Gluten Free Soft Pretzels, just like everybody else’s Soft Pretzels, Bavarian Pretzels, Ball Park Pretzels, and Pretzel Bread … can be the same knots of delicious, soft, salted bread you remember!
The best part? With gfJules #1-rated gluten free flour, you can make gluten free soft pretzels anytime you like!
Remember those ball park soft pretzels, still warm when the vendor handed them to you with tongs?
Sprinkled with copious amounts of salt, smeared with mustard … just the thought of those treats transports me back to so many fond summer memories.
The taste and aroma of these amazingly soft, chewy gluten free pretzels will create all sorts of new fond memories. Double this recipe if you care to share!
Don’t skip the baking soda bath step. It’s crucial to getting the pretzels to be pretzel-y, rather than bread-y.
The alkaline bath created by adding baking soda to the water for boiling helps to create a slight skin on the pretzels which prevents them from puffing up like mad when you bake them afterwards.
Brushing with oil or egg before the final bath also gives them the sheen you need in a real soft pretzel.
The steps aren’t complicated, but they are important to making great gluten free soft pretzels!
This recipe is easily doubled, but remember: gluten free soft pretzels, just like wheat soft pretzels, are best enjoyed fresh. Next day soft pretzels just aren’t the same.
And in case you were wondering … yes! This recipe makes fantastic gluten free pretzel hot dogs (aka pigs in a blanket).
This photo, thanks to customer Tim Viets, shows just how yummy these gluten free hot dog pretzels turn out when you follow the directions just as written, except you wrap the dough around a hot dog first.
Tim says he takes time to dry the hot dogs off well first, then wraps the gluten free pretzel dough around the hot dog, wetting the ends to make sure he can press it together well to help it stick.
Then he rises the them in the oven and dips them in the soda bath (remember that crucial step!), then brushes them with melted butter, sprinkles with salt, and bakes!
However you choose to shape your gluten free soft pretzels, happy gluten free pretzel making!
Homemade Soft Pretzels Gluten Free Recipe
Homemade gluten free soft pretzels make you feel like you're at the ball game any time of day, any day of the year!
Ingredients
- 7 Tbs. room temperature gluten free beer OR club soda OR 7UP
- 1 tsp. granulated cane sugar
- 1 package rapid rise/bread machine yeast, gluten free (e.g. Fleishmann's or Red Star
- 1 egg (or egg substitute like 1 Tbs. flaxseed meal steeped in 3 Tbs. warm water)
- 1 Tbs. honey or agave nectar
- 1 1/3 cup + 2 Tbs. (197 gr.) gfJules All Purpose Gluten Free Flour
- 3/4 tsp. sea salt
- oil for brushing on top of soft pretzels
- (1/4 cup baking soda for soda bath)
- coarse sea salt, sesame seeds, or other toppings of choice
Instructions
In a small bowl, mix liquid, sugar and yeast and let stand for 5 minutes.
In a large bowl, whisk together the egg and honey with the proofed yeast mixture. Slowly stir in the dry ingredients. Beat on low speed of an electric mixer for one minute, or until well-blended. If the dough is dry, add an additional 1 tablespoon gluten free beer or soda and mix well. The dough should hold together well without being overly sticky.
Turn dough out onto a clean surface or pastry mat very lightly dusted withgfJules™ All Purpose Gluten Free Flour. Divide dough into 4 even balls, then begin to gently roll each into long, skinny logs approximately 1/2 – 3/4 inch in diameter.
Take both ends of each log and twist into the middle.
Gently dab water under each of the ends of the twist to help them stick together, or they may release during the boil. Lay each pretzel onto a parchment-paper lined baking sheet.
Use a pastry brush to dust off any excess flour, then liberally brush the pretzels with more water. Cover with a damp cloth and proof for 10-15 minutes in a warm place like an oven preheated to 200° F, then turned off.
Preheat the oven to 375° (static) or 350° (convection).
Prepare a soda bath in a narrow, but tall pan, as the soda will make the water frothy. Add 1/4 cup baking soda to 6-8 cups of water (you can also add the remaining beer from the open bottle, if you like) and bring to a boil over high heat. Stir until the soda is completely dissolved.
Once the soda bath has achieved a rolling boil, gently submerge pretzels individually into the bath for 15-30 seconds on each side.
Remove with a slotted spoon or skimmer, drain and return the pretzels to the parchment-lined baking sheet.
Brush the boiled pretzels lightly with oil or egg wash (1 egg whisked with 2 tablespoons water) to help them brown, and top with coarse sea salt or other toppings.
Bake for 10 minutes, or until light golden brown. Do not over-bake!
Serve warm with your favorite gluten free mustard!
Pin for later!
made these for the second time today. I used apple cider instead of beer…. its what I had 🙂. they are so good! I definitely was better at handling the dough on this second try, so worth trying twice!
Good call, Glen! Glad you didn’t give up and can enjoy the sweet rewards of yummy gluten free soft pretzels!
~jules
how do I best store these to put in my kids’ lunches the next day?
Hi Amber, they are best the day they are made, but if you allow them to fully cool, you should be able to put them in zip-top bag with the air squeezed out and they should still be fairly soft the next day. If you like to put lots of large salt on top of them like I do, they don’t look very pretty on day 2 because the salt makes the tops look a little mushy, so maybe go light on the salt or skip it and encourage dipping in mustard! 🙂
~jules
Made a double batch of these pretzels and wow, what a great recipe. I sprinkled half of them with coarse salt and the others with sesame seeds. I used carbonated water from using my sodastream and they turned out perfectly. As every oven is different, I baked them for 11 minutes. Will definitely be making these again. Thanks for sharing the recipe.
