Homemade Sourdough Pretzel Buns Recipe ~ Barley & Sage (2024)

FAQs

What's the difference between bread dough and pretzel dough? ›

Soft pretzels are just a yeast bread is that formed into a pretzel shape. The one big difference in pretzel making, as opposed to a regular bread, is that pretzels are boiled and then baked. It is the boiling that gives the outside of the pretzel its beautiful golden brown color and uniquely crisp and chewy texture.

Sourdough pretzels are a healthy snack because they include all the health benefits found in sourdough bread. Plus, they are baked, not fried, but still give you the crunch you crave from a satisfying snack. Sourdough pretzels also contain fewer calories and less fat and sugar than other snacks.

Baking Soda vs Baked Baking Soda vs Lye

Giving the pretzels a wee bath in lye (sodium hydroxide) helps to speed up the Maillard reaction, which gives the pretzels that lovely brown colour and chew.

Now pretzel bread has a chewy texture and a salty finish on its chewy crust. It's a lovely dense bread (if you love egg bread than you will love pretzel bread) that works well as hamburger buns and sandwiches!

Boiling the dough causes it to instantly puff, creating a chewy interior and giving the exterior a head start on forming a crisp crust. The baking soda also produces pretzels with a deep golden brown and cracked appearance.

Bread flour provides more structure

The more protein there is, the more gluten that can develop. Gluten helps provide structure, allowing a baked good to have more body and sturdiness. As a result, bread flour will make it easier for a pretzel to hold its shape.

Sourdough bread may be easier to digest than white bread for some people. According to some studies, sourdough bread acts as a prebiotic, which means that the fiber in the bread helps feed the “good” bacteria in your intestines. These bacteria are important for maintaining a stable, healthy digestive system.

Is it healthy to eat sourdough everyday? You could eat sourdough every day, but it isn't necessarily healthy to do so. A healthy diet is characterized by balance and moderation. Whether or not it is healthy for you to consume sourdough every day depends on the rest of your diet.

“Sourdough microbes degrade the phytic acid, enhancing the nutritional quality of the bread.” If you make your own sourdough bread at home, using whole-grain flour or a combination of white and whole grain in your recipe will increase the fiber and nutrients a bit.

The answer lies in a brief dip in an alkaline water bath before baking. This bath essentially gelatinizes the outside of the pretzel, preventing it from fully “springing” during baking (as bread does) and giving pretzels their signature chewy crust. It also gives them their unique and indelible “pretzel” flavor.

What is the difference between a pretzel bun and a regular bun? ›

Pretzel buns are different to regular bread because they are boiled in a baking soda (bicarbonate of soda) and water solution before being baked in a hot oven. The baking soda/water combo helps to give the pretzels their golden brown, crispy crust and signature chewy texture.

These big, soft-pretzels have an extra special flavor and texture because they're made with sourdough starter.

How is a pretzel different from bread? A lot of people wonder how a soft pretzel is different from bread! The answer is that the dough is boiled before it is baked! Boiling the dough in the baking soda & water bath is the step in this recipe that gives this Homemade Pretzel Bread it's pretzel-y identity!

They're Boiled, Not Baked.

The dough is first shaped into a long rope and then boiled in water before being baked at a higher temperature than bread. This process creates a distinctive pretzel shape and gives them their unique taste.

Dough for Soft Pretzel Bites

You need just 6 basic ingredients to get started including warm water, yeast, a little sugar to feed the yeast, melted butter, salt, and all-purpose flour. (If you have it, the same amount of bread flour works too!). You can use either instant (quick rise) or active dry yeast in this dough.

If we want to further subdivide our baking forays, we then go into the types of doughs we can use. Traditionally, there are two categories: leavened and unleavened doughs.

The hydration level in bread dough is higher than in pizza dough to make it more stretch, flexible, and more extensive. Around 80-90% of water is used in baking bread dough to make it a softer and more elastic texture.