Chef Elsa
Allerheiligenstriezel
A rich, buttery braided bread that Austrian godfathers bring their godchildren on All Saints' Day. The golden six-strand braid is as much ritual as recipe, and the kitchen smells like love while it bakes.
Culinary Explorer
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Salzstangerl
Created by
Crisp, golden caraway salt sticks from the Austrian Bäckerei tradition, shaped by hand and baked until they crack when you break them. The bread that makes a Jause complete.
Breads
Austrian
Weeknight
Picnic
30 min
Active Time
15 min cook•1 hr 45 min total
Yield12 Salzstangerl
Every Bäckerei in Austria has a basket of Salzstangerl by the register. They sit there looking simple, almost plain, and that's exactly why people underestimate them. A good Salzstangerl has a thin, shattering crust rolled in coarse salt and caraway seeds, and a soft, slightly chewy interior that pulls apart in long strands when you break it open. You eat them with cold cuts, sharp mountain cheese, pickled gherkins, and a smear of good mustard. This is Jause food. The Austrian answer to the question of what to eat between meals, or instead of a meal entirely if you're honest about it.
I grew up eating these on our trips to Austria with Gretel and my grandmother Eva. We'd stop at a Bäckerei on the way from Salzburg to the Salzkammergut and Eva would buy a paper bag full of Salzstangerl and Laugenstangerl and we'd eat them in the car, warm, tearing off pieces and passing them around. Gretel always said the caraway was what made them Austrian. Take away the Kümmel and you've just got a bread stick. Put it back and suddenly you're in Vienna.
The dough is straightforward. Flour, yeast, a little butter and milk, a touch of sugar to feed the yeast. You knead it until it's smooth, let it rise, then roll each piece into a tapered stick with your palms. The shaping takes a few tries to get right but there's nothing fussy about it. Brush them with egg wash, press them into a scattering of caraway and coarse salt, and bake them hot until the kitchen smells like an Austrian bakery at six in the morning. That smell alone is worth the effort.
Salzstangerl belong to Austria's Kleingebäck tradition, the family of small baked goods that also includes Semmel, Kipferl, and Mohnflesserl. The use of caraway (Kümmel) as a defining flavor in Austrian bread baking traces back centuries and distinguishes Austrian Gebäck from its neighbors. Salzstangerl became a fixed part of the Jause, the mid-morning or afternoon cold meal that is a cultural institution in Austria, served on wooden boards alongside Aufschnitt (cold cuts), cheese, pickles, and mustard.
The technique, the tradition, and the story behind every dish.
Discover Culinary ExplorerIngredients
plain flour
Quantity
300g
plus extra for dusting
dried yeast
Quantity
7g
whole milk
Quantity
150ml
lukewarm
unsalted butter
Quantity
30g
softened
granulated sugar
Quantity
1 teaspoon
fine salt
Quantity
1 teaspoon
egg yolk
Quantity
1
milk (for egg wash)
Quantity
1 tablespoon
whole caraway seeds
Quantity
2 tablespoons
coarse salt or flaky sea salt
Quantity
1 tablespoon
for topping
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| plain flourplus extra for dusting | 300g |
| dried yeast | 7g |
| whole milklukewarm | 150ml |
| unsalted buttersoftened | 30g |
| granulated sugar | 1 teaspoon |
| fine salt | 1 teaspoon |
| egg yolk | 1 |
| milk (for egg wash) | 1 tablespoon |
| whole caraway seeds | 2 tablespoons |
| coarse salt or flaky sea saltfor topping | 1 tablespoon |
Equipment Needed
- •Large mixing bowl
- •Baking tray with parchment paper
- •Kitchen scale
- •Wire cooling rack
- •Pastry brush for egg wash
Instructions
- 1
Make the dough
Warm the milk until it feels like bathwater, not hot. If you can't hold your finger in it comfortably, it's too warm and you'll kill the yeast. Stir the sugar and yeast into the warm milk and let it sit for five minutes until it turns foamy on top. That foam tells you the yeast is alive and working. No foam means dead yeast, and you should start again with a fresh packet.
