Homemade Soft Pretzels are the ultimate snack and the best dipping option for your favorite cheesy dips! There is no bad way to enjoy a soft, warm, iconic Soft Pretzel!
Mix yeast, coarse salt, sugar, and warm water in a small bowl. Gently whisk until sugar dissolves. Let the mixture stand and bloom about 5-10 minutes.
Add flour into a large bowl and add softened butter. Using a pastry cutter (Or you can use a stand-up electric mixer set on "stir" setting) cut butter into flour until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
Slowly pour yeast mixture over flour mixture, stirring to combine. Using and wooden spoon at first and then your hands to gather dough together and start kneading it.
Once it mostly comes together, turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface, and knead until it is no longer sticky, a few minutes. Place it into a bowl, cover with plastic, and let rise for about 2 hours. (Poke a couple of little holes in the plastic for the gasses to escape. Make sure to keep it in the warm place in your kitchen to help it rise better.)
Twist the Pretzels:
Take the dough out of the bowl and back into a very lightly floured surface.
Cut the dough into 12 pieces, try to keep them even in size, and roll each into a 14-16-inch rope. Form a U shape with 1 rope and twist ends together twice. Fold twisted portion backward along center of U shape to form a circle, then gently press ends of rope onto dough to seal. (Don't worry, they will seal better when the twisted pretzels are left to rise the second time.)
Place twisted pretzels onto a parchment paper covered baking sheet and finish twisting all the pretzels. Cover the baking sheet with pretzels with a clean towel, place it back into a warm plate, and let rise for 45-60 minutes.
Cooking Pretzels:
Preheat oven to 450°. Line a wire rack with a couple of paper towels. Bring a pot of water to boil and carefully stir in baking soda. (Be careful not to fill the pot all the way up.)
Add pretzels to the pot a few at a time, depending on the size of the pot. Boil pretzels in batches until puffed and slightly shiny, 45 seconds to 1 minute per side.
Using a slotted metal spatula, take them out and into the prepared wire rack. Let them dry on paper towel while the next batch if boiling and return them to baking sheet.
Once all the pretzels are done with the boiling step, brush them with butter and sprinkle each pretzel with coarse salt.
Bake until golden brown and cooked through, about 7-9 minutes.