Vegan Pretzel Buns

Vegan Pretzel Buns

Homemade Vegan Pretzel Buns have a beautiful golden crust, are soft and chewy, salty and buttery, and incredibly delicious! Enjoy them as a snack with some mustard, serve them alongside some soup, dip them into vegan cheese dip, or use them as a burger bun!ย 
My Notes:
Prep Time25 minutes
Cook Time30 minutes
Rising time:1 hour
Total Time1 hour 55 minutes
Meal Type: Appetizer, Snacks
Special: 10 Ingredients or Less, Freezer-Friendly, Kid-Friendly, Nut-Free, Seasonal (Cold Weather), Soy-Free
Tool: Oven, Stove
Servings: 12 small buns or 8 burger buns
Ingredients
For the vegan pretzel dough:
  • 3 tablespoon(s) white sugar
  • 2 1/4 teaspoon(s) instant yeast
  • 1 1/2 cup(s) warm water think bath water temperature
  • 1 tablespoon(s) melted vegan butter plus more for greasing the bowl
  • 1 teaspoon(s) salt
  • 3 3/4 cup(s) all-purpose flour plus more as needed
For the baking soda bath:
For topping:
  • 2 tablespoon(s) melted vegan butter
  • flake salt for sprinkling
Instructions
To make the dough:
  • In a large bowl whisk together the sugar and yeast. Then add in the warm water and mix. Cover the bowl with a clean kitchen towel then let rest for 10 minutes. The mixture should be very foamy. If it isn't foamy, your yeast is likely too old so you should purchase new yeast and try again.
  • Add the melted vegan butter, salt, and flour to the yeast mixture and stir in until a shaggy dough forms. Lightly flour a clean work surface and turn the dough onto the surface. Knead the dough for 3 - 5 minutes until it comes together into a nice firm ball of dough. If the dough gets sticky when kneading it, dust it with more flour as often as needed.
  • Lightly grease a large clean bowl with more melted vegan butter. Put the dough into the greased bowl, and turn the dough around in the bowl so that the dough ball gets lightly coated in vegan butter. Cover the bowl with a clean dish towel. Let rise somewhere warm for 1 hour until doubled in size. The oven with just the light turned on is a great place to rise dough.
To shape the buns:
  • Preheat your oven to 400ยฐF (200ยฐC). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
  • Once the dough has doubled in size, you can punch it down and remove it from the bowl. Cut into 12 even pieces if making small buns, or 8 even pieces if making larger burger buns, and shape each piece into a ball. Place the balls on the prepared baking sheets.
To cook the buns:
  • For the baking soda bath: pour the 10 cups of water into a large pot and bring to a simmer. Stir in the baking soda, it will foam a lot and then settle. Drop two buns at a time into the bath and boil for just 20 seconds. Use a slotted spoon or spatula to remove the buns and place them on the baking sheets. Repeat with the remaining buns. (The baking soda bath is what gives the buns that dark brown color, without it they would be white and doughy).
  • To decorate the buns: once all of the buns have been in the bath, use a sharp knife to score an "x" on the top of each bun. Lightly brush each bun with melted vegan butter and sprinkle them with flake salt.
  • To bake the buns: bake at 400ยฐF (200ยฐC) for 20-25 minutes or until a deep golden. Let cool for 10 minutes and enjoy warm or allow to cool completely and store in a sealable bag at room temperature for 2 - 3 days or you can freeze them. Enjoy as a snack with mustard, serve with soup or salad, or use them as a burger bun. To re-warm then buns, pop them in the microwave for about 15 seconds.
Nutrition
Serving: 1 bun (recipe makes 12 buns) | Calories: 181kcal | Carbohydrates: 34g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 3g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.01g | Sodium: 1985mg | Potassium: 64mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 134IU | Vitamin C: 0.01mg | Calcium: 14mg | Iron: 2mg
Did You Make This Recipe?Tag @itdoesnttastelikechicken on Instagram and Hashtag #easyveganmealplan