a day or two.
This may be a silly question but here it goes: what is the difference b/t mixing and kneading the dough? I’ll be doing this by hand so curious about those steps.
Thanks!
Hi Matty, Not a silly question – – by mixing I’m just referring to the mixing together of all the ingredients that comes before the meeting step. Hope that clarifies and that you enjoyed the pretzels!
Are these good if served with yellow mustard? If so, what brand do you prefer?
Sure, Marilyn, yellow mustard would be great here, and no need to get fancy — French’s would work well. 🙂
Hi Jenn,
I messed up and my comment when on the pickle recipe.
Hi Carol, Found your question: “Can I use 2% milk and can I freeze these before or after baking? If I freeze after baking,
how do you recommend I reheat them?” You can use 2% milk and it’s fine to freeze. I’d thaw and reheat in a 350 oven for 5 to 10 min.
This looks like a great recipe for soft pretzels. I’m wondering if I can break up the process leaving not too much to do the day of baking. Any suggestions? Thank you.
Hi Linda, While I’ve never done it, you can refrigerate the dough before shaping it into pretzels. Here are some tips that may help. Hope you enjoy!
First off, I love your recipes. I’ve found you can’t really trust a lot of the recipes on the internet, but yours are great. However, I never seem to be able to get the amount of flour right. I’ve tried making your recipes by weighing the flour (120g per cup), but that never seems to be enough. Could you possibly weigh a cup of your flour the way you scoop it out, so I can use that as a reference? Thanks!
Hi Phil, If you look in the top right corner of the recipe, you’ll see a button that allows you to toggle between metric and cup measures. For reference, I use 125 grams as my weight for 1 cup of all-purpose flour. Another thing that might help is using King Arthur Flour; that’s the brand I use and it really does make a difference. Hope that helps!
Yep, didn’t see the switch. Thanks!
Hi! Question please. If using active dry yeast, I know I need to proof it and use less milk for the water, but how much of it do I need to use? Is 1 packet (approx 2.5 tsp) good? Thanks!
Hi Slava, I’d use the same amount of yeast (2.25 tsp.) and add it to the warm, wet ingredients and then proof for 15 minutes. Hope you enjoy!
OMG! These were amazing!! I definitely recommend trying these out. I love baking but I am definitely a beginner and I found this recipe very easy to follow. I drizzled a few with Nutella, some I left plain, and I put a simple brown sugar, cinnamon, and butter mixture inside a few and it was so good. I loved experimenting with these and will definitely make them again!
Best pretzel recipe I’ve tried, and very easy to make without a stand mixer too.
First batch I made as written except that I used traditional yeast bloomed in 1/4 cup warm water, and I used 1/4 cup less milk. They came out better than any carnival pretzel I have ever had.
Second batch I replaced 3/4 cup of white flour with whole wheat, and I pureed 1 head of roasted garlic in the milk. I also allowed them to proof overnight in the fridge. They came out perfect. The garlic flavor was subtle when eating plain, and not noticeable when dipped in cheesy mustard sauce.
These pretzels are my new guilty pleasure. Thanks Jenn.
Can these be frozen and baked at a later time, if so will time and temp be the same?
Hi Mary, these are really best made fresh, but you could get away with freezing the dough (after it rises) for up to 3 months. You can find some additional tips here on thawing and baking the dough. Hope you enjoy if you make them!
Can these pretzels be frozen and baked later?
Hi Mary, Hi, these are really best baked fresh, but I think you could get away with freezing the dough (after it rises) for up to 3 months. You can find some additional tips here on thawing and baking the dough.
Thank u I will give it a try reason is I always need more than 6 pretzels at a time
I live in Denver. How should I tweak for high altitude?
Hi Maureen, I don’t have experience baking at high altitudes so, unfortunately, I don’t have any wisdom to share – I’m sorry! You may find these tips helpful though. Hope you enjoy the pretzels if you make them!
Made these with my son. So easy to make! Stored them in the fridge overnight and came back to them after they were at room temperature and still soft and delicious. We made them with cinnamon and sugar. Soooooo good!!!
My 9yo can make these now without my help. Today will be the third day in a row we’ve made them
Thanks Jenn,
When I was a kid and spent time in Germany they had these pretzels that were 8-10” long and 11/2”-2” thick. Any idea how to achieve that with this recipe?
As always,
Grateful
Hi Eric, I think that’s doable –it really doesn’t matter what shape you make the pretzels. The baking time may be a little bit different so keep a close eye on them. Also, just a heads up that these taste more like the kind of pretzel that you would get at a mall kiosk then what you’d find in Germany. Just want to make sure you know what to expect. 🙂
These were absolutely amazing! I used the dough program on my bread machine. Made half savory, half with cinnamon sugar. So delicious-much better than any other soft pretzel I’ve ever had.
Delicious, easy and fun! My 5 year old daughter and I made these for an after dinner pretzel party! We don’t have a mixer or much dough experience, and this was very simple to make. Thanks for the idea.
Can I ask why you dip the roped dough in the liquid?
Hi Irene, The baking soda bath gives the pretzels a lovely golden crust. Enjoy! 🙂
Would you recommend using bread flour or high gluten flour?
Hi Carol, for the best/most predictable results, I’d stick with the all-purpose flour here.
First time making these and WOW!! Perfect soft pretzel with sooooo much flavour!