We are a house of soft pretzel lovers. If you don’t love soft pretzels, I don’t know if we can be friends. Although, if you didn’t like soft pretzels, you probably wouldn’t be here so I think that we’re good. I have been making this soft pretzel recipe for years. It’s Alton Brown’s soft pretzel recipe and it is absolutely fantastic. I mean Alton Brown is kind of a kitchen genius so you kind of know before you start that it’s going to be delicious. In our house, pretzels come paired with cheese. Who wouldn’t love to dunk these soft, buttery pretzels in a glorious melted cheese sauce? So here we go… Soft Pretzels with Cheese Sauce! Blast off!
Soft pretzels are super easy to make. They have more than a few steps and can be a little messy, but they are definitely not difficult. So don’t be intimidated! I have a series of step by step directions (with pictures) below to assist you, if needed. They do require a little bit of rise time- one hour- so plan accordingly. Both the pretzels and cheese sauce are best when enjoyed warm and fresh, so bring your appetite. Or some friends. I suppose that sharing is the nice thing to do…
Let me show you how I made these Soft Pretzels with Cheese Sauce 👇🏻
Starting your dough.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine 1 tbsp sugar, 2 tsp salt, 1 packet active dry yeast, and 1 1/2 cups warm water. Give it a whisk and let it sit for 5-10 minutes until the yeast is foamy. Should look like this 👇🏻
Add 4 tbsp melted butter and 2 cups of flour. Using the dough hook, gently knead until the flour is incorporated.
Add the remaining 2 cups of flour (a 1/2 cup at a time).
Knead your dough.
After you have added all 4 cups of flour TOTAL, knead your dough on medium speed for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, your dough should be smooth and have pulled away from the walls of the bowl.
Let your dough rise.
Remove the dough to a bowl that has been greased with olive (or vegetable) oil.
Cover the bowl with a clean towel and stick someplace warm. Let the dough rise for an hour until it has doubled in size. Should look like this 👇🏻
Shaping your dough.
Turn the dough out onto a clean surface. Divide into 8 dough balls.
Working with one dough ball at a time, roll the dough out into a 24” rope. Shape it into a U shape.
Cross the ends over one another.
Fold the crossed ends down over to the other end and form into a pretzel shape. Gently press down the ends so that they stay put.
Repeat with the other dough balls until they are all shaped like pretzels. Try and make them look as pretty as you can.
Now preheat your oven to 450 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper (you might need 2).
Boiling your dough.
Bring 10 cups of water to a boil. You’re going to be boiling the dough so pick a good pot to drop and scoop out your pretzels.
Once the water is boiling, add 2/3 cup baking soda.
One at a time, carefully drop a pretzel into the water. Let it boil for about 20 seconds. Use a large spatula to retrieve your pretzel and place it on the prepared baking sheet.
Dip all of the pretzels into the water, placing them onto the baking sheet. Gently reshape them a little if needed.
Brush each pretzel with 1 egg yolk (mixed with 1 tbsp water). Sprinkle the pretzels with coarse sea salt.
Baking the pretzels.
Bake the pretzels for about 15 minutes until they are a deep golden brown. After you pull them out of the oven, immediately (lightly) brush them with about 3 tbsp of melted butter.
Liquid gold.
While the pretzels are baking, prepare the cheese sauce.
In a medium sauce pot, melt 3 tbsp of butter over medium heat.
Add 3 tbsp of butter and whisk until smooth and combined. Cook the flour for a minute or two.
While whisking, slowly add 1 cup of milk.
Cook the milk, whisking occasionally, until it has slightly thickened. Add 8 oz of grated cheese a little at a time, whisking until melted. I used sharp cheddar for the cheese sauce. You can use just about any combination of cheeses. Pepper Jack or Colby Jack would also be good here.
Once you have added all of the cheese and it is smooth and melted, add 1 tbsp hot sauce. One tbsp worth of hot sauce does NOT make it spicy, just gives it a little flavor. So please add it. Add more if you would like it a little spicy.
