Sourdough Pretzel Rolls

5 from 5 votes

Sourdough pretzel rolls are chewy and delicious, perfect for any pretzel lover. They get a quick dip in a baking soda or lye bath before being baked to perfection. Perfect for your dinner table or to snack on this weekend!

Prep Time30

Cook Time15

Fermentation Time20

Total Time20 45

Course: pretzels, rolls

Cuisine: American, German

Servings: rolls

Author: Amy Coyne

Equipment

Ingredients

Levain (1:10:10, overnight/ready in 10-12 hours at 78 degrees F)

13 grams sourdough starter ripe/bubbly/active, about 1 Tablespoon
130 grams all-purpose flour about 1 cup
130 grams water about 1/2 cup

Sourdough Pretzel Rolls

250 grams levain about 1 cup
430 grams water about 1 3/4 cup
20 grams salt about 1 Tablespoon
5 grams diastatic malt powder see recipe notes, about 1 teaspoon
850 grams bread flour see recipe notes, about 6 cups
70 grams unsalted butter softened, about 5 Tablespoons
sprinkle of flaky sea salt

Instructions

Levain (1:10:10, overnight/ready in 10-12 hours at 78 degrees F)

The night before making the pretzels, mix together 13 grams of ripe sourdough starter with 130 grams flour and 130 grams water. Cover and let rest overnight until bubbly, active and ready to use.

Sourdough Pretzel Roll Dough

The next morning, to the bowl of a stand mixer, mix together the risen levain, water, flour, salt and malt powder using a dough hook. Knead for 5 minutes. The dough will be thick and you may think you've added too much flour. Don't worry. It will soften when you add the butter.
Knead for about 5 minutes. Then add the softened butter, 1/2 Tablespoon at a time and knead for 5-8 minutes until completely incorporated. The dough will feel silky smooth.
Bulk Fermentation: Let dough rise for 4-5 hours at 78-80ºF, until puffed up and aerated. After the bulk fermentation the dough can be placed in the refrigerator overnight or up to 2 days before shaping and making the rolls.
Shaping: Dump the dough on a countertop and use a bench scraper to separate the roll dough into 16 pieces. Take each piece of dough and pull/pinch up the sides until it forms a ball. Roll the ball on the counter, holding your hand in a cupping shape (see video here) to seal the balls and create tension.
Proofing: Line two pans with parchment paper. Place eight balls of dough on each pan. Cover the dough balls with a kitchen towel and let proof in a warm (78-80ºF) place for 3-4 hours. By the end of 3-4 hours, the dough should be puffed up, aerated and risen.

Baking Sourdough Pretzel Rolls

Preheat oven to 475ºF. Choose which method you are going to use to dip the pretzels.
Baking Soda Method: Bring 8 cups of water to a boil. Add 6 Tablespoons baking soda. Place pretzel rolls in the boiling baking soda water and boil for 60-90 seconds per pretzel. Remove pretzels from the boiling water and place on the baking sheets.
Lye Method: Put on protective goggles and rubber gloves. Lye can burn your skin or eyes. It should not be around children or pets. To a large bowl, add 5 cups of water. Add 3 Tablespoons of food grade lye (affiliate link). Stir together with a spatula. Dip each pretzel in the lye solution for 15-20 seconds per pretzel. Place pretzel rolls back on the parchment lined baking sheet.
Score each pretzel roll with a sharp knife or bread lame. Make two slashes across the top of the pretzel roll. Sprinkle with pretzel salt or my favorite flaky sea salt.
Bake immediately after the lye or baking soda bath. Bake for 15-20 minutes at 475 degrees Fahrenheit. Let cool completely (or mostly) before enjoying.

Notes

Sourdough Starter: Use an active/ripe sourdough starter (doubled in size/bubbly/mild sour aroma) to mix the levain.

Diastatic Malt Powder: This gives the pretzel rolls an evenly browned crust with good texture and promotes a good rise. If you don't have diastatic malt powder, add a teaspoon of brown sugar to the dough instead.

Bread Flour: I almost always use bread flour (12.5% protein content) for any dough that I knead. The higher protein content and properly activating the gluten result in a lighter/springier baked good. You can substitute all-purpose flour for the bread flour, but you may need to add a little extra to the dough to compensate.

Nutrition