What Is Pretzel Salt? - Uncle Henry's Pretzel Bakery (2024)

FAQs

What Is Pretzel Salt? - Uncle Henry's Pretzel Bakery? ›

Pretzel salt is a type of coarse long-grained salt. It is typically uniform in size with a flat, rectangular shape. These characteristics are what make them so good for pretzels as well as other types of baked goods.

As for salt on Pretzels … Pretzel Salts are specifically processed for this purpose… they are compact crystals that may look like Kosher Salt but they are not… the compact crystals dissolve quicker in your mouth than the larger single crystal Kosher Salt and therefore will have a different taste….

The answer lies in a brief dip in an alkaline water bath before baking. This bath essentially gelatinizes the outside of the pretzel, preventing it from fully “springing” during baking (as bread does) and giving pretzels their signature chewy crust. It also gives them their unique and indelible “pretzel” flavor.

Pretzel Salt is a coarse, large-grained salt that doesn't melt quickly. Because it's “sturdier” than typical coarse salt or even flaky sea salt, it's the perfect choice for finishing salt bagels, bread sticks, or pretzels. If it is not available in your grocery store, use the coarsest salt you can find.

Pretzel salt—explained

Pretzel salt is a type of coarse long-grained salt. It is typically uniform in size with a flat, rectangular shape. These characteristics are what make them so good for pretzels as well as other types of baked goods.

Unfortunately, salted pretzels are quite high in sodium. The Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends limiting your sodium intake to 2,300 mg daily, but Americans consume 3,400 mg daily on average. Especially for people with high blood pressure, limiting sodium is beneficial for health. Low in fiber.

Our Original Pretzel only contains 5 grams of fat, and, yes, it is lightly dipped in butter. Since Auntie Anne's Pretzels are made fresh in our stores, you can request your pretzel without butter for a lower calorie option or order your pretzel without salt.

Like lye, baking soda is an alkaline substance, and when mixed with water and brushed over the pretzel dough, it changes the pH of the dough and gelates the surface starch. In the oven, the starch gel hardens and the alkaline baking soda makes browning happen fast.

Lye is a stronger alkaline than baking soda or sodium bicarbonate, with a pH reading ranging from around 13 to 14. Its base of sodium hydroxide is created commercially by the electrolysis of sodium chloride solution, as well as reacting calcium hydroxide with sodium carbonate, according to the FDA.

Once lye-dipped pretzels are baked, they're totally safe (and delicious!) to eat. The most important aspect of baking with lye is that it's diluted, which greatly reduces (but doesn't eliminate) the risk of harm. Doughs are typically dipped in a solution made up of 3% to 4% (by weight) lye-to-water before baking.

Does Auntie Anne's use lye? ›

Well, the cheery ladies were very clear with me: they do NOT use lye. No sodium hydroxide/poison/caustic soda—none whatsoever—in their pretzels. (They do, however, dip their pretzels in a baking soda solution.) So there you have it.

Dipping the dough in a lye solution gives traditional German pretzels their characteristic salinity; chew; and smooth mahogany exterior, but the strong alkali (sodium hydroxide) is corrosive and can burn your skin, so it must be handled with caution.

I'd highly recommend ordering the pretzel salt for the most impressive pretzels possible and best flavor. If that's not an option, use coarse sea salt instead. Just note it'll dissolve into the dough more.

Salt products do not have a shelf life in the traditional sense. Salt will not spoil or support pathogenic growth.

LIGHTLY Sprinkle the Pretzel Salt provided to have a small amount on each pretzel. You can re-use any salt that falls off onto the sheetpan after your baking process. Bake in your pre-heated 350° oven for 4-6 minutes, just enough to heat the pretzel through completely, and to dry the salt adhering to the tops.

Substitute for Kosher Salt

If you don't have any kosher salt on hand, you can use one of the alternatives here to achieve the same flavor: Flaky sea salt. Fine sea salt. Himalayan salt.

There are two types of kosher salt, the first is the coarse-grained kosher salt that is mined just like any other type of salt, and the other is kosher salt that meets traditional Jewish guidelines. For a kosher salt to be accepted as kosher, it has to be certified by a Jewish institute.

Most baking recipes typically use either one of these salts: table salt, kosher salt, or sea salt. While all three types will work in most baking recipes, it's best to use the specific one that the recipe recommends. And if the recipe doesn't specify, I recommend using table salt or kosher salt.

Kosher salt is made solely from sodium chloride and doesn't usually contain additives or iodine. It's less dense than table salt, and often used in cooking because the larger grains are easy to work with.