If you're using fresh yeast (Germ, as Austrians call it), crumble it into the milk and stir until dissolved. Fresh yeast is more forgiving and gives a slightly better flavor. Austrian bakers almost always prefer it. - 2
Knead until smooth
Put the flour and salt in a large bowl and make a well in the center. Pour in the yeast mixture and add the softened butter. Bring the dough together with your hands, then turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for eight to ten minutes. You're looking for a dough that's smooth, soft, and springs back when you press it with your finger. It should feel alive under your hands, elastic and willing. If it's sticky, add flour a pinch at a time. If it's stiff and dry, wet your hands and keep kneading.
- 3
Let the dough rise
Shape the dough into a ball and place it back in the bowl. Cover with a clean tea towel and put it somewhere warm for about an hour, until it's doubled in size. The top of the fridge works. Near a warm oven works. Don't put it in direct heat or on a radiator. You want steady, gentle warmth. The yeast needs time, not force.
Gretel always said you can't rush dough any more than you can rush broth. Walk away. Do something else. It'll be ready when it's ready. - 4
Shape the Stangerl
Punch the dough down gently and turn it out onto a clean surface. Divide it into twelve equal pieces. A kitchen scale helps here. Each piece should be about 40 grams. Take one piece and roll it under your palms into a stick about 18 to 20 centimeters long, tapering slightly at both ends so they're thinner than the middle. Use light pressure and let your hands do the work. If the dough keeps springing back, let it rest for two minutes and come back to it. The gluten is tightening up and it needs a moment to relax.
Don't flour your work surface for the shaping. You need a tiny bit of grip between the dough and the counter to create tension as you roll. Too much flour and the dough just slides around without stretching. - 5
Glaze and top
Preheat your oven to 210°C (410°F). Line a baking tray with parchment. Beat the egg yolk with the tablespoon of milk to make a thin wash. Spread the caraway seeds and coarse salt on a flat plate or board and mix them together loosely. Brush each Stangerl with the egg wash on all sides, then lay it on the caraway and salt mixture and roll it gently, pressing lightly so the seeds and salt stick. Place the Stangerl on the baking tray with a couple of centimeters between each one. They won't spread much, but they need air around them to crisp evenly.
- 6
Bake until golden
Slide the tray into the middle of the oven and bake for 13 to 15 minutes. You'll know they're done when they've turned a deep golden brown all over and the kitchen smells intensely of toasted caraway. Tap the bottom of one. It should sound hollow. If the tops are coloring too fast, drop the temperature by ten degrees and give them another two minutes. Pull them out and let them cool on a wire rack. They'll crisp up further as they cool. Eat the first one warm, because you've earned it. Mahlzeit!
Chef Tips
- •The quality of your caraway makes a real difference here. Buy whole caraway seeds, not ground. Ground caraway turns bitter in the oven, but whole seeds toast and release a warm, almost sweet fragrance. If your caraway has been sitting in the cupboard for two years, replace it.
- •Use proper coarse salt for the topping. Fine table salt dissolves into the egg wash and disappears. You want crystals that stay visible, that crunch when you bite through them. Flaky Maldon works. Coarse sea salt works. Anything with texture.
- •Salzstangerl are at their best the day they're baked. By the second day, the crust softens. You can revive them in a hot oven (200°C) for three to four minutes, but fresh is always better. Plan to bake them the morning of your Jause if you can.
- •For a Jause board, serve these alongside Schinken (cured ham), Bergkäse (mountain cheese), cornichons, pickled peppers, radishes cut into roses, and a good sharp mustard. That's a meal in itself and one of the finest things Austrian cooking has to offer.
Advance Preparation
- •The dough can be made the evening before and left to rise slowly in the fridge overnight, covered tightly. Pull it out an hour before shaping to take the chill off. Cold-risen dough actually develops more flavor.
- •Shaped and topped Salzstangerl can sit on the baking tray for up to 20 minutes before going into the oven. Cover them loosely with a tea towel so they don't dry out.
- •Baked Salzstangerl freeze well for up to a month. Reheat from frozen in a 200°C oven for five minutes to restore the crust.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nutrition Information
1 serving (about 45g)
Calories
130 calories
Total Fat
3 g
Saturated Fat
2 g
Trans Fat
0 g
Unsaturated Fat
1 g
Cholesterol
22 mg
Sodium
690 mg
Total Carbohydrates
21 g
Dietary Fiber
1 g
Sugars
1 g
Protein
4 g
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