Laugenbrezel
Vegetarian
Chewy soft pretzels with a glossy, deep-brown crust and coarse salt. This home version uses a baked baking-soda bath instead of the traditional lye.
Laugenbrezel is a German bread from Germany, ready in about 2 hours 15 minutes and made with bread flour and baking soda. It serves 8 and is rated intermediate to cook.
- Prep
- 40 min
- Cook
- 20 min
- Rest
- 1 h 15 min
- Total
- 2 h 15 min
- Serves
- 8
- Level
- Intermediate
- Calories
- 253
Baking the soda (optional, makes a stronger bath) adds 1 hour.
Ingredients
For the bath
For topping
Method
Step 1
Knead the flour, lukewarm water, yeast, butter (opens in a new tab), sugar (opens in a new tab) and salt into a smooth, firm dough. Cover and leave to rise until puffy.
- 10 min
The dough should be stiffer than ordinary bread dough so the pretzels keep their shape.
How it looks · Photo: Klaus Nielsen on Pexels Step 2
Divide into 8 pieces. Roll each into a rope about 60 cm long, thicker in the middle. Form a U, twist the ends twice and press them onto the thick belly.
Step 3
Leave the shaped pretzels uncovered for 30 minutes so they form a slight skin – chill them for the last 15 minutes if you can.
Step 4
Heat the oven (opens in a new tab) to 220 °C. Dissolve the baked soda in the water in a wide pan and bring to a simmer. Dip each pretzel for 20–30 seconds, lift out with a slotted spoon and place on a lined tray.
- 10 min
- medium heat
- Saucepan (opens in a new tab)
Food safety: Baked baking soda is more alkaline than regular – wear gloves and keep it away from eyes and children.
Step 5
Slash the thick part, sprinkle with coarse salt and bake until deep mahogany brown.
- 18 min
- 220°C
- Oven (opens in a new tab)
How it looks · Photo: Klaus Nielsen on Pexels
About this dish
- Origin
- Southern Germany (Bavaria, Swabia), Germany · Commonly attributedLye-dipped pretzels are typical of southern Germany, Austria and Alsace; the pretzel shape itself is much older and widely shared.Also popular in Austria, SwitzerlandMore food from Germany
- Dish
- Snack · Breakfast · Breads & flatbreads · Street food
- Cooking method
- Boiled, Oven-baked
- Taste
- salty, savoury
- Diet
- Vegetarian (lacto-ovo) · No nut ingredientsWorked out from the ingredients. How labels work
All labels
Vegetarian (lacto-ovo) · Eggetarian · Lacto-vegetarian · Pescatarian · Flexitarian-friendly · Egg-free · No nut ingredients · Alcohol-free · Pork-free · Beef-free - Good for
- Portable / lunchbox · Child-friendly · Street food
- Cook more with
- Bread flour · Baking soda · Dried yeast · Butter · Sugar
Allergens
- Contains: Milkfrom butter
- Contains: Wheatfrom bread flour
- Contains: Glutenfrom bread flour
Based on typical versions of these ingredients and not verified allergen-free. Brands differ and cross-contact happens, so always check labels. For severe allergies, follow your clinician’s advice.
Nutrition
253 kcal per serving
Calculated1 serving ≈ 104 g · recipe makes 8
Where the energy comes from
- Protein 13%
- Carbohydrate 74%
- Fat 13%
| Nutrient | Per serving | Per 100 g* |
|---|---|---|
| Energy | 253 kcal | 243 kcal |
| Protein | 7.9 g | 7.5 g |
| Carbohydrate | 46.2 g | 44.3 g |
| Net carbohydrate | 44.5 g | 42.7 g |
| Sugars | 0.7 g | 0.7 g |
| Added sugars | 0.5 g | 0.5 g |
| Fibre | 1.7 g | 1.7 g |
| Fat | 3.6 g | 3.5 g |
| Saturated fat | 1.8 g | 1.7 g |
| Trans fat | — | — |
| Cholesterol | 7 mg | 6 mg |
| Sodium | 853 mg | 818 mg |
| Salt equivalent | 2.1 g | 2 g |
Vitamins & minerals per serving
- Potassium
- 72 mg
- Calcium
- 14 mg
- Iron
- 2.8 mg
- Magnesium
- 17 mg
- Vitamin A (RAE)
- 21 µg
- Vitamin C
- 0 mg
- Vitamin D
- 0 µg
- Vitamin B12
- 0 µg
- Folate (DFE)
- 201 µg
How these numbers were made
- Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
- *Per 100 g of combined raw ingredients; the cooked dish may weigh more or less.
