Expert: Robert Connolly - 9/28/2008

Question
What would make a pretzel so hard, it could not only be eaten, it was too hard to even break?  I had bought a package of a store bought brand of Amish pretzels and they were totally inedible.  
I was wondering if it was too much flour in the mix or overbaking?  Or could it have been another ingredient that made it hard as cement?


Answer
thelma,believe it or not,that is exactly how they are supposed to be,i had the same experiance as you did,i bought these amish pretzels and had to hammer them into smaller chunks in order to use them for a party i had,you think it could have been a humid day but no nice and dry so they were ilke trying to eat cement.i think this is done by first baking them conventionally,then adding an extra visit in the oven at a low temperature to remove any residual moisture causing them to become rock hard,they probably start off with an extra firm dough as well which is why they are so dense on top of it.my advise: leave these things to people who have dentists in thier immediate family,people like us have no business messing with a pretzel that can make us look like sparring partners for mike tyson.there are plenty of pretzels we can find that actually break when you bite into them! we live and learn! all the best! bob connolly,www.millsbakery.com