NYC Style Hot Pretzels (Dairy-Free)
RECIPE
Servings 6 large pretzels| Prep Time 30 minutes | Total Time 1 hour
INGREDIENTS
1 T rapid rise yeast
1/2 tsp granulated sugar
1/2 tsp light brown sugar
1 1/4 cups warm water, though you may need a teaspoon or so more. (I recommend using filtered water, as chlorine levels in tap water may inhibit the yeast)
1 tsp fine pink himalyan salt
240 g all purpose flour
240 g bread flour
————————————
Egg wash: 1 egg, mixed with 2 tsp water
Approximately 1/3 cup “pretzel salt”
———————————
You will also need:
Canola oil for greasing the bowl and the baking tray
A full size cookie sheet to accommodate 6 large pretzels
Large pot on stove to bring 8 cups of water, plus 1/3 cup baking soda, to a boil.
Brush for applying egg wash.
DIRECTIONS
In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the sugars and the rapid rise yeast ; add the warm water; stir and let sit for 5-10 minutes, until bubbly.
In a different large bowl, weigh out the all-purpose flour, bread flour, and salt; thoroughly whisk everything together.
Carefully add the entire flour mixture to the yeast & sugar mixture.
You can make this dough using a dough hook (when using a Kitchen Aid) or the roller if using an Ankarsrum Original Mixer). Mix the dough in the electric mixer, on low, (scraping down once or twice), until you have a pretty firm smooth dough that is no longer sticking to the sides of the bowl (approximately 7 minutes).
When the dough has come together, transfer the dough to a clean workspace (DO NOT ADD ANY FLOUR) and continue to knead the dough BY HAND for an additional 3-5 minutes. Depending on the moisture in the air, you most likely will need to add a little more water to make the dough pliable, but do so sparingly by adding only a teaspoon of water at a time. You can do this by wetting your hands just a little as you finish kneading. REMEMBER: This is not a “wet” dough, so be sure to add just enough water to make the dough smooth and elastic.
Lightly grease a large bowl with canola oli, into which you will place the smooth pretzel dough ball. Cover with plastic wrap (I use a disposable shower cap) and let rise in a warm area or closed area for 30 minutes - 45 minutes, until the dough doubles in size. (When the area where the dough is rising is too cold, I often place a small heater nearby to keep the air around the rising dough warm.)
Once the dough has doubled in size, deflate the dough; place the dough back in the greased bowl and cover the dough with a wrung-out water dampened towel and let rest for 5 minutes before proceeding.
Meanwhile, preheat your oven to 375ºF and with an upper middle rack ready to go.
Fill a large pot with 8 cups of water, adding 1/3 cup baking soda; bring to boil;
To get evenly sized pretzels, divide the total weight of the dough by 6 to determine the weight that each pretzel should be. (Each pretzel will probably weigh around 131 g - 135 g)
With canola oil, lightly grease a full cookie sheet.
Form the pretzels, one at a time, by grabbing a piece of dough and rolling the dough piece on the counter into an a long rope-like shape (approximately 30” long), then forming a pretzel shape by taking the ends of the “rope” and crossing the ends over each other and twisting once, and then folding them forward back over to seal the ends to the bottom of the pretzel shape.
Place the pretzels, as they are formed, onto the lightly greased cookie sheet and then cover them with the wrung-out dampened towel for 5 minutes until you are able to boil them.
Place a baking rack on top of a different empty cookie tray near the boiling water mixture; (You will be using this set up to drain the boiled pretzels before returning them to the cookie sheet for final baking).
Place formed pretzels, a few at a time, into the rapidly boiling water, let them stay in the boiling water for 45 seconds total, gently flipping them over in between. Remove the pretzels one at a time with a large slotted spoon, gently placing them on the draining rack for a few minutes. Then, carefully transfer the boiled pretzels to the already greased cookie sheet.
Brush each pretzel with the egg wash and then sprinkle them generously with pretzel salt.
Bake the pretzels for approximately 18- 20 minutes , until golden brown. I suggest rotating the sheet mid-way through the baking to ensure the pretzels bake as evenly as possible. (For crispier pretzels, keep the pretzels in the oven for an additional 2-3 minutes until the color darkens.)
Using a scraper, remove the hot pretzels and cool on a wire rack.
