Deutsche Küche Bavarian Soft Pretzels

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I have fond childhood memories of going to the mall and ordering hot soft-baked pretzels from Hot Sam. The first Hot Sam pretzel stand opened in a mall in Michigan in the 1960s. In the 1990s, the Mrs. Fields cookie company bought the pretzel chain along with another pretzel company, Pretzel Time. By the early 2000s, all of the locations began operating under the Pretzel Time name, and Hot Sam was no more.

You can still purchase hot soft pretzels in malls today from chains such as Wetzel’s Pretzels or Auntie Anne’s. Or, you can buy soft pretzels a couple of times a year at Aldi. The discount grocery store stocks pretzels occasionally as part of its German week, when Aldi gives a nod to its German roots and sells various German- or German-inspired products including schnitzel, savory strudel, sweet strudel, whole grain mustard, peanut puffs, German style pickles, doppel cakes, doppelino sandwich biscuits, frangipane tarts, cream cakes, indulgent cakes, potato dishes, cabbage dishes, and more.

Among those German foods at Aldi are soft pretzels. During German week, Aldi usually sells them in both the twisty variety and as pretzel sticks. When in stock, you’ll find the in the Aldi Find freezer aisle.

Deutsche Küche Bavarian Soft Pretzels

Deutsche Küche Bavarian Soft Pretzels cost $4.49 for a 17.57-ounce box at the time of publication. These are a product of Germany. They’re sold frozen and include six soft-baked pretzels (divided into two plastic-wrapped packages inside the box) plus a salt packet. That comes out to about 75 cents per pretzel or about 26 cents per ounce, which is a lot less than what you’d pay at the pretzel stand at the mall. For additional comparison, Walmart was selling SuperPretzel soft baked pretzels for about 50 cents per pretzel or about 23 cents per ounce at the time of publication. So you might be able to find cheaper soft pretzels at other grocers, but I doubt they’re imported from Germany.

These are an Aldi Find, so they’re only in stores for a short time. Each store gets one shipment, and once that sells out, they’re gone until the next German week at Aldi. The grocer usually hosts a German week once in the spring and once again in the fall. Aldi does not offer online ordering for items that aren’t in stock at your area store.

Ingredients include wheat flour, water, salt, yeast, malted wheat flour, dextrose, emulsifiers, stabilizer, and acidity regulator. If you’re looking out for allergens, these contain wheat and soy. The box advertises these as a “naturally lactose free food.”

Deutsche Küche Bavarian Soft Pretzels

Nutrition information and ingredients. (Click to enlarge.)

One box contains six 1-pretzel servings. One pretzel has 210 calories, 1.5 grams of total fat (2% DV), 1 gram of saturated fat (5% DV), 2,060 mg of sodium (90% DV), 43 grams of total carbohydrates (16% DV), and 2 grams of total sugars.

The sodium content is sky high for these pretzels, but keep in mind that most of that is probably from the salt packet. If you don’t sprinkle the entire salt packet on your pretzels, the sodium count is most likely going to look less scary, and these still have good flavor even if you don’t use the whole salt packet.

The box has baking instructions. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Cover a baking sheet with parchment paper and place frozen pretzels on the sheet. Spray pretzels with water, then sprinkle the salt packet over the pretzels. Bake the pretzels for about 5 minutes.

Once the pretzels are baked, they can be eaten as is, or the box shows them being dipped in a whole grain mustard, which Aldi usually sells during German week. My family prefers to dip these in Aldi cheese sauce, just like I used to do when I’d get pretzels at the mall as a kid.

Deutsche Küche Bavarian Soft Pretzels

Pretzels after baking, ready to serve.

These pretzels are chewy on the outside and soft on the inside, and my family doesn’t miss mall pretzels when I keep a box of these in our deep freezer. We also like that we can customize the amount of salt we add to the pretzels. They’re always a hit when German week comes around at Aldi.

The Verdict:

Deutsche Küche Bavarian Soft Pretzels are large, soft, chewy baked pretzels just like what you’d get at the mall. These are sold as part of the twice-a-year German week at Aldi, and they’re not to be missed.

About Rachael

Rachael is the Co-founder of Aldi Reviewer. When she isn't busy shopping at Aldi, she enjoys cooking, gardening, writing gothic romance, and collecting more houseplants than she probably should. You can learn more about her at rachaelsjohnston.com.

2 Comments

  1. Caution: Can become addictive. For even more sinful carby goodness, sprinkle with everything bagel seasoning.

  2. Hannilore Verkaden

    In Germany you eat the Pretzels with butter only, slice it in half.

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