How to Reheat Soft Pretzels – The Best Way
With their crisp crusts and soft, fluffy insides pretzels are loved by many. However, trying to reheat your pretzel while maintaining the same soft and crispy texture can be tricky.
The key to reheating soft pretzels is to introduce some moisture back into the pretzel while keeping it from becoming too soggy.
So how do you reheat soft pretzels? You can reheat soft pretzels using the oven or microwave. The microwave is the quickest, but the best results come from using the oven.
Drizzle water over the pretzel, and wrap it in foil. Set the oven temperature to 325 degrees Fahrenheit, and put the pretzel in the oven for 5 minutes.
Both ways will ensure that your pretzel is reheated properly and is nice and soft, but there are some tricks to use to make sure your pretzel tastes as fresh as possible.
The Best Ways to Reheat Soft Pretzels
When it comes to reheating soft pretzels, you can choose the oven or the microwave. Both result in delicious pretzels!
Reheating Soft Pretzels in the Microwave
Using the microwave to reheat a soft pretzel is the quickest option. You can get your pretzel back to its fresh state in no time at all.
Follow the steps below to make sure that your pretzel doesn’t dry out in the microwave:
- Wet a paper towel until it is just damp.
- Place the soft pretzel on a microwave-safe plate and lay the damp paper towel over the pretzel.
- Place the plate into the microwave and set it on high for 30 seconds.
- When the microwave timer is at 15 seconds, stop it and check the pretzel. If the pretzel is warm enough you can remove it from the microwave. If not, place it back in the microwave for the remaining 15 seconds.
- Remove the pretzel from the microwave and allow it to cool until ready to eat.
Pros of Using a Microwave
The biggest pro of using a microwave to reheat a pretzel is that it gets the job done in a short amount of time. Generally, 30 seconds is all you need to have a reheated, soft pretzel ready to eat.
By using a damp paper towel, you are able to keep the pretzel moist during reheating, so it does not dry out and harden. You will be left with a soft and moist pretzel that tastes deliciously fresh!
Cons of Using a Microwave
The problem with using the microwave is that if you don’t use the paper towel the pretzel will harden and dry out. There is also the risk of wetting the paper towel too much, causing the pretzel to end up wet and soggy.
The pretzel could end up hard and chewy if you leave it in the microwave for too long, even if it is covered with a damp paper towel.
A microwave is the fastest way to heat up your soft pretzel. Just make sure that you follow the above steps to help keep it moist and fresh when it is reheating!
Reheating Soft Pretzels in the Oven
Another option to reheat soft pretzels is to use the oven. This is the method that gets the best results, but it does take a little longer.
Using the oven you are able to reheat the pretzel evenly while keeping it soft and moist on the inside and crispy on the outside.
Follow these steps to reheat a pretzel in an oven:
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
- Slowly drizzle a small amount of water over the pretzel. The outside of the pretzel should be moist, not soggy.
- Wrap the pretzel in aluminum foil, and place it into the oven. Leave it for 5 minutes.
- If you want a crispier exterior, do not wrap the pretzel in aluminum foil, and place it directly onto the middle oven rack.
- After five minutes check if the pretzel is warm enough, remove it from the oven if done.
- If the pretzel needs to heat more, place it back in the oven for another minute or two before checking it again.
- Remove from the oven, take off the aluminum foil and let it cool slightly before eating.
Pros of Using an Oven
The oven will give you the most thorough reheating of your pretzel and is the best way to avoid the pretzel drying out and hardening.
By sprinkling a small amount of water onto the pretzel, and wrapping it in aluminum foil, you will be further preventing it from drying out and instead be keeping it soft and moist.
You can also opt for a crispier finish to the pretzel by not wrapping it in aluminum foil, and instead of placing it directly into the oven on one of the racks.
You will get a deliciously soft pretzel either way.
Cons of Using an Oven
The obvious con of using an oven is that it takes much longer than using a microwave.
You first need to wait for the oven to warm up to the right temperature and leave the pretzel in the oven for up to 10 minutes.
This is a considerably longer process than a quick 30 seconds in the microwave.
You also need to make sure that your oven is at the right temperature, so the pretzel does not burn or harden too much.
Reheating Soft Pretzels
You don’t have to chew your way through a hard pretzel that has lost its fresh taste and soft texture.
By reheating soft pretzels in the microwave or the oven you will have a great tasting pretzel again in next to no time at all.
The key to a soft pretzel is keeping in moisture, so follow the above methods of reheating your pretzels to ensure they are as soft and moist as the moment they were first baked!
Related Questions
Now that you’ve learned the best way to reheat soft pretzels, keep reading to find the answers to your other pretzel-related questions.
How Do You Freeze Soft Pretzels?
If you are not able to eat your leftover pretzels before they might go stale, you can easily store them in the freezer.
Simply wrap them in aluminum foil or plastic wrap and place them into a freezer bag. Store pretzels in the freezer until you are ready to use the above method to reheat them!
The great thing about frozen pretzels is that you do not need to thaw them first. You can reheat them from frozen.
The best method to reheat pretzels from frozen is to use the oven. If your pretzels are already thawed, you can use the microwave.
How Do You Prevent Soft Pretzels From Going Hard During Storage?
When storing pretzels at room temperature, you should do so in a way that prevents them from going hard. To do this, you can wrap the pretzels in a dishcloth and place them into a plastic container.
You can also place the pretzels directly into a paper bag. Then store the pretzels in a cool place.
It is important to note that while this prevents your pretzels from hardening, you will need to bake them or place them in the microwave to get them soft and tasting fresh again.
What Can I Do With Day-Old Pretzels?
If your pretzels are past the point of saving, don’t throw them away. Brush the pretzels with some butter or olive oil and place them into a low-temperature oven to crisp up.
You will have a crispy snack that can be eaten as is, or with some dips or spreads.
Fascinating. 😐 I’m only kidding. Thank you for the great information. Thanks to you I’ll be having my leftover pretzel for breakfast. Yummy.