Frozen Soft Pretzels in an Air Fryer

Doneness

Crust is deep mahogany-brown with the classic Bavarian sheen; surface salt is visibly stuck on (not pooled in the basket); pretzel is firm but pliable when picked up by the loop (a fully-cooked-from-frozen pretzel does not flop in the middle); a torn open piece releases steam and shows a soft chewy interior — not gummy, not dry.

Technique

Add pretzels frozen, no thaw. Brush or mist the surface with water and apply the salt packet that comes in the box (about ¾ of the packet for 4 pretzels — the full packet is salt-bomb territory). Single layer with at least ½ inch between each so the airflow can wrap. Flip at 3 minutes — pretzels sit flat on the grate and the underside stays pale without a flip. For pretzel BITES (Pretzilla / Super Pretzel Bites), shake the basket at 2 minutes instead of flipping.

Oil & seasoning

No oil on the pretzel itself. Mist or brush the surface lightly with WATER (not oil) before salting — the moisture re-hydrates the surface starch so the included coarse-salt packet actually sticks and so the crust gets the classic shiny Bavarian sheen rather than a matte dry look.

Watch out for

• !Brush with water, not oil. The Bavarian-style shine comes from a brief lye / baking-soda bath the pretzel got at the factory; water reactivates that surface so the salt sticks and the crust crisps. Oil makes a soft greasy crust that won't hold salt.
• !Apply the included salt packet AFTER misting with water, BEFORE the cook — pre-cook salt fuses onto the hot crust and stays put. Post-cook salt slides off the cool shine.
• !Do not exceed 350 °F. The malt-syrup-and-soda surface turns from mahogany-shine to scorched-bitter-black in under 60 seconds above 350 °F, and that scorch tastes like burnt coffee.
• !Pretzel BITES are a different cook — toss with a teaspoon of melted butter before loading (they have less surface area to hold the included salt) and shake at 2 min instead of flipping; whole pretzels stay flat in the basket.