Pretzel Hot Dogs
It’s been almost two years since we posted our Soft Pretzel Bite recipe. Today we have a riff on them that’s fun and easy…Pretzel Hot Dogs! They are easy to make and keep really well so you can make a batch and freeze them for easy snacks or another meal altogether. We find they don’t last beyond the initial serving but, if you don’t have a bunch of hungry mouths to feed, they freeze really well.
Pretzel Hot Dogs are great for parties (finger food!) or as a fun dinner for adults and kids alike!
Allow dough to rise about 1 hour.
Roll into 18″ long rope.
Wind the dough rope around the hot dot, securing at each end and leaving a bit of the hot dog ends exposed.
Boil briefly in baking soda water.
Brush with egg wash.
Pretzel Hot Dogs
- 1 ½ cups warm water
- 2 Tbsp light brown sugar
- 1 package active dry yeast (2 ¼ teaspoons)
- 3 oz unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
- 2 ½ tsp kosher salt
- 4 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- Vegetable oil
- 3 quarts water
- ½ cup baking soda
- 1 egg, beaten with 1 Tbsp water
- 18 hot dogs (see note below)
Note: We made 12 pretzel hot dogs and found that there was enough leftover dough to make a tray of pretzel bites. You can either do this, as well, or you can make all 18 pretzel dogs.
Combine the 1 ½ cups water, sugar, yeast and butter in the bowl of a stand mixer. Whisk together and let sit for 5 minutes. Attach a dough hook to the mixer. Add the flour and salt and mix on low speed until combined. Increase the speed to medium and continue mixing with dough hook until dough is smooth and forms a sort of ball, about 4 minutes.
Meanwhile, oil a large bowl with the vegetable oil. Remove the dough from the mixer, shape into a ball with your hands and place in the oiled bowl. Turn the dough to coat and cover with plastic wrap or a damp kitchen towel. Place in a warm spot and let rise until the dough is doubled in size, about an hour.
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
Coat two baking sheets with spray oil.
Bring 3 quarts of water to a boil in a large pot (we use a dutch oven) over high heat. Carefully and slowly add the baking soda. If you add it too quickly, the water will boil over and make a mess so proceed slowly.
Remove the dough from the bowl and place on a flat surface. Roll out a piece of dough into a rope about 18 inches long and ½ inch thick. Starting at one end of the hot dog, wrap the dough rope around, tucking the end under the rope, in a spiral making sure there are no spaces between the dough. If the dough rope is too long, pinch off the excess and tuck the end under pressing to secure.
Boil the pretzel wrapped hot dogs in the water and baking soda solution about 3-4 dogs at a time, depending on the size of your pot. Boil for 30 seconds and remove with a slotted spoon or spatula and arrange on prepared baking sheet. Make sure they’re not touching.
Beat the egg and water together and brush over tops of pretzel hot dogs.
Bake for 12-15 minutes until deep golden brown, turning and rotating pans halfway through baking.
Pretzel dogs will keep in the refrigerator for 3 days or can be frozen in an airtight container for up to one month. To reheat, bake in 350° oven for 5-7 minutes from refrigerator or 10-12 minutes from frozen.
Makes 18 hot dogs.