- ¼ cup (30 grams) whole-wheat or rye flour
- 1 cup (120 grams) bread flour
- 1¼ cup (30 grams) barley flour
- ½ cup (4 ounces) plus 1 tablespoon water, divided
- ¼ teaspoon active dry yeast
- ½ teaspoon rapadura or cane sugar
- 1 tablespoon brown rice syrup
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 egg white
- ½ tablespoon baking soda
- 2 tablespoons coarse sea salt
- Sift the whole-wheat flour, bread flour, and barley flour together and set aside.
- Warm ½ cup of the water to 115°F. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the warm water, yeast, sugar, and brown rice syrup. Mix well on low speed and let stand for 5 minutes. Add the salt and half of the flour mixture and mix on low speed to create a loose dough, about 1 to 2 minutes. Switch to the dough hook and, with the mixer on low speed, add the remaining flour mixture a little at a time until the dough comes together into a ball. Increase the mixer speed to high and knead for 3 minutes. Punch down the dough and continue to knead on medium-low speed for another 2 minutes, until the dough is smooth and not sticky. If the dough is very sticky, add a bit more bread flour.
- Cover the dough and let it proof for 1 hour in a warm spot.
- Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment and set aside.
- Divide the dough into 4 pieces. Keep the dough you aren’t working with covered. Working with one piece at a time, pinch off tablespoon-sized pieces of dough and roll into long 1/4-inch-thick logs. Place the logs on the prepared baking sheets. Repeat with the remaining dough.
- In a small bowl, whisk the egg whites with the baking soda and remaining 1 tablespoon water. Brush each pretzel generously with the egg wash and sprinkle with the coarse salt.
- Bake until the pretzels are a deep golden brown, 10 to 15 minutes, rotating the baking sheets every 5 minutes. Cool on a wire rack, and serve long or break into smaller sticks.