Recipe: German Bretzel
There’s no better way to celebrate October Fest or memories of a German holiday than with a Bavarian Bretzel. This salty and chewy treat tastes great freshly baked or sliced in half with a little cream cheese and prosciutto.
Ingredients
350g tepid water
15g sugar
12g salt
8g yeast
620g flour
40g butter, softened
Boiling Mixture
2l water
½ cup baking soda
Method
- Place flour, yeast, salt, sugar and warm water in a mixer with dough hook and mix for 5 minutes.
- Add the softened butter and continue to mix for a further 10 minutes until well combined.
- Place in steam oven on dough proving and prove for 30 minutes until it has doubled in size. Alternatively, cover and rest in a warm location for 1 ½ hours to prove.
- Preheat the oven on CircoTherm/4D HotAir/Fan bake and set to 200°C (with highest level steam).
- Tip the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and separate out to 8 evenly sized balls, approximately 130g in weight.
- First roll into long thin logs with a slightly larger bulb in the middle of the log. Then, twist the two ends together so you have a circle with twist at the end. Attach the ends of the twists to either side of the large bulb.
- Put 2 litres of water into a large pot and bring to a boil. Reduce to a gentle simmer and add baking soda. Caution: the water will bubble up when you add the baking soda. You may want to add it bit by bit so the water doesn’t overflow.
- Once all of the baking soda has been added, gently drop the bretzels into the water, 1-2 at a time. They will only be in the water for a few seconds before they rise to the top. Turn them over so both sides are full immersed into the water.
- Remove after 15 seconds with a slotted spoon and place on paper towels. Immediately sprinkle with rock salt or sesame seeds.
- Place bretzels on baking paper on your baking tray and place in the oven to bake for 15 minutes or until dark golden brown.
