Oma's Bavarian Pretzels (Laugenbrezel)

by: Gerhild Fulson  / Oma Gerhild shares easy, authentic German recipes you can trust, rooted in family tradition and featured in her cookbooks.

Published: September 22, 2012, Updated: May 12, 2025

My German pretzels (laugenbrezeln) skip the lye ... just BAKED baking soda for that golden crust and chewy bite I love!

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German Pretzel Recipe (without lye) ~ Oma's Soft Bavarian Laugenbrezel

Let me, Oma, show you how to make German pretzels without lye using baked baking soda. It’s an easy trick that brings Oktoberfest flavor home.

This beginner-friendly recipe makes crisp-on-the-outside, soft-on-the-inside brezeln, and you can use the same method for laugenbrötchen too, shaped however you like.

Top Tips For Best Results

1. Baking Baking Soda: Bake your baking soda at 250°F (120°C) for an hour to create a stronger alkaline solution, mimicking traditional lye.
2. Shaping: Roll dough into ropes and form the classic pretzel shape by creating a U, crossing the ends, twisting, and pressing them onto the bottom curve.  
3.  Toppings: Sprinkle with coarse salt before baking. For variation, try sesame seeds, poppy seeds, or shredded cheese. 
4.  Serving: Enjoy warm from the oven. They also freeze well; reheat in the oven to restore freshness
5. Gluten-Free Swap: Not as written; use a gluten-free flour blend suitable for yeast doughs.

Laugenbrötchen And Brezeln

The only pretzels I knew in Canada were those small, hard snacks in a bag. I never understood the fuss—even in Bavaria, I didn’t bother.

Then on a recent trip to Germany, I tried a laugenbrötchen by chance. Soft, salty, and irresistible. After that, I couldn’t get enough of real Bavarian brezeln.

So lecker.

Pretzels for sale at the Christmas Market in München, Germany.

I went on a quest for the perfect German pretzel recipe since I can’t find them in stores here. Traditional lye gives great flavor but needs gloves and goggles.

I wanted something much easier ... and safer. I learned to bake the baking soda first for that classic crust and taste (thanks to Harold McGee in the NY Times).

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Making traditional German pretzels involves a lye bath using sodium hydroxide. My version is much safer. Just dunk them in a baked baking soda solution instead.

Want To Use Lye?

Here's a photo sent in by a Bavarian baker's son. He continues with his dad's tradition of making these Laugenbrezeln with a food-grade lye solution, so if that's the recipe you'd like, check it out here.

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What Is BAKED Baking Soda?

Baking the baking soda turns it into sodium carbonate, a stronger alkali that gives pretzels their rich color and classic taste.

It’s like washing soda, but food-grade because you make it yourself. If you have sensitive skin, use gloves or a slotted spoon when dunking the dough.

How To BAKE Baking Soda

Baked baking soda is a great alternative to the plain kind and can even be used for homemade ramen noodles.

Make just enough or prep extra to store.

Here's How:

• Preheat oven to 250°F (120°C)
• Spread baking soda on a foil-lined tray
• Bake for 1 hour
• Cool and store in an airtight container at room temp

How To Make Pretzels

(Find the printable recipe with measurements in the recipe card below.)

Start by baking the baking soda so it will be ready to use when you need it.

Start with baking the baking soda

Then, make the simple yeast dough and let it rise until doubled in volume.

Let yeast dough rise till double in volume

Form the classic Bavarian pretzel shape with a fatter centre and crossed ends.

Roll yeast dough piece into rope

Form rope into a U shape

Twist ends once

Twist ends again

Fold ends down and press to curved part

Place the formed pretzels on a parchment-paper lined baking sheet, cover, and let rest.

Let pretzels rise

Make the baked baking soda bath, stirring until all the baking soda is dissolved.

Make baked baking soda bath

Carefully dunk the pretzels (or the buns), keeping them in the water for the required time.

Dunk pretzels for a few seconds

Let the liquid drip from the pretzels as you remove them and place on the baking sheet, leaving room between each.

Slit pretzels, sprinkle with salt, and bake.

Easy-peasy. Yummy in my tummy!

Finished baked pretzels!

The ones above look "rustic" because I was having fun playing with different ways to "fold" them. The result though, delicious and looking totally homemade. The BEST!

