Hot Dog Pretzels – This classic American snack with mini hot dogs wrapped in fluffy pretzel blankets is incredible. They make the perfect party food or a fun snack for the kids. Plus, they’re absolutely adorable. 🤩
Who doesn’t love homemade pretzels? They’re fluffy, cute, and a touch fancy, elevating hot dogs from “kids’ food” to an elegant appetizer. Let’s just say they fly off the platter whenever I take these to a party.
Honestly, they’re not hard to make, either. All you need to do is make the pretzel dough, wrap the hot dogs, and bake! So, the recipe is less labor-intensive than you might imagine.
Pretzel Hot Dog Aesthetics
Want some picture-perfect pretzel dogs to show off on Instagram? The key to a fancy pretzel crust is to dip the wrapped hot dogs in boiling baking soda water before baking them. That helps caramelize the pretzel dog, giving it a rich and dark brown color. Yeah, the original pretzel recipe uses lye, but that’s not kid-friendly.
If going for fancy, don’t skip dipping them in the baking soda solution. However, if you’re making them for the fifth time this week because your kids can’t get enough, you can bake them without dipping them. Trust me, it’s not the end of the world, and they still taste fantastic. 😅
Recipe Ingredients
- Pretzel Ingredients – Milk, sugar, active dry yeast, flour, butter, and salt make up the dough.
- Hot Dogs – Full-sized or cocktail hot dogs will work fine in this recipe. All beef, pork, or chicken hot dogs are also good.
- Baking Soda – Giving the dough a quick dip in boiling water with baking soda makes a pretzel a pretzel.
- Egg – You’ll need an egg for the egg wash to give the pretzels a nice shine.
- Finishing Touches – Kosher salt flakes, sesame seeds, parsley flakes, garlic, you can pretty much top these off with whatever you feel like to make them extra special.
How to Make Hot Dog Pretzels
Make the Pretzel Dough
- Activate Yeast – Mix warm water and yeast in the bowl of a stand mixer. Let it sit until the yeast dissolves and starts bubbling – for about 5 minutes. (Photo 1)
- Liquid Ingredients – Combine the milk, butter, sugar, and salt in a microwave-safe bowl. Then microwave for about a minute. Stir until the sugar and butter melt. Avoid getting it too hot so it doesn’t kill the yeast.
- Make Dough – Dump everything into the yeast mixture and mix for 2 minutes on medium. Next, add about 4½ cups of flour and continue mixing until a soft dough forms. It will start pulling away from the side of the bowl. (Photo 2)
- Knead – Turn out the dough on a lightly floured surface and knead for 5-6 minutes. (Photo 3)
- Rise – Place the pretzel dough in a greased bowl, covered loosely with a clean cloth, and let it rise in a warm, draft-free place for 1-2 hours or until the dough has doubled.
- Make Pretzels – Punch the dough down and place it on a lightly floured work surface. Divide the dough into 18-20 pieces. Roll each piece into a rope to wrap around the hot dogs or sausage.
Assemble & Make the Hot Dog Pretzels
- Preheat the oven to 425℉ (220℃). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Wrap the pretzel dough around the hot dogs, leaving about an inch of hot dog peeking out on each end. Tightly pinch the dough at the seam to secure it. (Photos 4-6)
- Boil – Next, bring water to a boil and add the baking soda. Place the wrapped pretzel dogs in the boiling water for about 30 seconds. Remove them with a slotted spoon and place on a paper towel to soak up excess water. Repeat the process with the rest of the pretzel dog. (Photo 7)
- Transfer the hot dog pretzels to the prepared baking pan, positioning them so they don’t touch. (Photo 8)
- Egg Wash – Finally, brush each pretzel dog with the egg yolk mixture and sprinkle with salt, sesame seeds, or your spice of choice.
- Bake for about 15-17 minutes until golden brown.
- Serve – Let them cool for a couple of minutes and serve with mustard, ketchup, or your dipping sauce of choice.
Recipe Variations
- Swap out the dogs! Any sausage you like to make these works, so pick your favorite.
- Make it an everything pretzel. Sometimes, I mix a teaspoon of everything bagel seasoning into the egg wash before I bake these. It’s quite tasty, if I do say so myself!
- Get cheesy. Feel free to wrap up the hot dogs alongside a strip of cheddar cheese (or any other cheese you love). After baking, they’ll feature fluffy pretzel hot dog buns and melty cheese. 🤤
- Homemade dinner rolls will work instead of the pretzels.
Tips and Tricks
- If your dough seems too sticky at first, add more flour, a little at a time, until it reaches a soft dough consistency.
- If you only have regular hot dogs but want mini pretzel dogs, cut them in half before wrapping them. They’ll be a little bigger than bite-sized but still mini enough to be adorable.
- Place 2-3 pretzels on a large slotted spoon to streamline the baking soda water step. Dip them in the water for 30 seconds and pull them straight out on the same spoon.
Make-Ahead Instructions
These taste incredibly fresh out of the oven. However, you can make them a day ahead and reheat them in the oven for about 10 minutes at 350℉ (175℃). Just refrigerate them in an airtight container ’til then. Or freeze them for up to three months and reheat them in the same way.
