I Used to Hate Pretzels, but These 5 Changed My Mind — Shopping

This thought occurs to me every time I'm on a plane and airline attendants make their rounds: Does anyone actually like pretzels? Why does every airline, and every random corporate social event, offer them? To me, pretzels are the most thankless food ever.

I guess they've got redeeming value as a low-fat snack. They're salty and crunchy. But I have seriously never liked pretzels. Despite the aforementioned characteristics, I always find them to be dry, bland, and never quite as good as I want them to be. Even the big soft ones right out of the oven don't really do it for me. The only time I ever appreciated a pretzel was after running my first half-marathon (#humblebrag) when I was literally so calorie-starved I would have eaten cardboard. Or, in this case, something that tasted like cardboard with some salt crystals on it.

Anyway, I mentioned this to my editor here at Kitchn, and as a result, was challenged to keep trying pretzel varietals until I found some that don't feel like punishment. Shockingly, I did! Here are the surprisingly delicious results of my taste tests.

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