These soft pretzel bites are soft, chewy and surprisingly easy to make! Served with a cheesy mustard dip, they're the perfect fun snack for game-day!
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Why This Recipe Works
These soft pretzel bites are super easy to make and require minimal hands on time! I adapted them from my classic sourdough soft pretzels recipe, but since this recipe just uses commercial yeast, they only have to rise for an hour!
There's a two step cooking process involving boiling the pretzels in baking soda and then baking in the oven, that yields super chewy soft pretzel bites with the perfect texture!
This recipe makes 80-100 pretzel bites, but you could also shape them like regular pretzels like these sourdough pretzels.
You might also like these cinnamon sugar soft pretzels with cream cheese frosting or the rest of our game-day snacks!
Ingredient Notes
Bread Flour - I use bread flour to make the pretzels a little bit chewier, but you can easily substitute all purpose flour. You just made need 2-3 extra tablespoons of flour.
Instant Yeast - The yeast is what helps the dough rise! I like using instant yeast (as opposed to active dry yeast) because you don't need to bloom it first.
Whole Milk - The whole milk helps add flavor to the pretzels and keep them tender, but you can substitute skim milk or water if you prefer.
Non-diastatic Malt Powder - You can leave this out if you can't get your hands on it, but I highly recommend it! Non-diastatic malt powder gives both pretzels and bagels their distinct flavor and shiny crust.
Baking Soda - Boiling the pretzels in baking soda is crucial for helping them rise properly and get the perfect texture!
Pretzel Salt - This is a MUST! Pretzel salt doesn't dissolve when it gets slightly wet or melt in the oven, so those big beautiful crystals are still intact after baking. A big container of pretzel salt will last you a long time so you can make pretzel bites as much as you want!
Cheddar Cheese - I love a good white cheddar cheese for the mustard cheese dip, but you could also use swiss cheese or Gouda!
Cayenne Pepper - The cayenne adds a little kick to the mustard dip, but just reduce it or omit it completely for a less spicy dip.
The complete list of ingredients and amounts is located in the recipe card below.
How to Make Pretzel Bites
Using a stand mixer with a dough hook attachment, combine all dough ingredients (flour, sugar, malt powder, yeast, salt, milk, and butter) and mix on a low speed until the dough comes together as a smooth cohesive mass (5-10 minutes).
The dough should be slightly sticky. If it's too dry and won't come together, add an additional tablespoon or two of milk. If the dough is too sticky, add in an additional tablespoon or two of flour.
Cover the dough and let it rise in a warm place for 1 hour; it will rise minimally.
Turn the dough out onto your work surface (you shouldn't need to flour your work surface) and fold 2-3 times to gently deflate it. Divide the dough into 8 equal pieces.
Take your first piece and roll into a rope that's about ½ inch wide. Using a bench knife or pizza cutter, cut the rope into 1 ½ inch pieces. Then repeat with the remaining pieces of dough.
Preheat oven to 350°F and line a nonreactive baking sheet with parchment paper.
Fill a large nonreactive pot with water and bring to a rolling boil. Add in 2 tablespoons of baking soda.
Boil the pretzel bites for about 30 seconds and then place on your lined baking sheet. It should take 3-4 batches to boil all the pretzel bites. Do not skip this step! It might seem unnecessary, but this is what gives the pretzel bites their signature look and texture.
Sprinkle the pretzel bites with coarse pretzel salt and bake the pretzel bites at 350°F for 15-25 minutes or until golden brown.
While the pretzel bites are baking, make the mustard cheese dip.
Recipe FAQ's
These soft pretzel bites are best eaten the same day. But they will keep covered at room temperature for 2-3 days. I like to crisp them back up in the oven for 5-10 minutes before eating.
Boiling the dough causes it to instantly puff up, creating a chewy interior and helps the outside crisp up while baking. The baking soda also helps the pretzels become a dark, golden brown color.
