Pretzel is a bread snack for beer. This pretzel is as much an integral part of Germany as the well-known sausages. Today, there are many varieties of this dish.
History of origin
There are interesting legends about the creation of a pretzel. The most beautiful one tells that this pretzel was invented by a talented baker, who was very guilty before the Bavarian king. The governor told him to come up with bread through which it would be possible to look at the sun three times.
Another interesting story is told about this pretzel. The pretzel was allegedly invented by monks as a token of gratitude to the Creator. The shape of the pretzel resembles hands crossed in prayer. Also, the appearance of this bread product is associated with the prohibition of the churchmen on "pagan bread", which resembles the sun in its shape.
The history of pretzel is closely related to the history of Germany itself.
This pretzel has become a visiting card of German bakeries since the XIV century. Then the bread product was considered elite baked goods, the right to make it had to be earned.
In 1919, the Ditsch bakery appeared, which still bakes the best pretzels.
Many holidays are associated with this pretzel in Germany. At the famous Oktoberfest in Bavaria, it is always served with a foamy drink. In July, a carnival parade along the Rhine is held in honor of this bread. And in the city of Mainz, the queen of pretzels is chosen annually.
How to eat pretzels
Buttered pretzel is a traditional breakfast dish for people in southern Germany. However, many enjoy crunchy pretzels with cheese, ham, sausage or pâté.
Sweet lovers spread the pretzels with jam. Salted pretzels are a popular snack with beer and German sausages.
And in other regions of Germany, breakfast is not complete without a pretzel. It is often served with both butter and jam for sugarless green tea.
The pretzel goes well with meat dishes. Pretzels without butter will be an excellent addition to sauces and fatty broths. You can also drink a pretzel with milk.
The classic recipe for salted pretzels
The traditional pretzel recipe is very simple: flour, yeast, water and malt. As you can see, there is a religious context here as well - foods are not prohibited for use in fasting. Immediately before baking, the product must be dipped in a soda solution. To prepare such a solution, you will need 1 liter of water and 1 tablespoon of baking soda. Bring it to a boil, reduce heat and boil each pretzel in it for 30 seconds.
For 250 g of flour, you need 125 ml of water, 1 tsp. dry yeast and a little malt. In addition, the baked goods must be well salted.
Knead the dough of all the ingredients and put it in a warm place for 1.5-2 hours. Also sprinkle the pretzel with coarse salt on top.
How to cook Bavarian pretzel
Bavarian pretzels are plump and crunchy and also have a characteristic flavor. To make 6 pretzels, we need:
- water - 300 ml,
- yeast - 40 g,
- flour - 500 g
- sugar - 1 tsp,
- salt - 1 tsp,
- butter - 15 g.
For soda solution:
- water - 1.5 l.,
- soda - 6 tablespoons
You also need to have butter for greasing and coarse sea salt for sprinkling.
Mix water, sugar and yeast in a deep bowl and beat with a mixer until the yeast is completely dissolved. Add flour, salt and butter. Knead an elastic dough that does not stick to your hands. We spread it on a floured work surface and divide it into 6 equal parts.
Meanwhile, in a saucepan, bring 1.5 liters of water to a boil and add soda there. Stir until the soda is completely dissolved and remove from heat. We take one piece of dough and roll a sausage up to 50-60 cm long from it. Then we twist the pretzel.
Dip it in hot water for 15 seconds, remove, transfer to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and sprinkle with salt. Do the same for each piece of dough.
Leave the pretzels to “rest” on the baking sheet for 20-30 minutes. In the meantime, preheat the oven to 250 ° C. After the time has elapsed, place the pretzels in the preheated oven.
The oven needs 20-25 minutes, depending on the features of the oven. The pretzels should brown well. We take the finished products out of the oven and grease them with a thin layer of butter.
Palmbrezel Pretzel Recipe
Palmbrezel means "willow pretzel". Originally from Swabia, this pretzel is based on sweet yeast dough. It is customary to decorate such a product with multi-colored sugar. The cooking process is very simple:
- Sift 350 g of white flour to oxygenate it. Add salt to taste, 10 g dry yeast and some vanillin.
- Mash 100 g of sugar and 1 chicken egg in a separate container. Add 125 ml warm milk and 250 g melted butter to the egg mixture.
- Combine prepared products in one container and knead a dense dough. This can be done using a bread maker or mixer with dough attachments.
- We send the finished products to the refrigerator for 15 minutes.
- We take out 400 g of puff pastry (factory) from the freezer and defrost it at room temperature.
- We take out the chilled yeast dough and divide it in half, roll each part into a thin layer.
- We put on top of each other through one four pieces of puff and yeast dough, press firmly against each other, cover with foil and place again in the refrigerator.
- After 60 minutes, we take out the workpiece and cut it into strips, roll it into a tourniquet and give it the shape of a pretzel.
- We spread the pretzels on a baking sheet covered with parchment, let stand for 15 minutes, grease with an egg, sprinkle with sugar and chopped nuts (pearl sugar is usually used for sprinkling).
It is necessary to bake the product in the oven until golden brown.
Nussbrezel pretzel recipe
Nussbrezel pretzel - puff pastry pretzel sprinkled with nuts. You can prepare it from ready-made puff pastry. If you decide to knead such a dough yourself, then prepare the following products:
- flour - 350 g,
- butter - 200 g,
- icing sugar - 100 g,
- vanilla sugar - 30 g,
- salt - ¼ tsp,
- eggs - 3 pcs.
Mix the flour with powdered sugar, vanilla sugar, drive eggs into the mixture and add butter (or margarine), knead the dough and put it in the cold for one hour.
The finished dough (factory) must be thawed in the refrigerator.
If the base for the pretzel is ready, you can go directly to the recipe for making the Nussbrezel pretzel:
- Finely chop 100 g of marzipan with a knife.
- Rub the lemon zest on a fine grater.
- Grind 100 g of hazelnuts, fry them in a dry frying pan, stirring without fail so that the finished product does not taste bitter.
- We put all these products in a blender, add 1 chicken egg, 5 tablespoons of sugar, ½ tsp. salt and four tablespoons of rum, 1 tsp. cinnamon. Whisk the whole mixture until smooth.
- Roll out the finished dough and divide it into two 25x25 cm squares. Brush them with water and apply the nut filling in an even layer. Place the workpiece in the cold for 15 minutes.
- After the specified time has elapsed, cut the dough into strips, roll each into a rope and shape into a German pretzel.
Place the pretzels on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, brush them with whipped yolk, and bake until golden brown in a preheated oven.
Finally
Bretzel is a national German pretzel, in honor of which holidays are held. It is eaten for breakfast, consumed with beer, served with broth and meat. The classic recipe does not involve any special products in the composition, the cooking method is also very simple. The only peculiarity is the soda solution, in which the raw workpieces are dipped. However, today there are many varieties of these delicious baked goods.Pretzels are salty and sweet, they are prepared from yeast and puff pastry, sprinkles are used, and they are made with different fillings.
