Name: Sourdough Pretzel Bites
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 760 min
Ingredients: 1 cup filtered water; 2 tbs butter (softened); 2 tbs honey; 1 1/2 cups sourdough starter (active and bubbly); 2 1/2 tsp sea salt; 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour; 12 cups filtered water; 1 tbs baking soda; 1 tbs coconut sugar; 2 tbs topping of choice

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These sourdough pretzel bites are easy, fun, healthy, and oh-so-delicious! No need to reach for conventional yeast because these little bites of heaven are long-fermented. Go feed your sourdough starter and let’s make some pretzel bites!

Super fluffy sourdough pretzel bites are the perfect snack, or a fun appetizer to bring to a party. This recipe can also be made into traditional soft sourdough pretzels too.

Related: Sourdough Pretzels

Related: Sourdough Bagels

sourdough pretzel bites with various toppings on a wooden block next to a white bowl of cheese sauce

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Equipment Needed

Water filter – do yourself a favor and get a good one, we love our Berkey!

Dutch oven – or a heavy-bottomed pot to boil water.

Stand Mixer with the dough hook attachment – optional, but really nice to have – double kneading time if kneading by hand.

Dough scraper – optional

Grain mill – VERY optional, but it’s nice to mill your own fluffy flour!

Sourdough Starter – My favorite kitchen “tool” is my active sourdough starter! Learn how to make your own sourdough starter in 7 days right here.

Large Bowl – I like using glass or ceramic for sourdough foods so the metal doesn’t kill off my yeast.

Baking Sheet – even though my food rarely touches the actual metal, I like stainless steel instead of aluminum.

Parchment paper – What I cover my baking sheets with if I’m not using silicone mats.

Sourdough Pretzel Bites Highlights

No yeast sourdough pretzels – This is a true sourdough recipe – no yeast required! If you want to use inactive sourdough discard, or if you want to speed up the rising time, you could add a tsp of yeast.

Variety of topping options – Endless options for topping these sourdough pretzel bites. Sweet, savory, you name it!

Can freeze for later – freezing sourdough pretzel bites makes for a super quick, easy, and healthy snack later.

Easy Shaping – “Shaping” sourdough pretzel bites simply consist of using a dough scraper to chop up the dough into little bites.

Ingredients for Sourdough Pretzel Bites

You probably already have all the ingredients you need to make sourdough pretzel bites. Then you just need to grab your favorite seasoning and get to baking!

ingredients to make long fermented sourdough pretzels. all ingredients are in white bowls and have labels saying what they are

Dough Ingredients

Filtered water – super important to use filtered water so contaminants in your tap water don’t kill off your yeast.
Butter – grass-fed preferably.
Honey – a great natural sweetener for this dough.
Active sourdough starter – make sure she’s nice and bubbly and passes the float test for best results. Using discard will require some yeast.
Sea salt – Sea salt has lots of healthy minerals and table salt is devoid of nutrients.
All-purpose flour – You could also use einkorn flour and reduce the water by 20%.

Boiling Ingredients

Filtered water
Baking soda – this gives the pretzels their famous pretzel texture on the outside.
Coconut sugar – helps to caramelize the outside of the pretzel crust. You could also use molasses or brown sugar.

Instructions (with pictures) for Sourdough Pretzel Bites

Making the Pretzel Dough

Whisk together water, butter, honey, and sourdough starter

bowl of a stong mixer with the ingredients for sourdough pretzel dough next to a white kitchenaid mixer and jars of flour and oats

Add 3 cups of flour, then using the dough hook knead on low for about 5 minutes.

white kitchenaid mixer kneading sourdough pretzel dough with glass jars of flour and oats next to it

Coat your rising bowl will coconut oil.
Once kneading is finished, let the dough rest in the bowl for 15 minutes.
Next, add your salt, and more flour if needed (add more flour if the dough is super sticky and not pulling away from the sides of the bowl. I find about 3 1/4- 3 1/2 cups total is best).
Knead for another 10 minutes.
Turn off the mixer and do the windowpane test. If light shines through your dough before it rips, your dough is ready for its long ferment.

