- Preparation time
- 60 mins
- Cooking time
- 45 mins
- Difficulty
- Easy Recipes
- Serves
- 8 people
- Snack
- September 29, 2016
German Smokies in Fresh Pretzel Buns
German Smokies in Fresh Pretzel Buns. Take your hot dogs to the next level! Fresh pretzel buns, smokies, grilled onions, sauerkraut and mustard.
PrintGerman Smokies in Fresh Pretzel Buns
Ingredients
Scale
Dough:
- 1 cup milk
- 2 Tbsp butter
- 2 Tbsp brown sugar
- 1 package Instant Active Dry Yeast
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 3 cups flour
Boiling Solution:
- 12 cups water
- 3/4 cup baking soda
- 1 egg, lightly beaten with a splash of water
- All beef smokies
- Sauerkraut
- Olive oil
- 1 onion, chopped
- Honey mustard or grainy mustard
- Pepperonccinis (optional, for added heat and tang)
Instructions
- In a small saucepan, heat butter until melted. Add milk and heat through until warm but not hot.
- In a large bowl, combine milk, butter, yeast and brown sugar. Stir in salt and 2 cups of flour and mix until well combined. Gradually add the remaining flour until the mixture becomes a dough. Knead dough by hand or using a stand mixer with a dough hook attachment until the dough is smooth and elastic- roughly 10-12 minutes. Place dough in a large bowl greased with a bit of oil, lay a damp tea towel over top and let it rise until doubled in size- this should take about an hour.
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. In a large pot, combine boiling solution ingredients and heat to a boil.
- Punch dough down and divide into 8 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a log shape. Boil each log for 2 minutes, flipping them over half way through if they seem to just be floating on one side. Using a slotted spatula, remove the boiled buns from the water and place on the parchment lined baking sheet.
- Take a sharp knife and gently run a couple diagonal lines across the top of each bun. This is mostly aesthetic, but I also really like how the dough splits apart and becomes easier to rip this way. Brush each bun with egg wash.
- Bake for 15 minutes and then reduce heat to 350 degrees. Bake for an additional 10 minutes until the buns are evenly browned. I find pretzel buns are best really fresh so if you can, eat them within a day or two or heat them up again before enjoying them.
- Saute onions in a bit of olive oil until they are lightly browned and sweet smelling.
- Using a sharp knife, cut a series of diagonal lines into the tops of your smokies. Once again, this is mostly aesthetic, but I also really how the skin blisters around the incisions and adds some texture. Cook on a barbecue or frying pan on high heat until glistening and lightly browned.
- Place smokie, sauerkraut, sauteed onion and mustard together on a fresh pretzel bun and enjoy!
