Name: Pretzel Rolls
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 2 h 50 min
Yield: 16
Ingredients: 1 tablespoon instant yeast; 2 tablespoons canola oil; 2 cups warm milk (about 100 degrees F); 1 1/2 cups warm water (about 100 degrees F); 2 teaspoons kosher salt; 6 1/2 to 8 cups all-purpose flour; 3 liters (quarts) water; 1 tablespoon sugar; 1/4 cup baking soda; coarse or kosher salt for sprinkling

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These easy pretzel rolls are soft and chewy and so delicious. They’re so easy to make and they taste fantastic. The whole family will love them!

Soft pretzel rolls might be my favourite kind of dinner roll. They are so tasty, and make the perfect accompaniment to a bowl of soup or stew, or for a lunchtime sandwich.

And they are super easy to make at home. If you’ve never made pretzel rolls, you should definitely try it. Homemade ones are much better than the store bought variety. As is usually the case. Homemade almost always wins!

As far as homemade breads go, these pretzel rolls are one of the easier ones. Even if you’ve never made homemade bread before, I have no doubt that you could make these.

The hardest part is rolling them into tight balls, and that’s not very difficult. Plus it doesn’t really matter if you have a perfectly shaped roll, it’ll still taste delicious even if it’s not shaped that great!

What is the best way to shape dinner rolls?

The easiest way to shape the dough into tight, round balls, is to place the dough on an oiled surface. Then cup your hand around the dough, with the side of your hand flat on the counter, and roll the dough around underneath your hand until it comes together into a nice, round ball.

It takes about 20-30 seconds to form a nice round ball.

What makes pretzel bread different?

Pretzel dough is a very simple yeast dough to make. The difference in taste and texture between regular dinner rolls, and pretzel rolls, comes from the cooking process.

Before baking pretzel rolls, you boil them for 1-2 minutes in a baking soda bath. The baking soda mimics the flavour that lye gives to commercial pretzels.

Boiling them is what gives the pretzel rolls their distinctive chewy texture and deep golden brown outsides. The longer you boil them, the chewier they will be.

How to make Pretzel Rolls:

If you don’t have a stand mixer with a dough hook, you can make this pretzel dough by hand. You will just have to knead it for a bit longer if you’re doing it by hand.
I use coarse kosher salt for sprinkling the tops of the pretzel rolls, but any coarse salt will do.
Make sure to line your pans with parchment paper. These rolls will stick to the pans if you don’t.
These will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days, or can be frozen for up to 3 months. They are best the day that they’re made though.

Here are some more great roll recipes:

Yield: 16 large rolls

Pretzel Rolls

These easy pretzel rolls are soft and chewy and so delicious. So easy to make and they taste fantastic. The whole family will love them!

Prep Time 30 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Rising Time 2 hours

Total Time 2 hours 50 minutes

Ingredients

For the Dough:

1 tablespoon instant yeast
2 tablespoons canola oil
2 cups warm milk (about 100 degrees F)
1 1/2 cups warm water (about 100 degrees F)
2 teaspoons kosher salt
6 1/2 to 8 cups all-purpose flour

For the Water Bath:

3 liters (quarts) water
1 tablespoon sugar
1/4 cup baking soda
coarse or kosher salt for sprinkling

Instructions

In a large bowl, or the bowl of an electric mixer, stir together the yeast, oil, milk, water, salt, and 2 cups of the flour.
Gradually add the rest of the flour until a soft dough is formed and it clears the sides of the bowl. You may not need all the flour. The dough should be soft, but not sticky.
Once the dough starts to clear the sides of the bowl while mixing, knead for 4-5 minutes, about double that if kneading by hand.
Move the dough to a lightly oiled bowl, turning it to oil all sides and cover with plastic wrap.
Let rise for 1.5-2 hours or until doubled.
Transfer dough to a lightly oiled counter and divide into 16 pieces, rolling each into a roll shape. (Here’s a great tutorial on this!)
Place the rolls on two baking sheets lined with parchment paper, and let them rest for 20 minutes, while you prepare the water bath.
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
In a large pot, combine the water, sugar, and baking soda, and bring to a boil.
Once the water is boiling, place 3-4 rolls at a time in the boiling water with a slotted spatula.
Boil for 30-60 seconds per side and then remove to the same parchment lined baking sheet. The longer you boil them, the chewier they will be.
Repeat with the remaining rolls.
Using a sharp knife (I find a good serrated one works best, although I've read plenty of times to use a sharp, straight bladed knife, but haven't personally found that to work as well!), cut an “X” in the top of each roll, about 1/4 inch deep, trying not to deflate the roll.
Sprinkle with coarse or kosher salt, and bake for 20-22 minutes until golden brown. They taste best fresh, but keep quite well in a sealed plastic bag for a up to 3 days. They freeze well for up to 3 months.