Brezensalat (German Pretzel Salad)

A recipe for Brezensalat (German Pretzel Salad)! Slices of pretzels are toasted until golden and tossed with greens in a light honey mustard vinaigrette.

While pretzels rarely have a chance to go stale in our house, this Brezensalat is quite the delicious way to use them up!

Day old pretzels are thinly sliced and pan-fried until golden. Toss the toasted slices with your favorite greens, cherry tomatoes, radishes, cucumbers, Emmentaler cheese, and chives, then serve with a light and sweet honey mustard vinaigrette.

A Few Tips

I pan-fried the pretzel slices in butter and canola oil. Do this in two batches to avoid overcrowding the pan. You can also toast the pretzel slices on each side under a broiler or on a grill. Definitely keep an eye on them. They will cook quickly.

Allow the golden pretzel slices to cool completely to room temperature before adding to the vegetables.

Don’t add the vinaigrette to the salad until right before serving. Otherwise, the pretzel slices will soak up the dressing and lose their crisp texture.

If the honey is too thick to blend into the vinaigrette, heat it for a few seconds on the stove or in the microwave just until runny.

This salad is best immediately after assembling. If you do want to make some part of it ahead of time, the vinaigrette can be prepared up to a week in advance and refrigerated until needed.

The honey mustard dressing will naturally separate with time. Shake in a well-sealed jar for at least 10 seconds or whisk to blend back together immediately before pouring over the salad. 

Notable Ingredients

This Brezensalat is perfect with your favorite leftover soft pretzels. When updating the photos for this recipe, I used a pretzel twisted with a dark wheat dough from Nordic Knot in Reston, Virginia for a fun contrast in color.

I have also made Brezensalat before with leftover pretzel rolls or Silserli. Cut the stale rolls into about 1 inch (2.5 centimeter) crouton-shaped cubes before toasting.

For a more filling lunch, I added some diced Emmentaler cheese. This is completely optional or can be swapped for another favorite Alpine cheese.

Looking for more pretzel-based recipes?

Try my:

• Homemade Pretzel Dogs
• Neujahrsbrezel (German New Year’s Pretzel)
• Pretzel Bread

This recipe was originally posted in September 2015 and updated in July 2022.

Brezensalat (German Pretzel Salad) Recipe

Adapted from Essen & Trinken

Print Pin

5 from 2 votes

Brezensalat (German Pretzel Salad)

A recipe for Brezensalat (German Pretzel Salad)! Slices of pretzels are toasted until golden and tossed with greens in a light honey mustard vinaigrette.

Course Salad

Cuisine German

Keyword German, Germany, pretzel, salad, vinaigrette

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 5 minutes minutes

0 minutes minutes

Total Time 25 minutes minutes

Servings 4 -6 Servings

Ingredients

Pretzel Croutons:

• 2 large soft pretzels day old
• 2 tablespoons (30 milliliters) canola oil divided
• 2 tablespoons (30 milliliters) unsalted butter divided

Vinaigrette:

• 1/4 cup (60 milliliters) canola oil
• 3 tablespoons (44 milliliters) white wine vinegar
• 1 1/2 tablespoons dijon or sweet mustard
• 1 1/2 teaspoons honey slightly heated to become runny if too thick to blend
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Salad:

• 5 ounces (140 grams) mixed salad greens
• 4 radishes thinly sliced
• 5 ounces (140 grams) cherry tomatoes halved
• 2 small cucumbers or one large peeled if desired and sliced
• 4 ounces (113 grams) Emmentaler or other Alpine cheese, diced, optional
• Fresh chives thinly sliced, for garnish

Instructions

To prepare the pretzels:

• Thinly slice the pretzels about 1/4 inch (0.5 centimeter) thick.
• Place a large pan over medium low heat. Add 1 tablespoon (15 milliliters) of the canola oil and 1 tablespoon (15 grams) of the butter.
• Once the butter is melted, add half of the sliced pretzel pieces. Cook, stirring often, until golden brown on all sides. Transfer to a plate and repeat with remaining butter, canola oil, and pretzel slices.
• Allow to cool to room temperature.

To make the vinaigrette:

• In a small bowl, whisk together the 1/4 cup (60 milliliters) canola oil, white wine vinegar, mustard, and honey until well combined and blended.
• Season as desired with salt and pepper. Refrigerate until needed. Whisk again if separated before serving.

To assemble the salad:

• In a large bowl, toss together greens, radishes, tomatoes, and cucumbers.
• Immediately before serving, add in the toasted pretzel slices, cheese if using, and chives.
• Drizzle with the vinaigrette and serve immediately.