Garlic Parmesan Pretzels

Garlic parmesan pretzels are soft homemade pretzels that are brushed with garlic butter and sprinkled with parmesan cheese. These savory pretzels make a great homemade snack or treat!

Grabbing fresh pretzels was one of my favorite parts about going to the mall. These days, we don’t go to the mall very often, but I still love fresh pretzels.

These garlic parmesan pretzels have quite a few steps to make them, but they’re actually pretty simple to make. Most of the time it takes to make them is hands-off rising time.

If you’d like to try making the pretzels in other flavors, I have some flavor variations above the recipe below.

How to make garlic parmesan pretzels

Here you’ll find step-by-step photos showing how to make this recipe. The full recipe, including instructions, is given below.

Step 1: In a 2 cup liquid measuring cup, measure out 1 and 1/4 cups of warm water (105F-115F).

Step 2: Add the brown sugar and yeast and stir to combine. Set aside for 5-10 minutes until the top becomes very foamy and the yeast is activated.

Step 3: While the yeast is activating, measure out 4 cups of bread flour into the bowl of your stand mixer.

Step 4: Add the salt and stir to combine.

Step 5: Add the activated yeast, water, and melted butter to the flour and combine using your hands or a spoon until everything starts to come together and a shaggy dough forms. Make sure to scrape the bottom of the bowl so there are no large pockets of flour left in the bottom.

Step 6: Attach the dough hook to your mixer and knead the dough with the mixer on low for 8 minutes. The dough should come together into a ball and the sides of your bowl should be clean with no sticking. If the dough is too slack, add in
more flour, 2 tablespoons at a time, until it comes together into a ball. Be careful not to add too much flour, as you want a nice smooth and supple dough.

Step 7: Remove the dough ball from the mixer and lightly grease a bowl with a small amount of olive oil.

Step 8: Add the dough ball back to the greased bowl and turn it over a few times to coat the dough ball in a small amount of oil, just to keep the surface from drying out.

Step 9: Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set in a warm place until the dough has doubled in size, about 1 hour.

Step 10: While dough is rising, prepare 2 large rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper, and spray liberally with non-stick cooking spray or line with a silicone baking mat.

Step 11: Punch down the dough and place on a clean counter. Divide dough into 10 even pieces. Roll each piece into a rope, about 20 inches long.

Step 12: To make the pretzel shape, form the rope into an upside down U shape. Take the loose ends of the dough and wrap them around each other twice then fold the ends up to meet the top of the upside down U and press down lightly.

Step 13: Place 5 pretzels on each prepared sheet pan and cover with plastic wrap.

Step 14: Let the pretzels rise until noticeably puffy and bigger, about 20-30 minutes.

Step 15: While the pretzels are rising, fill a large stockpot with 1 gallon of water and bring to a boil.

Step 16: Remove from heat and add in the baking soda. Be careful, as this will cause the water to rise rapidly and may overflow the pot. Return the pot back to a burner set to low. The water should just barely be simmering.

Step 17: Preheat your oven to 400F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.

Step 18: Working in batches, place 1-2 pretzels in the water bath for 1 minute, turning them over half way through. Remove from the water bath with a slotted spoon or metal spider, draining off any excess water and place back into the well
greased baking sheet. Continue until all pretzels have been soaked.

Step 19: Bake the pretzels in the oven for 12-15 minutes, rotating the sheet pans halfway through. The pretzels should be deep brown and the inside should register between 190F and 200F on an instant read thermometer.

Step 20: Remove pretzels to a wire rack to cool while you make the topping.

Step 21: Add the butter to a small saucepan set over a low heat. Once it has melted add the minced garlic and cook for one minute. Do not allow it to brown too much or burn or it will taste bitter.

Step 21: Remove the pan from the heat and add the dried parsley then mix to combine.

Step 22: Brush the top of each baked pretzel with the buttery garlic sauce. If there is any garlic left in the pan, use a small spoon to scoop it out and spread it on top of the pretzels.

Step 23: Sprinkle the grated parmesan and season to taste with sea salt.