How to make a Pretzel Roll

No Lye required, these extremely delicious pretzel rolls are pretty easy and add a ton of flavor to sandwhiches and burgers. This recipe was adapted from Bread Illustrated with a few tweaks & modified for rolls.

• Yield: 7-10 Rolls
• Time: 4-5h

For the Dough

• 585g Bread Flour
• 2 teaspoons instant/rapid rise yeast
• 340g water, room temperature (~70f)
• 28g vegetable oil
• 26g brown sugar
• 27g Salt

For the bath

• 1/4 cup baking soda

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Make the Dough

1. Whisk flour, 4 teaspoons salt, and yeast together in stand mixer bowl. Separately, mix oil, water & sugar until dissolved in a small bowl or measuring cup.
2. With dough hook on low speed (or by hand), slowly add water mixture to flour mixture and mix until no dry flour remains, ~2 minutes. Increase speed to #3 on a stand mixer (medium-low) and knead until smooth and elastic. 8 minutes. If kneading by hand, expect 10-15 minutes.
3. Knead by hand to form a smooth ball. Place in a large greased bowl, cover tightly and allow to rise, ideally at 75-85f 1-1.5h.

At lower temps (or if you put in cold water), it can take a bit of time for the rise to get going. Be patient – it doesn’t need to double, but you want to wait for significant expansion.

At this point, the recipe diverges depending on whether your making rolls or pretzels.

Shape the Rolls

1. Press down on dough to deflate. I find a quick jab is effective to avoid the dough sticking to my hand. Transfer to clean counter. Roll & stretch dough into a log 3-4 inches in diameter and 12 inches long. With a bench scraper or knife, slice the log into 7-10 even pieces depending on size preference. Do not tear. Aim for 115-170g per piece. At this point, you can still add and remove dough from a disc to get it to the desired weight.

   170g will make a hefty roll for a big burger or portabello cap, 115g is more on the side of something you’d eat as a snack.

2. Cover dough disks. Shape each disk into a roll by placing your thumbs in the center and stretching the round over them. Remove your thumbs and pinch the bottom seam together. Build surface tension by dragging the round in a circle on the counter. You can also pull the round towards yourself 1-2 inches, rotate by 90 degrees, reset & repeat. You’re looking for a taught top surface that springs back quickly when poked.

3. Allow the rounds to rest, covered in plastic, 5-10 minutes. Give each round room to grow 1-2 inches.

4. Lightly press down & stretch each round into your desired bun diameter. They will rise in the oven, but will not expand significantly sideways. Don’t worry if they seem flat after stretching – you’ll get a big rise in the oven.

Boil & Bake

1. Allow to rise for 15-20 minutes or until they refill extremely slowly (or not at all) when poked with a floured knuckle.
2. While they are rising, preheat the oven to 400f.
3. Mix 1/4 cup baking soda (130g) into 4 cups water and bring to a boil in a saucepan at least 4” deep. One at a time for buns, place the rolls into the boiling alkali bath for 15 seconds, then flip and cook for 15 more seconds. Transfer to a wire rack with paper towels underneath. Allow to rest 5 minutes. Don’t allow them to rest longer or the solution will seep into the pretzel and give them an off taste.
4. Using a lame or razor blade, score a cross pattern approximately 1/2 inch deep.

These are basically impossible to score with a regular kitchen knife, however, if you don’t have a razor blade, kitchen shears work pretty well – Just make two perpendicular intersecting cuts across the top of the bun.

5. Transfer to a baking sheet with a silpain mat or parchment paper and bake for 20-25 minutes. I usually rotate the tray about halfway through for even baking. Make sure there are no yellowy areas — they will taste like soap. If you have an instant read thermometer, bake until an internal temperature of 205.

Transfer to a wire rack to cool. Allow the buns to cool 45-60 minutes.