Soft on the inside, golden crunchy crust on the outside. It’s easier than you think to make delicious vegan soft pretzel bites at home! Jazz them up with a vegan “cheese” filling if you’re feeling fancy.
I’m not sure there’s anything better than a fresh soft pretzel, warm from the oven. Until I write my next blog post and tell you that there’s nothing better than that recipe, ha! But fresh pretzels are near and dear to my heart, and my two children can eat 2/3 of a batch in one sitting so I guess they kind of like them too.
You can keep these pretzel bites simple, with just a sprinkling of kosher salt on top, or you can make them fancy with extra toppings like crushed red pepper (my husband’s favorite) or even fill them with vegan cheese and pepperoni to make pizza pretzel bites! The possibilities are endless.
How to Make Vegan Soft Pretzels
The method is easy once you get the hang of it, but the first time around make sure you have a little extra time on your hands. I will say that this is going to make your kitchen messy. Between rolling the pretzel bites out and boiling them in baking soda water, there are many areas where messes can occur. Trust me, the mess is absolutely worth it.
Start out by making the dough, either in your bread machine or your stand mixer. If you don’t have either of those, these can be kneaded by hand but it’ll take a lot of elbow grease, so to speak! After the dough is done rising, you’ll roll and cut out the pretzel bites on a floured surface.
Then you will boil the pretzel bites in a baking soda water bath. Don’t leave them in there too long! I literally set a timer for the 35 seconds, and scoop them out immediately when the timer goes off. The texture will be off and the pretzels will not rise properly if you let them bathe too long.
Once the vegan pretzel bites are out of the water bath, place them on a baking sheet and sprinkle them with kosher salt. Make sure you always use salt, but you can add other fancy toppings too like Italian seasoning, crushed red pepper, or everything bagel seasoning if it is safe for you.
Then bake in a hot oven until they are dark brown and crunchy. Serve as is, warm from the oven, or dip in your favorite mustard or marinara sauce. Pretzel perfection!!
Make Vegan Soft Pretzel Bites Allergy-Friendly for You!
As written, this recipe is dairy free, egg free, vegan, nut free, sunflower free, and garlic free. I haven’t tried these yet with gluten free flour, but if you do let me know how it turns out! You can customize the toppings to suit your allergies and personal tastes, and you can also stuff them with whatever fillings you like. We usually use Violife vegan mozzarella cheese, but use whatever is safe for you.
Leave a comment letting me know how these turned out for you! Use the hashtag #coffeetableeats to tag your creations on Instagram and Facebook.
Vegan Soft Pretzels
Soft on the inside with a crunchy crust on the outside, these vegan pretzel bites eliminate any need to head to the mall! If you make the dough in your bread machine, it's even easier! This is a great recipe to get kids involved, they can help roll and cut the dough and sprinkle on the salt or other toppings.
Ingredients
Pretzel Dough:
- 1 1/2 c. warm water
- 1 tsp. kosher salt
- 1 Tbsp. light brown sugar, firmly packed
- 3 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp. active dry yeast
For Boiling the Pretzels:
- 2 quarts water
- 1/3 c. baking soda
Pretzel Toppings and Fillings:
- Kosher salt
- Optional toppings: crushed red pepper flakes, Italian seasoning, everything bagel seasoning
- Optional fillings: shredded vegan cheese of your choice, vegan pepperoni or sausage of your choice
Instructions
- To make the dough in the bread machine: Combine all pretzel dough ingredients in your bread machine pan in the order suggested by your machine. Set to the Dough cycle, and let it do its thing! Proceed to Step 3.
- To make the dough with a stand mixer: Combine warm water, sugar, and yeast in the bowl of your stand mixer. Let stand for about 5 minutes, or until the surface of the water is foamy and the yeast is activated. Using the dough hook attachment on low speed, slowly beat in the flour and kosher salt until a soft dough forms. Turn the speed up to medium, and knead with the dough hook for 5-7 minutes or until the dough is smooth and forms a ball around the hook, and isn't sticky to the touch. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and set in a warm place for one hour or until the dough has doubled in size.
- In a large Dutch oven, bring the 2 quarts of water to a boil over medium high heat. Preheat your oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Prepare two baking sheets with silicone mats or parchment paper on top. Roll and cut the pretzel bites as in Step 4 while the water comes to a boil and the oven preheats.
- Turn the completed dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Using a pastry scraper or your hands, divide the dough into four equal pieces. Roll each piece into a 15-inch long rope, popping any large air bubbles that appear as you roll. Using a pastry scraper or knife, cut the dough rope into 15 equal bite-sized pieces. Repeat this process for the remaining three large pieces of dough until you have 60 bite-sized pieces.
- Once your water has come to a boil, add the baking soda. Be careful, because the water will foam up very quickly and make a mess unless you keep stirring to pop the bubbles!
- Place 5-6 pretzel bites at a time into the boiling water (carefully!) and boil for 35 seconds, stirring them around to make sure all sides are coated. Remove the pretzel bites from the water with a spider or slotted spoon, drain slightly, then place evenly spaced onto a baking sheet. Sprinkle immediately with kosher salt (and any other optional toppings you desire). Continue this process until you have 30 pretzel bites on your baking sheet, then keep going for your second baking sheet. PRO TIP: the water will continue to try bubbling over the sides of your pot, so keep your spider or spoon laying over the top of the pot to help pop the bubbles in between pretzel batches!
- Bake the pretzels (one baking sheet at a time) for 10-14 minutes or until the tops are glossy and dark brown (but not burned!) and there are small pale cracks in the surface. Remove the pretzel bites from the oven, and cool for 5-10 minutes before eating. Enjoy!
Notes
To make stuffed pretzel bites: in Step 4, divide the ball of dough into 3 equal pieces, and cut each piece into 10 bites. Press each bite out flat with your hands, then place 2 pieces vegan pepperoni and 1 Tbsp. vegan cheese in the middle. Pull up the sides of the dough to enclose the filling, then press and roll the dough together to seal all of the holes. Proceed with the recipe as in Step 5.
These vegan pretzel bites are best eaten fresh out of the oven, but can be reheated the next day. Store overnight in an airtight container (in the refrigerator if they are stuffed pretzel bites), and then reheat on a baking sheet in a 350 degree oven for 5-7 minutes or until warmed through.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 10 Serving Size: 1 Amount Per Serving: Calories: 225Total Fat: 3gSaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 4mgSodium: 2323mgCarbohydrates: 41gFiber: 2gSugar: 3gProtein: 7gNutrition facts may vary based on the ingredients, swaps, and products used.