Started by Valentina Russo (@valentina_r) ·
pretzels are dipped in lye and that's why they're brown
6 sources · 28 min down the hole
How I got here
- Started with
- Why are pretzels dipped in lye?
- Ended at
- “baked baking soda instead of lye pretzels”
The Trail
- “why are pretzels dipped in lye” (google.com)
- Pretzel (en.wikipedia.org)
- Lye roll (en.wikipedia.org)
- Maillard reaction (en.wikipedia.org)
named after Louis Camille Maillard, who described it in 1912
- Caramelization (en.wikipedia.org)
different thing. just sugar, no proteins needed
- “baked baking soda instead of lye pretzels” (google.com)
What I came away with
The Maillard reaction between amino acids and sugars speeds up a lot in alkaline conditions. A quick dip in a weak lye solution gives a deep brown, glossy, very pretzel-flavored crust in a normal oven. Baking soda that's been baked first (which makes it more alkaline) gets you some of the way there.
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