A "reactive" pot refers to metal cookware that can react chemically with certain ingredients that are either especially acidic or alkaline. It can make food taste metallic and also discolor your pans as the metal is literally leeching into your food. The most common culprits are tomatoes, citrus, and vinegar because they're highly acidic. However, baking soda is highly alkaline and will also react with certain metals. So since the pretzel bites are boiled in baking soda and then transferred to a baking sheet, it's important that both your pot and baking sheets are nonreactive.
Some metals that are considered "reactive" are uncoated aluminum, unlined copper, and cast iron. Whereas "nonreactive" materials are stainless steel, ceramic, aluminized steel, and enamel coated metal (so enameled cast iron is fine).
Most baking sheets are either aluminum or aluminized steel. So just remember that aluminized steel is what you want to use when working with baking soda!
Tips for Success!
For best results I always recommend using weight measurements (especially when baking) because it's the most accurate. Kitchen scales are super affordable and also reduce the number of dishes you have to do! However, all my recipes also include US customary measurements for convince. Use this chart to convert measurements for common ingredients!
Substitutions: In all my recipes, I've included substitutions that I know will work, but I cannot guarantee results if you substitute ingredients that I have not recommended. [For example, granulated sugar and honey are indeed both sweeteners but they have very different properties so they can not always be swapped 1:1. Using honey in a cookie recipe that calls for granulated sugar will yield a giant mess.] In the recipe card you'll find links to the specific ingredients/brands that I use.
A note on salt: I almost exclusively use Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt because it's the best all-purpose salt for cooking and baking. If you're not using kosher salt, consult this handy guide for a conversion chart! When in doubt, if you're using table salt just reduce the amount by half for baked goods. When cooking, I prefer to under-salt because you can always add more! If you've over-salted, adding a little bit of acid (like lemon juice) can help.
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Recipe Card
Soft Pretzel Bites with Mustard Cheese Dip
Ingredients
Pretzel Bites
- 3 ½ cups bread flour, substitute all purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon non-diastatic malt powder, optional for flavor
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, room temperature
- 2 teaspoons instant yeast
- 1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 ¼ cups whole milk
- 2 tablespoons baking soda, for boiling
- pretzel salt, for topping
Mustard Cheese Dip
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1 cup sharp white cheddar cheese, shredded
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper, optional
Instructions
Pretzel Bites
- Using a stand mixer with a dough hook attachment, combine all dough ingredients (flour, sugar, malt powder, yeast, salt, milk, and butter) and mix on a low speed until the dough comes together as a smooth cohesive mass (5-10 minutes).
- The dough should be slightly sticky. If it's too dry and won't come together, add an additional tablespoon or two of milk. If the dough is too sticky, add in an additional tablespoon or two of flour.
- Cover the dough and let it rise in a warm place for 1 hour; it will rise minimally.
- Turn the dough out onto your work surface (you shouldn't need to flour your work surface) and fold 2-3 times to gently deflate it. Divide the dough into 8 equal pieces.
- Take your first piece and roll into a rope that's about ½ inch wide. Using a bench knife or pizza cutter, cut the rope into 1 ½ inch pieces. Then repeat with the remaining pieces of dough.
- Preheat oven to 350°F and line a nonreactive baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Fill a large nonreactive pot with water and bring to a rolling boil. Add in 2 tablespoons of baking soda.
- Boil the pretzel bites for about 30 seconds and then place on your lined baking sheet. It should take 3-4 batches to boil all the pretzel bites. Do not skip this step! It might seem unnecessary, but this is what gives the pretzel bites their signature look and texture.
- Sprinkle the pretzel bites with coarse pretzel salt and bake the pretzel bites at 350°F for 15-25 minutes or until golden brown.
- While the pretzel bites are baking, make the mustard cheese dip.
Mustard Cheese Dip
- Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium-low heat. Then whisk in the flour and cook for 1 minute.
- Pour in the whole milk and continue to whisk for 2-3 minutes until the sauce begins to thicken slightly.
- Add in the cheese, mustard, and cayenne and whisk until the cheese is fully melted and the sauce is smooth.
Notes
Nutrition
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
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