Germany · Germany
Brezel (Lye Pretzel)
Chewy pretzel with a dark glossy crust from a quick dip in lye, topped with coarse salt.
The pretzel was already being baked in the Middle Ages and became German when it turned into working people's bread, sold in paper bags from back rooms and station kiosks. Lye is the reason it is dark, glossy and faintly slippery, and it is what makes the crust thick and chewy rather than thin and brittle. Coarse salt goes on while the surface is still wet so that it sticks.
Ingredients
- bread flour500 g
- lukewarm water250 ml
- instant yeast7 g
- fine salt10 g
- unsalted butter, melted30 g
- food-grade lye or baking soda60 g
- water for dipping1 l
- pretzel salt or coarse flake salt30 g
Directions
- 1
Combine flour, water, yeast, salt and butter, knead until smooth, then rise until doubled.
Dough springs back lightly and a finger indentation returns slowly. - 2
Divide into 8 portions, roll each into a 50 cm rope and shape into a pretzel.
Pretzel shape is symmetrical with the thick ends crossed over the loop. - 3
Dissolve lye (or baking soda) in water and dip each pretzel for 30 seconds.
Surface turns yellowish-brown and feels slippery. Lye is caustic: wear gloves and avoid splashes. - 4
Sprinkle with coarse salt and bake until deep mahogany brown.
Crust is dark mahogany, glossy and crackling.
Source: WorldBite Editorial · WorldBite Proprietary Editorial Content