In a large bowl, pour the warm water and stir in the sugar. Sprinkle the yeast on top and let rest for 15 to 20 minutes to activate the yeast.
Stir in the fine sea salt and melted and cool plant-based butter. Slowly stir in the bread flour until combined.
On a clean lightly floured surface, knead the dough for 5 to 8 minutes. If the dough is too sticky to handle, add more flour, 2 tablespoons at a time.
Shape the dough into a ball and place in a clean and lightly oiled large bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a damp kitchen towel and place the bowl in a warm area to rise for 60 to 90 minutes or until the dough has doubled.
While the dough is rising, line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside. Preheat oven to 400ºF.
Once the dough has risen, heat the water to boiling and slowly add the baking soda to make baking soda bath.
Cut the dough into 6 pieces; start by cutting the dough ball in half, and then cut each half into 3 pieces with a bench scraper.
Roll a piece of dough out to a 16 to 18-inch long rope, or however long your cutting board is. Cut each rope into 2-inch pieces with the bench scraper. You will get 8 to 11 pieces.
Place the pieces of dough you get from one rope in the baking soda water for approximately 30 seconds. Scoop them out with a frying ladle and carefully line them up an inch apart on your parchment-lined baking sheet. Repeat this process until the baking sheet is full. Sprinkle each piece with pretzel salt.
Bake at 400ºF for 15 minutes, or until the tops are brown. While the first batch is baking, I work on the remaining half of the dough.
Let cool for 5 minutes and serve immediately with vegan horseradish aioli (link below), mustard, or vegan queso.
Notes
While the oven is preheating, make this easy vegan horseradish aioli.You can use a KitchenAid mixer with the dough hook attachment instead of kneading by hand. Knead for 5 to 8 minutes at the slowest speed while adding the flour slowly until you get a smooth and elastic dough.Freeze the baked pretzel bites, after they have cooled, for up to 1 month. Place them in freezer-safe ziplock bags in a single layer so they don't stick together.Reheat at 350°F, from frozen, for about 15 minutes. I don't recommend storing them in the fridge or at room temperature since this will affect the texture. These pretzel bites are best enjoyed fresh out of the oven.This recipe was inspired by Peter Reinhart's recipes for white breads in The Bread Baker's Apprentice.