This is the easiest recipe for air fryer soft pretzels you will ever find. You will want to make these pretzels all of the time after you try them in the air fryer.
I found this recipe years ago, and knew I had to make it in my air fryer. It was so easy and the pretzels were perfectly golden in no time at all.
What you need to make Air Fryer Soft Pretzels
Every time we make a trip to the mall, we stop to get a soft pretzel with cheese. The warm bread dipped into melted cheddar cheese is a favorite snack everyone loves.
The biggest reason I like this recipe, is the ingredients are all common things we keep on hand. Because of this, we can make air fryer soft pretzels any time we have a craving for them.
I use my Cosori 5.8 quart air fryer to make these, but they can made in any air fryer. Just watch them the first time you make them, as you may need to adjust the time by a minute or two.
Besides an air fryer, to make these soft pretzels, you will need:
- all purpose flour
- sugar
- salt
- dry yeast
- water
- unsalted butter
Before cooking them in the air fryer, you will need to prepare an egg wash. This will help the pretzels turn a beautful golden color as they cool. To make the egg wash, you will need:
- egg
- water
How to make Soft Pretzels in the Air Fryer
These pretzels really are the easiest to make. Even though there is yeast in the recipe, there are no long drawn out tricks or tips to follow.
To make these pretzels:
- To prepare your air fryer basket, lightly coat the basket with olive oil, or use air fryer parchment paper liner, set basket aside.
- In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, salt, and yeast.
- Pour in the warm water and the melted butter, and stir together with a fork until the dough begins to thicken and looks flaky.
- Remove the dough from the bowl, and on a lightly floured surface, knead the dough until it becomes smooth. Form the dough into a ball shape.
- Cut the ball of dough into 8 pieces and then roll into ropes.
- Twist each rope into a pretzel shape and place into the air fryer basket.
- In a small bowl, whisk the egg with a spoonful of water, brush the top of each pretzel with the egg wash.
- Air fry at 320 degrees Fahrenheit for 12-14 minutes, until the dough is cooked and the tops are golden brown
FAQ's About Air Fryer Soft Pretzels:
What are a few options of dips and sauces for pretzels?
We love traditional cheddar cheese sauce, but you can add sprinkles of mozzarella cheese and pepperoni to the pretzels before cooking, and then dip them in pizza sauce. Other sauce suggestions are, mustard, honey mustard, or ranch.
How do I get salt to stick to the pretzels?
I sprinkle course salt after I've done the egg wash. If you need more, you can brush a light coat of water, or even melted butter on top of the pretzel, and then sprinkle on top.
MORE AIR FRYER RECIPES:
📖 Recipe
Air Fryer Soft Pretzels
Equipment
- Air Fryer
Ingredients
- 2 ¼ cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 2 tsps salt
- 1 tablespoon dry yeast
- 1 cup warm water
- 2 tablespoon unsalted butter melted
Egg Wash
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon water
Instructions
- To prepare your air fryer basket, lightly coat the basket with olive oil, or use air fryer parchment paper liner, set basket aside.
- In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, salt, and yeast.
- Pour in the warm water and the melted butter, and stir together with a fork until the dough begins to thicken and looks flaky.
- Remove the dough from the bowl, and on a lightly floured surface, knead the dough until it becomes smooth. Form the dough into a ball shape.
- Cut the ball of dough into 8 pieces and then roll into ropes.
- Twist each rope into a pretzel shape and place into the air fryer basket.
- In a small bowl, whisk the egg with a spoonful of water, brush the top of each pretzel with the egg wash.
- Air fry at 320 degrees F for 12-14 minutes, until the dough is cooked and the tops are golden brown.
Notes
Nutrition
*Nutritional information is a calculated guesstimate. Please note that this can change with different brands and modifications you may make to the recipe. For the most accurate information, use a nutritional calculator with the exact brands and measurements you're using with each recipe.
©AirFryingFoodie 2023
Jim Reid
The final product was okay. I tried cooking the pretzels at 320 for 15 minutes. They weren't done. I added five more minutes. They still weren't done. So I finished them up at 375 for five more minutes. They were perfectly done, though they weren't perfect. I can attribute that to my air fryer.
I ran into one big problem. I pretty sure I used exact measurements for the ingredients, but the dough never got "flaky" as in the illustration, so I kept adding bits of flour until the dough was manageable--it was quite gooey.
Is it because I used bread flour instead of all-purpose? Also I used just a packet of rapid rise yeast, it was slightly less than a tbsp. of yeast. Was the type of yeast the reason, or the amount?
I've never baked anything from scratch requiring yeast. It was my first try at that. I'm wondering what went wrong. Any suggestions?