Hi JoAnn, I’m thrilled you loved this recipe, too! Isn’t it fun to have soft pretzels back again? Thanks for sharing your oven time too, you’re right that they’re all different! Happy baking!
~jules
What’s the difference between this and your other soft pretzel recipe? Ingredients are different, but how is the pretzel itself turn out?
Hi Abby, the results are quite similar but the one made with gluten free beer has a bite (in a good way) of flavor from the beer and the carbonation makes the dough a little lighter. I hope you enjoy them!
~jules
Do you think that I can get good results using your pizza mix in place of the all purpose flour in this recipe? I’m all out of the all purpose but have pizza mix on-hand!
Hi Lea, what a cool idea! I haven’t tried it myself, but it could be a stunning new recipe! I’d suggest following the recipe for making baguettes with my pizza mix and put the dough into a gallon sized zip-top bag, then cut a small corner out of the bottom. Squeeze the dough directly into the boiling water to form a pretzel shape (think of making funnel cakes) and then let the boiling water “seal” the outside of the dough so it’s easier to handle because the pizza dough is very wet. Let me know how it goes!
~jules
I did it! I have been so jealous of my husband when he orders little pretzel bites from the pizza place and dips them in the cheese sauce. But after my second attempt with this recipe I am jealous no more! My first attempt did not go well. I thought the dough was dry and added more beer. I should have waited until I was done mixing. They were too wet and didn’t hold their shape. The second time, I just rolled them out and cut them into bite sized pieces. They are wonderful! And for those who don’t like beer (like me!), I don’t even taste the beer. I keep gluten free beer for when I make beer batter for fish and don’t taste it in that, either. Thank you for coming up with a recipe for people like me who were wishing for soft pretzels! I would highly recommend this recipe, and your flour.
Oh Diane, that is fantastic! I’m so glad you didn’t give up after the first try! Sweet victory, and to the victor go the spoils!!!
~jules
Would they still be good with the club soda? I have never liked beer and would hate to have to buy a 6 pack for just one bottle…
Hi Katie, I totally understand your hesitation to buy a six pack for one recipe! Just use club soda – they’ll turn out just fine! Enjoy!
~jules
I miss soft pretzels so much! Thanks for the fabulous recipe, Jules!
So happy you’ll have a recipe to try now, Sarah! This is the perfect time of year for soft pretzels!!
~jules
My girls have been begging me to make soft pretzels.
Thank you for the easy recipe! And you know I already have your flour 😉
Chrystal
Yes I do, Chrystal! Lucky you – you can dive right in and make these today!!! 🙂
~jules
Just made this recipe tonight along with an easy dipping sauce. My husband said the only bad thing was that I only made 4! My whole family LOVED these. What a treat as we’ve missed soft pretzels. Soft on the inside- nice and chewy on the outside. AND, quite quick and simple to make which is an added bonus. I think these would be great sliced in half and used as a pretzel bun for hot sandwiches.
As a FYI- It was a last minute decision to make these and I did not have GF beer on hand. In its place I used 7UP and it worked wonderfully! No- you do not get any lemon-lime flavor in the pretzel. I will definitely try these with the beer when I have some, but I wouldn’t hesitate for a second to use 7UP again.
Will definitely make these again- probably tomorrow!
This is definitely a recipe that has to go on my weekend baking list!
I can’t wait to hear what you think, Brianna!
~jules
Such a fun snack! I have always loved soft pretzels but have never made any.
oooh, you’re going to love making these, Emily!
~jules
do you need to eat them right away or do they keep a little while without hardening so that you can then simply microwave and serve?
Hi Amy, all soft pretzels are best when eaten soon after cooking, but you can always reheat them gently in the microwave to eat them later. Enjoy!
~jules
I made these yesterday and couldn’t for the life of me figure out why they were so moist. I added a little flour while I was rolling them up but they literally were falling apart they were so wet.
My aha! moment. I completely left out the 2TBS when adding my cup and 1/3 of flour LOL That explains it.
Even with the mistake these are amazing. They were gone last night. Thank goodness for a husband that loves my cooking no matter what. He had no idea they weren’t perfect LOL
Sounds like you’ve got a keeper in that husband of yours, Jenni! And so glad you figured out what happened but enjoyed them nonetheless – that’s quite a review! Hope you enjoy them even more next time. Thanks for taking a minute to write me a note about how well the recipe turned out. Happy baking!
~jules
These look beautiful, Jules. I love that the recipe only makes 4 too — that’s how I like to bake as well {in tiny batches}. I’ve never had a beer pretzel — such an interesting addition! What does the beer do in the recipe — is it for flavor or does it have other special properties? Just curious 🙂
Hi Audrey,
I love the flavor the beer imparts in the pretzels – very subtle, but very nice! The carbonation & sugar also helps “encourage” the yeast. 🙂 I hope you get to try the recipe!
~jules
These pretzels look great and just in time for football season coming up!
Thanks Sharon – good point! They would be so fun to make for a football party!!
~jules
I was just thinking about making some pretzels for the first time!
I hope you try – they’re so rewarding! 🙂
~jules
Those look amazingly delicious! Great job!!! I bet that was not easy to perfect being gluten free.
I’ve been making variations on this recipe for gluten free soft pretzels for years, Rachel. I can’t remember why I even started, but they were always easier to make than I’d imagined, so I just kept making them! So fun!
~jules
Oh, I love pretzels! Never would’ve thought to put beer in them. 😉
I add GF beer to the strangest recipes, and it always seems to turn out, Raia! Give it a shot (ahahaha!)
~jules