Dill Pickle Ranch Pretzels Recipe - A Tangy and Addictive Snack! (2024)

FAQs

Are pretzels fried or baked? ›

Pretzels are uniquely shaped baked snacks manufactured from a lean and stiff fermented wheat flour dough. They are typically treated with a sodium hydroxide or other alkali salts prior to baking and topped with coarse or Kosher salt. They are available in a variety of flavors and colors.

For already-made pretzels, top with a mixture of melted butter, diced garlic, parsley, and parmesan cheese. If you're making your own, you can stuff them with mozzarella cheese, cook, and then top them with the garlic butter! Some people create pretzel logs around string cheese, while others opt for shredded cheese.

If you think pretzels are the “safer” of the traditional snack items, think again. “While this salty treat can be low in fat, they hold no redeeming nutritional value whatsoever,” Grotto says. “In a side-by-side comparison, 1 ounce of pretzels raised blood sugar higher than 1 ounce of potato chips.”

Pretzels may be better than some fatty chips, but four out of five nutrition experts surveyed by Time say if you're trying to eat healthy, pretzels shouldn't be your go-to snack. Although pretzels are low-fat, they are also pretty paltry on the protein and fiber front, and they can be quite high in sodium and carbs.

On the one hand, lye gives pretzels their distinctive flavor, kind of a sharp flatness, if that makes sense. It's what keeps a pretzel from tasting like pretzel-shaped bread. On the other hand, lye is ridiculously dangerous. It will burn you if it gets on your skin and blind you if it gets in your eyes.

When you place the nutritional information of pretzels and potato chips side-by-side, you'll notice why pretzels are the healthier choice. Pretzels have less calories than potato chips and less saturated fat. As we all know, excessive calories and saturated fat can ruin a diet.

Pretzels don't have many downsides as an occasional snack. Soft pretzels and flavored pretzels are usually higher in calories, salt, sugar, and fat than hard pretzels, so you may want to limit your intake of those varieties.

Ways to Enjoy Your Homemade German Pretzels

While salt's usually the go-to topping, a typical pretzel will see a side of cheese sauce or mustard to dip. Other toppings for pretzels have expanded to include cinnamon, powdered white/brown sugar, glazes (typically sweet ones), seeds, and nuts.

Pretzel Facts

Pretzels without salt are called baldies.

Lye is primarily used to make pretzels, and it's the reason for their unmistakable shiny, mahogany color. To prepare, shaped pretzels are dipped in a lye bath, then baked in the oven. This method can also be used with rolls or buns.

What kind of sauce goes with pretzels? ›

Must Have Mustard

In fact, all throughout the Oktoberfest tents, you'll spot lederhosen- and dirndl-clad attendees chomping mustard-slathered pretzels. Bring it home in stein-worthy style with this recipe from Sunny Anderson, made with mayonnaise, honey, Dijon mustard and lemon juice.

Regardless of what kind of pretzel you get, they will be high in salts and sugars which can be problematic for a dog's digestive system. Being that pretzels contain a lot of carbs as well; dogs shouldn't be fed pretzels at all.

If you bust out a big-ass jar of pickles and start dunking them in ranch dressing, people might give you side eye. But dunking pretzels in a bowl of this creamy, delicious dressing delivers all that crunch and tang without the judgement.

Pretzels in America

Besides covered in salt, hard American pretzels commonly come dipped in chocolate or yoghurt, while soft ones are served with mustard or liquid cheese. Different flavors and toppings are popular lately including nuts, seeds, cheese, veggies and glazes.

Salt is the most common seasoning, or topping, for pretzels, complementing the washing soda or lye treatment that gives pretzels their traditional skin and flavor acquired through the Maillard reaction. Other toppings are mustard, cheeses, sugar, chocolate, cinnamon, sweet glazing, seeds, and nuts.

In Bavaria's world-famous beer gardens, pretzels are also enjoyed with obatzda, a strong, cheesy dip made with butter, hot paprika, and Camembert. Frankfurt is home to a milder, creamier version known as schneegestöber, also enjoyed with pretzels and glasses of sour flat apple cider named apfelwein.

Like white rice, pretzels have a high glycemic index, meaning they can cause blood sugar levels to rise. The resulting insulin boost transports tryptophan into your brain and helps to increase melatonin, nature's sleep aid.