Soft Pretzels

This turned out to be one of the best things I've made, the only drawback is it creates a bit of a mess. Still, soooo worth it.

Working off of a Good Eats recipe, found here. Straight-forward dough - water, sugar, flour, butter, yeast, salt (the portions of which are in the link - remember to always weigh your flour, it can vary a ton based on how densely packed it is). It turns out mixing dough is a lot easier to do with a stand-mixer and a dough hook then it is by hand (trust me, I've done a few). Just let that sucker spin for a while, stop it a few times to force everything off of the hook and give it a few kneads by hand (I find that if you just let it mix, the stuff near the top of the hook winds up being a bit drier/stiffer then the rest unless you mix it up a bit).

Take the dough out, clean/grease the bowl, then put it back in and cover to let it rise for about an hour. For a rising rig, since I don't keep 'warm spots' in my house, I fill the sink with hot water, then set the bowl in there - creates a great yeast environment.

The first part of why this recipe is a mess is the pans - it's not enough to just have baking pans with parchment, you need to oil down the parchment too (I mean, with kind of good reason, but still). Do that while the dough is rising, and most importantly, bring a few quarts (10 cups per the recipe) of water to a boil in a big saucepan or dutch oven. In this water you're also going to have 2/3rds to 3/4ths of a cup of baking powder (this is the second part of the mess).

Why? This is the secret to the pretzel crust - you could just bake them, skipping this step, but you'd wind up with rolls - the outside would not be browned (unless you cooked it to the point where the inside was as well). By washing it in a basic solution before baking, a chemical reaction increases the sugar content on the exposed portion - these sugars caramelize in the oven. Traditional pretzel recipes call for a lye-based solution, but this is a bit dangerous for the typical home kitchen, so baking soda it is.

After the dough is finished rising, portion it into 8 pieces (I keep the portions in the rising rig, covered, while I work to keep them from drying out). Work these pieces into strands on a lightly oiled work area (like a cutting board). When you have them to 18-24 inches long, that's about what you're looking for. You can then shape them into knots, or cut them into fourths for pretzel sticks (I make most in the latter to better stretch out a batch).

When you have 2-3 portions worth, load them up on a spider (skimmer) and dunk them in the baking soda bath for 30 seconds or so (be sure to flip them in the water).

Remove and add to your baking sheet, brush with a bit of egg wash as well before adding the salt (kosher, or pretzel salt if you have it) and putting it in the oven. The egg wash helps the salt stick, and enhances browning a bit more.

 Bake them for 12-14 minutes at 450 - you want them to be a good golden to dark brown (you know, like a pretzel). I'm of the opinion that the darker you can manage without burning, the better. Eat them as soon as you can manage too. For storage, don't keep them in a sealed container (they get soggy on the crust), something like a paper bag is best. The outside won't stay crisp, but it will stay proper.

Time: 2.5 Hours
Difficulty: 4/5
Cleanup: 4/5
Taste: 5/5