- “—” means the value isn’t known for enough of the ingredients; it is never zero by default.
- Values are estimates for guidance, not for medical dosing. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. fdc.nal.usda.gov.
Good to know
Tips
- Chilling the shaped pretzels makes them easier to dip without losing their shape.
Common mistakes
- Using an unlined metal tray: alkaline dough can react with aluminium – use baking paper.
Serve with
- Split and spread with butter, or serve with Weisswurst, sweet mustard and Obatzda cheese spread.
Storage
- Best on the day; the crust softens overnight.
Reheating
- Refresh for 5 minutes in a 180 °C oven.
Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added · Updated
Recipe DNA
How this dish is built
Built from the recipe’s own sections. Each band’s width is its share of the dish by weight. Choose a component to see what it does.
Baker’s notes
Customise in Bread & BakeryTimeline and readiness cues
Mix and knead · about 40 min
Weigh everything. Knead until smooth and elastic: a small piece stretches thin enough to see light through (the windowpane test).
First rise (bulk) · about 45 min
About doubled, domed, jiggly, with bubbles on the sides. A floured finger poked in leaves a dent that fills slowly.
Rest · about 30 min
Covered so it doesn't dry out; relaxed dough rolls and shapes without springing back.
Bake · about 18 min at 220 °C
Deep golden; bread sounds hollow when tapped underneath, or reads 93–96 °C inside (enriched breads 88–90 °C).
- Start to finish: about 2 h 13 min. Times are a guide — warmth changes everything; follow the cues.
The dough
| Ingredient | Role | Weight | Baker’s % |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bread flour | Flour | 500 g | 100% |
| Water | Water | 280 g | 56% |
| Butter | Fat | 25 g | 5% |
| Salt | Salt | 9 g | 1.8% |
| Dried yeast | Yeast | 7 g | 1.4% |
| Sugar | Sugar | 4 g | 0.8% |
- Total flour
- 500 g
- Hydration
- 56%
- With milk, eggs…
- 56%
- Wholegrain
- 0%
Hydration = water ÷ flour × 100. Milk is about 87% water and eggs about 75%, so they’re shown separately as “with milk, eggs…”.
- Medium dough (55–65%) — soft and easy to knead; sandwich loaves and rolls.
- Salt 1.8% — normal for bread.
If something goes wrong
Spreads flat / no oven spring
Likely causes
- Over-proofed
- Weak shaping (no surface tension)
- Oven not hot enough
- Too much water for the flour
What to do
- Shorten the proof; bake when the poke springs back slowly
- Shape tightly so the skin is taut
- Preheat fully (30+ minutes; with a stone or Dutch oven, 45)
- Lower hydration or use bread flour
Pale crust
Likely causes
- Oven too cool
- Too little sugar or no milk/egg for browning
- Over-fermented (yeast ate the sugars)
What to do
- Check the oven with a thermometer
- Brush with egg wash or milk
- Shorten the fermentation
Burnt bottom
Likely causes
- Tray too close to the heat
- Dark tray absorbs more heat
- Too much sugar in the dough
What to do
- Bake on the middle shelf
- Double up trays or use a light-coloured one
- Lower the temperature 10–15 °C and bake a little longer
Crust too hard or thick
Likely causes
- Baked too long at too low a temperature
- No steam at the start
What to do
- Bake hotter for a shorter time
- Add steam for the first 15 minutes (tray of boiling water, or a covered Dutch oven)
- Cool under a tea towel for a softer crust
Reviews & corrections
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