Stir until combined.
Serve the cheese sauce with the warm pretzels.
Enjoy!!
These are the recommended products that I used to make this delicious recipe! These are not only products that I use, but products that I love.
Pretzel recipe courtesy of Alton Brown.
Soft Pretzels with Cheese Sauce
Ingredients
For the Soft Pretzels-
- 1 Tbsp Granulated Sugar
- 2 Tsp Salt
- 1 Packet Active Dry Yeast
- 1 1/2 Cups Warm Water
- 4 Tbsp Unsalted Butter, melted + more for brushing pretzels
- 4 Cups Flour
- 10 Cups Water
- 2/3 Cup Baking Soda
- 1 Large Egg Yolk (mixed with 1 tbsp water)
- Coarse Kosher Salt
For the Cheese Sauce-
- 3 Tbsp Unsalted Butter
- 3 Tbsp Flour
- 1 Cup Milk
- 8 Oz Sharp Cheddar, grated (Can mix different cheeses- like Pepper Jack, Colby Jack, etc)
- 1 Tbsp Hot Sauce
Instructions
For the Soft Pretzels-
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the sugar, salt packet of yeast, and warm water. Whisk and let sit for 5-10 minutes until the yeast becomes foamy.
- After the yeast is foamy, add 4 tbsp melted butter and 2 cups of flour. Using the dough hook, knead until the flour is combined. Add the remaining 2 cups of flour 1/2 cup at a time.
- Knead on medium speed for about 5 minutes until the dough is smooth and has pulled away from the sides of the bowl.
- Move the dough to a bowl greased with olive (or vegetable) oil. Cover with a clean towel and set in a warm spot. Let rise for an hour until doubled in size.
- After an hour, remove the bowl to a clean surface. Divide the dough into 8 balls. (One at a time) Roll a dough ball into a 24 inch rope.
- Form into a U shape. Cross the ends over one another and then fold the crossed ends over to the other side to form a pretzel shape. Gently press the ends down onto the dough so they’ll stay in place. Repeat with remaining dough balls.
- Preheat your oven to 450 degrees and line a baking sheet (might need 2) with parchment paper. Bring the water to a boil. Once boiling, add the baking soda. One at a time, carefully drop a pretzel into the water and let it boil for about 20 seconds.
- Using a large spatula, remove the pretzel and place onto the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with remaining pretzels. Once all of the pretzels have been dipped, carefully reshape if needed.
- Brush the pretzels with the egg yolk-water mixture and then sprinkle with salt.
- Bake for about 15 minutes until the pretzels are a deep golden brown. While the pretzels are baking in the oven, prepare the cheese sauce. After removing the pretzels from the oven, immediately (lightly) brush with about 3 tbsp melted butter.
For the Cheese Sauce-
- In a sauce pot over medium heat, melt 3 tbsp butter. Once melted, whisk in 3 tbsp flour until smooth. Cook the butter for a minute or two.
- While whisking, slowly add the milk. Cook, whisking occasionally, until the milk mixture has slightly thickened.
- Add the grated cheese a little bit at a time, whisking until it has melted. Add the hot sauce and stir until incorporated. Serve with the warm pretzels. Enjoy!
Have you tried this recipe? Thinking about it? I’d love to hear from you! Please leave me your thoughts below in the comment section.
Looking for some other soft pretzel inspiration? Check out this 👇🏻
Welcome to Cupcakes and Sarcasm! My name is Maggie and I am the creator of C & S. I am a wife and mom of two beautiful kiddos. I grew up in Columbus, Ohio and now live in Northeast Ohio with my family. I have been cooking and baking since I was a kid. I decided in 2017 that I wanted to share my passion (and recipes) with all of you! On this site, you’ll find easy and delicious recipes- both savory and sweet. I’ll also sprinkle in some stories of parenting and our adventures along the way.