Smoked Pretzel Bites With Beer Cheese
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Did you know you can make pretzel bites with store-bought pizza dough? I used to think there was so much work making the dough for pretzels, rolling it out, and preparing everything but then I found this hack!
These pretzel bites are so easy to make and only take a few ingredients. Plus when you serve them up with the homemade beer cheese it’s a match made in carb heaven.
Impress your friends by smoking these pretzel bites along with the beer cheese. This is one of those appetizers that everyone can enjoy around the table or watching the big game!
How to make the pretzel bites
Take your pizza dough out of the refrigerator and let it come to room temperature before you start to work with it.
Take some flour and sprinkle it under the surface you are rolling your dough on. This will help the dough not to stick and roll easier.
The first thing I like to do is push the dough down with my hands and push around the edges trying to make the surface area larger. If there are any air pockets that form, push those down as well.
Take a rolling pin and flatten out the dough until it’s about 7-8 inches around. You do not need a perfect circle, more than likely it will be in an oval shape which is fine.
Next, you are going to cut your dough into 4 even pieces. Then you are going to roll those pieces out into 4 long strands about 12 inches long.
Now take a knife or kitchen shears and snip 1-inch pieces until each piece is cut. These are your pretzel bites!
In a pot, heat up 3 quarts of water along with â…“ cup of baking soda once the water has come to a boil. Be very careful adding in the baking soda and do it slowly as adding in too much at one time will cause the water to get foamy and boil over.
Drop 8-10 pieces of dough into the boiling water at a time and let them cook for 45 seconds and then remove. Do not be alarmed when your dough comes out looking slimy, that is normal!
Do not skip this step. It helps the final texture of the dough to be more like a pretzel than pizza crust and is well worth the extra effort.
Once all the pieces are removed, place them onto some paper towels and pat them dry. Then place them onto a lined baking sheet.
From there take your egg wash and brush it onto each pretzel piece and sprinkle some kosher salt on it. Flip the dough pieces over and repeat on the other side.
Fire up your smoker to 350 degrees and take your tray of pretzel bites and place them in your smoker for 20-30 minutes until they are cooked all the way through.
They will start to get golden and the bottom side will get darker. You can leave them as is or turn them halfway through if they are getting too dark.
Making the beer cheese
For the beer cheese, take a 10-inch skillet over medium heat and add your butter, milk, and flour then stir to incorporate. This is going to help thicken the cheese and make it more creamy as well.
You can also place your skillet on the smoker at the same time you start the pretzel bites. To the skillet add your cheddar and mozzarella cheese. Then add your beer and stir well to incorporate.
I used Miller lite but any lite beer or Pilsner will do the trick. Feel free to experiment with other types of beer as well.
Let the cheese merry together with the beer and get all melted together. Just keep an eye on the beer cheese in case it finishes before the pretzel bites. As long as the cheese doesn’t burn you can keep it in the smoker until everything is finished so it stays nice and hot.
Serve up the pretzel bites with the beer cheese immediately and sit back and admire your hard work! But not for too long. Take one of those delicious pretzel bites and dunk it straight into that cheesy goodness and enjoy!
If you like beer cheese, give our other smoked beer cheese dip a try.
More smoked appetizers to try
- Smoked Queso Dip
- Grilled Buffalo Chicken Dip
- Bacon Wrapped Jalapeño Poppers
- Smoked Candied Bacon: Game Day Favorite
- Smoked Salmon Burnt Ends With Hot Honey Glaze
Ingredients
For the pretzel bites
- 1 lb pizza dough Store bought pizza dough is fine for this recipe
- 2 tbsp kosher salt
- 3 qt water
- â…“ cup baking soda
- 1 large egg
For the beer cheese
- ¼ cup lite beer
- 1 cup cheddar cheese
- 1 cup mozzarella cheese
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1 cup milk
- ¼ cup plain flour
Instructions
For the pretzel bites
- Remove your pizza dough from the refrigerator and let it come up to room temperature.
- Roll out your pizza dough into an 8×8 circle and cut out 4 even pieces of dough
- Roll each piece of dough out into 12 inch pieces and then cut 1 inch pieces using a knife or kitchen shears
- In a large pot bring your water to a boil and add in the baking soda very carefully and slowly so it does not boil over.
- Add your dough pieces into the boiling water for 45 seconds, remove and pat dry with a paper towel
- Lay out your pretzel pieces onto a lined baking sheet and brush on the egg wash and sprinkle kosher salt on top. Flip over and repeat so both sides are covered.
- Place your pretzel bites in a 350 degree smoker for 20-30 minutes, flipping them halfway if needed.
For the beer cheese
- In a cast iron pan, heat up your milk, butter and flour and mix together to make a roux.
- Add your cheddar and mozzarella cheese along with the beer and place into the smoker at 350 degrees.
- Mix together well to incorporate and stir occasionally while the cheese mixture is melting together.
- When the cheese is all melted and everything is incorporated together your beer cheese is done.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated and should be used as an approximation only. If you’re worried you could always add a side of kale.
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