These easy homemade pretzel dogs are hearty, comforting, and perfect for delivering to friends in need or stocking up for your own family. Plus, they’re freezer-friendly, making them a great way to show love and care through food for someone going through a challenge!
When I had shoulder surgery, a sweet friend brought over these homemade pretzel dogs—and they were an absolute lifesaver! Not only did she make extra for our freezer, but they also became my son’s go-to meal during the whirlwind of a meal train. He loved knowing he could quickly microwave one for just over a minute and skip the mystery dishes (though we were incredibly blessed by our community’s delicious and thoughtful meals—my kid just prefers certain textures over others).
I had considered having another surgery or a baby just to get more pretzel dogs, but I then realized that it might be easier just to ask her how to make them.
*Note— If you go to my church, Steph has dibs on bringing these for our meal train! You will not be disappointed if you are on the receiving end. For everyone else, make these any chance you get to bless someone with a meal!
**Bonus note—did you know you can edit Meal Train entries? One of our friends jokingly added all of my husband’s least favorite foods to her entry, so he changed it to say she was bringing a gourmet meal. Guess what? She showed up with bacon-wrapped filet mignon, green beans, mashed potatoes, balsamic reduction, and chocolate lava cake. It was so fancy, we broke out the good dishes! Our family will forever talk about that meal.
What Makes Pretzel Dogs Perfect for Meal Trains
- They are easy to reheat and eat. From frozen, you can microwave them on a microwave safe plate on high for 1-2 minutes. To reheat them in the oven, preheat the oven to 350°F and cook them on a baking sheet for 8-10 minutes until the hot dog is heated through.
- These are kid-friendly and customizable. You can use any hotdog or sausage you would like. My family loves jalapeño cheddar and I love the Aidelle’s chicken and apple sausage or pineapple and bacon.
- They are great for freezing and stocking up. I always double this recipe because my family goes through them so fast. If I am taking them to a friend, I like to bring extra for later. It is not that much more work to double the recipe and it is such a blessing.
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Now put on a cute apron and let’s get baking!
Ingredients and Substitutions:
- hot dogs or brats- Use any flavor you want of these. From plain old hotdogs to different flavored sausages, there are tons of options. If you can wrap it in dough, you can use it!
- all purpose flour– you can also use bread flour in this recipe.
- warm beer or water- A 24 oz can of Coors Banquet is enough for two batches, with a little left over, and adds a wonderful, slightly sweet flavor. While most of the alcohol cooks out, you can use non-alcoholic beer for the same taste. If you’d rather skip the beer altogether, water works just fine. When I’m bringing this as a meal train to a family who avoids alcohol or has young kids, I always use water.
- yeast- I use active dry yeast. If you use the fast acting yeast, you can skip the proofing step.
- brown sugar– You can use white sugar to proof the yeast if you don’t have brown sugar.
- baking soda- this is important for the water bath. It gives the pretzel bread it’s texture.
- salt- you will need fine sea salt for in the recipe and course salt to top the pretzel dogs. Or, if you are like my friend who always brings these for the meal train, invest in some pretzel salt to really add to the fun.
- egg- this will be brushed onto the pretzel dogs. Add 2 Tbsp. water to make an egg wash. You can also omit this or replace it with melted butter.
How to Make Pretzel Dogs
First, warm up your beer to between 105°F and 110° F. I heat it in the microwave and use my digital meat thermometer to check the temperature. Make sure you give it a stir before checking the temperature.
Pour it into the bowl of a stand mixer and add in the yeast and brown sugar. Whisk it up and let it sit for about five minutes until it is bubbly and happy. This is a good time to start boiling your water.
Next, add in your flour and salt and use the dough hook on low until it is all mixed together and not sticking to the side of the bowl. It should form a workable ball. If it is too sticky, add flour a tablespoon at a time.
Weigh your dough and divide it by the number of hotdogs you have. This recipe makes between 8-10. Alternatively, if you don’t have a scale, just cut it up as close to equal as you can.
Roll each dough ball into a long snake, and then wrap it around the hotdogs. Make sure to wrap it over itself when you start and tuck the end under to keep it from coming apart.
Once your water is boiling, add in the baking soda. Pour it in carefully because it will bubble up like crazy. Don’t freak out— it’s supposed to do that. It’s science.
Drop in your pretzel dogs two or three at a time. Set a 30 second timer. They should be rolling in the boiling water. Remove them after 30 seconds and put them onto a cookie sheet covered in parchment paper.
