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5 from 4 votes

Meringer Beer Pretzels

Prep Time20 minutes
Cook Time35 minutes
Rest Time1 hour 15 minutes
Total Time2 hours 10 minutes
Servings: 6 people

Ingredients

For the dough:

  • 15 g Dry yeast
  • 170 g Lager
  • 6 g Salt
  • 1 tsp Sugar, fine, white
  • 320 g Wheat flour, type 550
  • 40 g Sweet cream butter

For lye:

  • 100 g Baking soda
  • 1 liter Water

To sprinkle:

  • Coarse salt
  • Sesame seeds, white
  • Pumpkin seeds, green

For the shine:

  • 2 tbsp Egg white, liquid
  • 2 tbsp Water
  • 1 pinch Salt

Instructions

Preface:

  • The recipe makes 6 pretzels with a dough weight of around 90 grams. The dough has to be kneaded for a long time so that the gluten content in the flour is activated. A suitable kitchen machine saves a lot of effort.

The pretzel dough:

  • Liquefy the butter in a water bath and let it cool below 36 degrees. Knead all the ingredients for the dough, except the butter, into a crumbly dough, then add the butter. Knead into a firm, smooth dough for at least 12 minutes. Divide into 6 equal portions, shape into a round shape and let rise for 20 minutes.

The baker's liquor:

  • Pour the baking soda into 1 liter of boiling water and stir until it has dissolved. Let the bakery liquor cool down to room temperature. Store unused baker's liquor in a glass bottle and use it for other pretzels or pretzels.

From dough to raw pretzels:

  • Roll out the dough balls into double-conical, approx. 70 - 80 cm long snakes. Shape a U with the thin ends, fold the ends over each other and press them in a V shape onto the rest of the pastry line. Place the raw pretzels on a baking sheet lined with baking paper. Cut the thick part with a knife. Cover everything with a damp cloth and let rise in a warm place for 30-40 minutes.

In the meantime:

  • Whisk egg whites with water and salt. Have a soft brush ready. Pre-heat the oven to 220 degrees Celsius. From the raw pretzel to the pretzel: Pour 30 g of the baker's liquor into a glass. Brush the pretzels twice one after the other with the lye. The second time immediately after each pretzel, sprinkle them immediately of your choice.

From the pretzel to the Meringer beer pretzel:

  • Bake Mehringer beer pretzels on the middle rail in 30 - 35 minutes. As soon as the pretzels are light brown, take the tray out of the oven and brush with the egg white mixture. Put back in the oven and bake until golden brown.

Reward for efforts:

  • Cut a pretzel in half crosswise, brush the cut surfaces with butter and top with cheese or ham and enjoy warm.

Annotation:

  • Coarse salt is not quite my cup of tea and like many others I scratch it off the pretzel before enjoying it. It's completely inappropriate in the tropics, as it turns into a salty liquid in a few minutes and soaks the pretzel salty. This of course also applies to the crispy arms, which I particularly love and break out of the pretzel before the general enjoyment and enjoy it with butter as pure finger food. In general, I prefer to use seeds and add the salt to the pretzels.