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I made a mistake and put the baking soda in the pretzel dough! Instead of using it for its intended purpose ( Boiling the pretzel dough in it before baking.) It was a box mix: Pretzel Creations Homemade baking mix.

Should I just toss it or is it going to be okay? Is there any way to counter act the baking soda. It is still in a dough ball. The packets were not marked and I thought the baking soda was the yeast package.

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  • btw you don't boil pretzels in baking soda. You dip them in a (non-heated) solution of lye (or baking soda, which is less dangerous). Bagels are boiled in a solution of malt syrup and baking soda
    – CobaltHex
    Commented Apr 23, 2021 at 10:10

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I made this same mistake because I didn't read the directions all the way through. After realizing what I had done, I did a search and came across this post. Since I didn't see a response about going ahead and baking anyways, I decided might as well.... I can report back:

WORST. PRETZELS. EVER.

They were extremely bitter and performed terribly in the oven. I cannot describe how bitter they turned out, but compare it to how bitter bitter melon is, douse it in kerosene, light on fire, then put that fire out with baking soda and there you have it.

=€

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Taste the uncooked pretzels. That's the key. The baking soda won't affect how they bake; if the uncooked pretzels taste OK, they'll be fine. That's my opinion, there is disagreement, see the comments. If you do end up baking them, we'd love to hear the results.

As Didgeridrew mentions in comments, skip the soda in the boiling step. If the pretzels taste bad because of the soda in the dough, there isn't anything you can do to make them OK again.

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    The manufacturer's site says it comes with 1/4 cup of baking soda... that's going to leave quite a lot of bitterness. If the dough doesn't taste too bad, I would boil it in plain water (there's no point in adding more soda to the water when you've got so much in the dough).
    – Didgeridrew
    Commented Dec 16, 2014 at 1:26
  • I disagree with the "won't affect how they bake" part, that much of a pH change in the dough will change the texture a lot. The "taste and see" part is indeed the only advice possible here.
    – rumtscho ♦
    Commented Dec 16, 2014 at 10:06
  • @rumtscho I don't think the soda would affect the baking (much anyway) because there is no acid. I'm afraid it's moot though, I suspect that a large quantity of soda will make the pretzels taste awful, and I don't think there is anything to be done about that.
    – Jolenealaska ♦
    Commented Dec 16, 2014 at 15:42
  • @Jolenealaska it won't create much leavening, but the gluten behavior is very dependent on pH.
    – rumtscho ♦
    Commented Dec 16, 2014 at 17:41
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    Make sure it is baking soda, not "baked soda" or (even worse but unlikely in a premade kit) sodium hydroxide, before eating something straight that contains it...
    – rackandboneman
    Commented Feb 8, 2016 at 7:55
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As for this old question, if anyone in this situation is up for an experiment, try slowly working in some vinegar or another acid, like lemon juice. It will react with the baking soda and produce carbon dioxide and salt. So you could at least have very salty pretzels instead of bitter.

While the end result might still be too salty (or sour) to use for pretzels, it might still be edible as some kind of dinner roll. Worst case scenario, after adding enough acid to neutralize the baking soda, add water/oil until the dough is very soft, then let it relax, and stretch it verrrry thin. Brush on a little oil and seasonings of choice (probably not salt though), and bake briefly. Break apart and you can have some kind of crackers.

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