Whisk your egg in a small bowl with 2 Tbsp. of water and brush the egg wash on each pretzel dog. Then sprinkle on some course salt or other toppings.
Bake for 11-13 minutes until they are a pretty brown. You can turn them once in the oven to help them cook evenly.
Serve them with mustard and enjoy!
Practical Tips For Your Meal Train
When Steph brings these, she puts them into nice disposable to-go containers. I usually just stick them into ziplocks and label them with the kind of hot dog they are. Send these with a bag of salad, fruit and a dessert. Easy Snickerdoodle Blondies or Coconut Lime Bars work great because you can send them in a disposable 8X8 baking pan. It’s best to give dishes that you don’t want returned, so they don’t have to keep track of them. I always keep a stash of “give away” containers for this reason. You can often find great deals at thrift stores if you keep an eye out.
I also save big Costco boxes for delivery. They can hold a ton of food and keep it organized and safe from spilling everywhere in the trunk of your car.
Steph’s Famous Pretzel Dogs
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2¼ tsp active dry yeast 1 packet
- 10 oz beer warmed (110℉-120℉)
- 2 Tbsp brown sugar
- 3¼ cups all purpose flour
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ cup baking soda
- 1 egg large
- 1 tbsp coarse salt (or pretzel salt) for topping
- 10 hot dogs or brats or sausages
optional
- 1 tbsp everything bagel seasoning
- 1 jalapeno
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 450℉. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper *
- Pour the 10 oz beer into a microwavable cup and microwave to between 110℉ and 120℉
- Pour the warmed up beer into the bowl of your stand mixer. Sprinkle the packet (2¼ oz) dry active yeast and 2 Tbsp. brown sugar. Whisk this all together and let it sit for about 5 minutes or so to allow the yeast to bloom. You will know it is ready when it becomes foamy as the yeast activates. If it doesn't get foamy, dump it out and start over with new yeast.
- While you wait for the yeast, prepare the baking soda bath. Fill you pot with 9 cups of water and bring it to a boil. Set aside ½ cup of baking soda. Do not add this yet!Beat the 1 egg in a small bowl, add 2 Tbsp water to it and set it aside. Get your basting brush ready. Clean your counter top so you are ready to roll out the dough.
- When the yeast looks foamy and happy, add the 3¼ cup flour and 1 tsp salt to the stand mixer. Using the dough hook attachment, knead it on low speed for about 3 minutes until the dough comes together into a ball. If the dough is too sticky and not coming together, add more flour (just a tablespoon at a time)
- Dump your dough onto the countertop and form it into a ball. Wet a tea towel and place it over the dough so it doesn't dry out . We are going to be working with this dough for a bit.
- Now you need to figure out how many pretzel dogs you are going to make. If it is a pack of 8, we are going to divide the dough into 8 equal parts. If you have a kitchen scale (which I highly recommend), weigh the dough and divide it by 8. That will give you the weight of each part. I use a bench scraper to cut the dough and set the smaller dough balls back under the wet towel.
- Now roll each piece into a long strand (about 12 inches) and wrap it around the hot dog. Starting at one end, wrap it and pinch it to hold it on. Then pinch the other end to keep it together. Put it back under the towel until it is ready for the baking soda bath.
- Now CAREFULLY dump the ½ cup baking soda into the boiling water. It will bubble up all violently, but this is where the magic happens that give it the unique pretzel texture.
- Place pretzel dogs into the boiling water about 3 at a time. Set a 30 second timer. Remove after 30 seconds with a slotted spoon, letting some of the water come off before putting them on the parchment. The boiling water will cause them to spin, so you don't have to worry about flipping them. Easy peasy.
- Place the wet pretzel dogs onto the parchment lined baking sheet, making sure they are not touching. Brush each pretzel with the egg wash and sprinkle on the coarse salt. You can also use everything bagel seasoning! So good. ***for the spicy dogs, cut up a jalapeño, dip a few pieces into the egg and place them on top of the pretzel. brush a little more with egg to get it to stick.
- Now bake for 11-13 minutes until golden brown.
- Serve with mustard.
6 Comments
My family loves these. They freeze well and can be heated up quickly for an after school snack.
These look so tasty! I bet these would be perfect for game days too 🙂
Absolutely they are! 🙂
These are a fun idea and easier to carry in lunchboxes too. I like that they are totally freezable.
Yes! These are great to take for lunch.
This is a family favorite! I love how easy these are to reheat for my kids who are hungry and want something filling quickly! I also love that I can have spicy or non-spicy for my less adventurous eaters!