doing the windowpane test with sourdough pretzel dough inside of a glass bowl next to a white stand mixer

windowpane test with sourdough pretzel dough

Transfer to your greased bowl and let ferment for 8-24 hours (shorter during warmer months, longer during colder months).

sourdough pretzel dough after kneading and before fermentation with beeswax wrap overtop — Before the long ferment

long fermented sourdough pretzel dough in a glass bowl after having fermented for 12 hours — Before the long ferment

Once your dough has doubled in size, you can turn it out onto a floured surface and divide into 12-14 pieces.

using a dough scraper to slice sourdough pretzel dough into pieces

Roll the pieces of sourdough pretzel dough into long ropes (about 1 inch thick).

Slice each rope into bite-size pieces about 1.5 – 2 inches long.

using a dough scraper to slice sourdough pretzel bites on a granite countertop

Place your pretzel bites on a parchment-lined baking sheet and let rise for about 30-60 minutes until they’ve puffed up.

sourdough pretzel bite dough after shaping and prior to their final rise — Before final rise

puffed up sourdough pretzel bites after the final rise ready for boiling — Before final rise

Pretzel Bite Boiling Instructions

Preheat the oven to 425°F while the pretzels rest.
Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil then add coconut super and baking soda.

adding baking soda using a measuring spoon to a white dutch oven filled with boiling water

Using a slotted spoon, place about 4-5 pretzel bites into the water at a time and let boil on that side for about 2 minutes or less.

using a slotted spoon to submerge sourdough pretzel bite dough into a pot of boiling water

Pretzel Bite Topping and Baking Instructions

Immediately after removing the pretzel bites from the boiling water, place the sourdough pretzel bites back onto the lined baking sheet and sprinkle with your topping of choice.

sprinkling everything bagel seasoning, parmesan cheese and sea salt onto the boiled sourdough pretzel bites

Bake for about 10-15 minutes until golden brown.

sourdough pretzel bites after baking so they're golden brown

How to Shape Sourdough Pretzel Bites

I do a combination of 3 techniques for rolling the dough:

The first is to roll the dough against the surface of the countertop.
Second is to take the dough in both hands and roll between my hands.
Third is to stretch it out by taking both ends of the dough and let gravity stretch it.

using hands to roll sourdough pretzel dough

Once your dough is rolled out, the shaping couldn’t be any easier, simply use a dough scraper to slice the dough into 1.5-2 inch bites.

How to Store Soft Sourdough Pretzel Bites

Soft pretzel bites are most delicious when eaten day-of. If you’d like to save them for later, it’s best to freeze them while they’re fresh. I recommend making your soft pretzels, setting aside the ones you’ll eat right away then stashing the rest in the freezer once completely cooled.

dipping sourdough pretzel bites into cheese sauce

Room Temperature

Store soft pretzel bites in a paper bag for up to 3 days. You can eat pretzel bites at room temperature or heat them up in the oven or microwave to the desired temperature.

Freezer

To freeze pretzel bites, let them cool to room temperature then individually wrap them in plastic wrap, then toss them in a freezer bag. Store your pretzel bites in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Reheating From Frozen

To reheat your frozen pretzel bites, remove them from the freezer and let them thaw for about 20 minutes, then toss them into the oven or microwave and heat it until heated through.

You can skip thawing in a pinch and heat longer in the oven or microwave.