If you want them to be the same size, you'll need to weigh the dough pieces to keep the size the same. I usually don't bother, unless it's for company. Then I'm a bit more careful with size and fold. The ones above were just for hubby and me to indulge in.

Print Recipe ♥ Save Recipe

Oma's Bavarian Pretzels (Laugenbrezel)

My German pretzels (laugenbrezeln) skip the lye ... just BAKED baking soda for that golden crust and chewy bite I love!

Prep Time:

3 hours 5 minutes

Bake Time:

15 minutes

Total Time:

3 hours 20 minutes

Servings:

Makes 12 pretzels or 10 rolls

Ingredients:

• 6 tablespoons (108 grams) baking soda
• ½ cup (120 milliliter) lukewarm water
• 1 teaspoon (4 grams) granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon (10 grams) active dry yeast
• ¾ cup (180 milliliter) lukewarm milk
• 2 tablespoons (28 grams) soft butter
• 3½ cups (455 grams) all-purpose flour, divided
• 1 teaspoon (6 grams) salt
• 3 cups (720 milliliters) hot water
• coarse sea salt to sprinkle

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 250°F (120°C). Line a baking sheet with foil and spread baking soda in a thin, even layer. Bake for one hour. Meanwhile make the pretzel dough. Once the soda has baked, remove and set aside to cool.
2. Prepare two baking sheets by lining them with parchment paper and set aside.
3. Add the lukewarm water and sugar into a large mixing bowl of a stand mixer with a dough hook attachment. Mix in the yeast and let stand 10 minutes until bubbly. Add the milk and stir.
4. Blend in the butter, 3 cups of flour, and salt into the yeast mixture. Let the dough hook knead the dough for 5 to 10 minutes, adding more flour as needed until the dough is smooth, elastic and not sticky.
5. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or put the bowl in a plastic bag and let the dough rise for 45 to 60 minutes in a draft-free warm place until doubled in size.
6. Preheat oven to 425°F (218°C).
7. To make Pretzels: On the work surface, divide the dough into 12 equal pieces. Create the classic pretzel shape by rolling each piece of dough into an 18-inch long rope, keeping the center thicker than the ends. Form into a U shape. Cross the ends of the rope over each other twice about 3-inches from the end. Fold the ends down and press to the curved part at the 4-and 8-o'clock positions.
8. To make Rolls: On the work surface, divide the dough into 10 equal pieces. Form each piece into a smooth ball by placing it into one hand. With the other fingers, pull up the outside edges and pinch into the middle several times, dusting fingers with flour if needed.
9. Place pretzels/rolls onto the parchment-lined baking sheets. Cover with a towel and let rise 15 minutes in a warm spot. Remove towel and rise another 15 minutes, letting the surface dry to form a slight skin.
10. Prepare the soda bath. Using a large bowl (non-reactive material or glass bowl), gradually whisk in the cooled baked baking soda into the 3 cups of water (hot) until dissolved.
11. Dip pretzels/rolls using your fingers or a slotted spoon, one at a time, into the soda bath for about 3 seconds for pretzels and 3 seconds each side for rolls. Remove, give a gently shake to remove excess moisture, and put back on the parchment-lined baking sheets.
12. Slit the thick center of the pretzels with a sharp knife or razor blade. For the rolls, slit a cross on the top. Sprinkle with sea salt.
13. Bake in preheated oven for about 15 minutes until nicely browned. Remove to a wire rack to cool. These homemade German pretzels and pretzel rolls are best enjoyed while still warm.

Notes/Hints

• Replace 1 cup of all-purpose flour with 1 cup of whole wheat flour or bread flour.
• Pretzel salt or kosher salt can also be used for sprinkling.
• Pretzels are wonderful brushed with melted butter right after they are baked.
• If you have sensitive skin, use gloves when dipping pretzels.
• For a deeper color, you can brush with an egg wash (1 egg yolk beaten with 1 tablespoon water) before sprinkling with salt and baking.
• If you want a chewier crust, dip into the baked baking soda solution for a few seconds longer.

*  *  *  *  *

Unless otherwise noted recipe, images and content © Just like Oma | www.quick-german-recipes.com

Recipe updated on May 12, 2025

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Hi, I'm Oma Gerhild! As a food writer and cookbook author, I'm always looking to find ways to pass on my German heritage using local ingredients. Quick and easy. That's my goal. Wunderbar food. That's the result.