Serving and Storage Instructions
Serve these bad boys fresh out of the oven or at room temp – it’s your call! Make sure you have some fun dipping sauces, too.
Store leftover pretzel hot dogs in the fridge in an airtight container for 3-5 days. Reheat them in the oven or your microwave.
What Goes With Hot Dog Pretzels
If you’re making a meal of these, serve them with seasoned fries and maybe a quick wedge salad. For an appetizer buffet, serve them alongside pizza rolls, spinach artichoke dip, and crispy chicken wings. 🎉
More Amazing Party-Worthy Foods to Try
This blog post was originally published in January 2014 and has been updated with additional tips and beautiful photos
Hot Dog Pretzels
Ingredients
- 1 cup (240ml) warm water
- ½ cup (120ml) milk
- 2 tablespoons (25g) sugar
- 1 package active dry yeast (2¼ teaspoons)
- 4 tablespoons (56g) unsalted butter
- 1 teaspoon (5g) kosher salt
- 4½-4¾ cup (540-570g) all-purpose flour
- 10 cups (2.4l) water
- ¾ cup baking soda
- 1 whole egg, beaten with 1 tablespoon cold water for the egg wash
- Garnishes (garlic, parsley flakes, sesame seeds, or kosher salt)
- 18 mini hot dogs or two 14-ounce packages of cocktail sausages drained and patted dry
Instructions
- Mix warm water and yeast in the bowl of a stand mixer. Let it sit until the yeast dissolves and starts bubbling – for about 5 minutes.
- Combine the milk, butter, sugar, and salt in a microwave-safe bowl. Then microwave for about a minute. Stir until the sugar and butter melt. Avoid getting it too hot so it doesn't kill the yeast.
- Dump everything into the yeast mixture and mix for 2 minutes on medium. Next, add about 4½ cups of flour and continue mixing until a soft dough forms. It will start pulling away from the side of the bowl.
- Turn out the dough on a lightly floured surface and knead for 5-6 minutes.
- Place the pretzel dough in a greased bowl, covered loosely with a clean cloth, and let it rise in a warm, draft-free place for 1-2 hours or until the dough has doubled.
- Punch the dough down and place it on a lightly floured work surface. Divide the dough into 18-20 pieces. Roll each piece into a rope to wrap around the hot dogs or sausage.
- Preheat the oven to 425℉ (220℃). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Wrap the pretzel dough around the hot dogs, leaving about an inch of hot dog peeking out on each end. Tightly pinch the dough at the seam to secure it.
- Next, bring water to a boil and add the baking soda. Place the wrapped pretzel dogs in the boiling water for about 30 seconds. Remove them with a slotted spoon and place on a paper towel to soak up excess water. Repeat the process with the rest of the pretzel dog.
- Transfer the hot dog pretzels to the prepared baking pan, positioning them so they don't touch.
- Finally, brush each pretzel dog with the egg yolk mixture and sprinkle with salt, sesame seeds, or your spice of choice.
- Bake for about 15-17 minutes until golden brown.
- Let them cool for a couple of minutes and serve with mustard, ketchup, or your dipping sauce of choice.
Tips & Notes:
- If the dough seems too sticky at first, add more flour, a little at a time, until it reaches a soft dough consistency.
- If you only have regular hot dogs but want mini pretzel dogs, cut them in half before wrapping them. They’ll be a little bigger than bite-sized but still mini enough to be adorable.
- Place 2-3 pretzels on a large slotted spoon to streamline the baking soda water step. Dip them in the water for 30 seconds and pull them straight out on the same spoon.
- Please remember that the nutritional information is a rough estimate and can vary significantly based on the products used in the recipe.
Doreen says
Hello! At what points do u use the butter and baking soda. Mine are in the oven right now. Thanks always!
ImmaculateBites says
You use melt the butter with the other ingredients in the microwave. Add the baking soda to the boiling water.
Africanbites says
Kelsey, did you let it rise? It should be pliable and easy to work with after the dough has risen.Give it one more try- maybe it is the yeast. If it is too soft add a little bit more flour.
kelsey says
I was about to make the pretzel Dog today but the dough was kind of hard and falling apart, was very difficult to form a smooth rope. The dough is just sitting there now because I don’t know what to do with it. What might be the problem? I did half of what the recipe calls for. Thanks.
Africanbites says
I am keeping my fingers crossed. You can do it.
turtle66 says
I have a great grand son who i babysit 3 days a week, he would absolutely love these. He will be over this Wednesday. Wish me luck. 🙂
Alliey says
The things we will do for out children! I’m loving your blog and planning to try some of your recipes soon. My son is too young to be all about hot dogs yet (thank goodness) but I have a feeling his daddy would not object to having some of these pretzel dogs in the meantime.
Africanbites says
Count your days Alliey and be glad for them….when he starts there no stopping. Thanks for stopping by!
Michelle says
I love getting pretzel bites when I’m at the mall. Thank you for sharing this homemade recipe. Looks delicious!
Africanbites says
Me too! Michelle. Thanks.
Kira - HealthAble Old Soul says
Looks like my dog! Hee Hee!