Sourdough Pretzel Bite Tips

sourdough pretzel bites baked to golden brown topped with seasonings and placed on a wooden block next to cheese sauce

Delay adding salt to the dough – my sourdough recipes always delay adding salt to your dough for about 15 minutes. This is for an important reason! This gives your sourdough starter time to activate in your dough – adding salt too soon will kill off too much yeast and you won’t get optimal results.
Add sugar to water – Don’t skip out on adding the sugar to the pot of boiling water – this is used to caramelize the outside of the pretzel.
Add baking soda – Don’t skip the baking soda in the boiling water – this is used to increase surface gelatinization by breaking down some starch in the pretzel dough, and also gives the pretzels a “pretzely” taste.
Have a separate baking sheet during boiling – It’s nice to have a “working” parchment-lined baking sheet while you’re boiling and topping the pretzels. This helps the extra water to drain off the pretzel bites so the baking sheet you’re actually going to use to bake the bites doesn’t get soggy.

Sourdough Pretzel Bite Topping Ideas

topping ideas for sourdough pretzel bites lined up in a row next to the pretzel bite dough

Sea salt
Zaatar seasoning (similar to my Zaatar bagels)
Everything bagel seasoning
Cheddar cheese
Parmesan cheese
Pepperjack cheese
Dehydrated onions
Poppy seeds
Sesame seeds
Minced garlic
Cheddar and jalapenos
Cinnamon sugar with cream cheese dipping sauce

Sourdough Pretzel Bites Fermentation Timeline

This timeline will allow you to break [pretzel] by 8 am. You can change the timing however works for you, but here is an example.

close up of baked sourdough pretzel bites with everything bagel seasoning

Day 1

12PM – Feed your sourdough starter.
6PM – Mix pretzel dough in a stand mixer, cover, and let sit on the counter overnight.

Day 2

6AM – Shape pretzel bite dough and let rest for another hour.
7AM – Boil pretzel bites, add toppings, and bake.
8AM – Enjoy your sourdough pretzel bites!

How to Make Sourdough Pretzel Bites Healthier

sourdough pretzel bites with toddler hands reaching for one

Sweetener – Use a natural sweetener to sweeten your dough. Honey is a great natural sweetener that is lower on the glycemic index than most sweeteners, it’s unrefined and has great nutrients!
Long fermented – Long-fermented dough provides great gut-healing bacteria. This helps people to digest bread better too.
Quality ingredients – Using quality ingredients will not only help your pretzel bites taste better, but they’ll be much better for you too. Go for organic flour, grass-fed butter, and raw, local honey.
Toppings – This is the area where it’s easy to make a super healthy sourdough pretzel bite take a turn for the worst.

Serving Suggestions

Pretzel bites can be eaten whenever, wherever – there are no rules!

sourdough pretzel bites scattered on a wooden block with a couple bowls of cheese sauce next to them

Entree salad and pretzels – One of my favorite summertime dinners is making a large entree salad with a side of pretzel bites and cheese sauce! You could even replace croutons with these pretzel bites.
Snack with cheese – Pretzel bites are a delicious snack, especially with some cheese sauce, or my favorite Core and Rind cashew cheese sauce.
Bring to a get-together – Bring these sourdough pretzel bites to a get-together with family or friends and everyone will love you!

Can I Make these into Sourdough Pretzels?

Yes! You can use this exact recipe to make sourdough soft pretzels. Everything stays the same except the shaping, and you bake for a little more time.

sourdough pretzels with everything bagel seasoning on top

Head here to see how to make these into Sourdough Soft Pretzels.

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Berkey water filter (we use the Royal because we drink an insane amount of water!)

Thrive Market – 25% off & free gift! (where I get a ton of my ingredients)
Azure Standard: $25 off your order. Code kyrieluke1
Dutch oven
Stand mixer
Boos Block Butcher Block
Grain mill
Dough scraper

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Print the Sourdough Pretzel Bite Recipe

Sourdough Pretzel Bites

Kyrie | Healthfully Rooted Home

Super fluffy sourdough pretzel bites are the perfect snack, or a fun appetizer to bring to a party. This recipe can also be made into traditional soft sourdough pretzels too.

5 from 1 vote

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 20

Long-ferment 12

Total Time 12 40

Course Appetizer, Snack

Cuisine American

Servings 30 pretzel bites

Calories 50 kcal