Combine the water, sugar, salt and yeast and let it form a foam. Takes about 5 minutes.

Weigh out 22 ounces of flour. This is roughly 4 1/2 cups of flour. Using a scale ensures everything is exactly the same each time.

Add the flour and butter to the yeast mixture and combine on low using a dough hook.

Turn the machine up to medium and let it go until the dough pulls away from the edges and gets shiny.

Brush a bowl with vegetable oil and transfer the dough to it. The dough is sticky so grease your hands too. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise for an hour or until doubled.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Line 2 half-sheet pans with parchment paper and lightly brush with vegetable oil.

Bring 10 cups of water and the baking soda to a rolling boil in an 8-quart saucepan or roasting pan.

Clean a large surface and lightly grease it with vegetable oil. Turn the dough out of the bowl onto the surface.

Portion the dough out into 8 pieces. Then roll each piece into a 2 foot long snake.

Form the dough into a U-shape.

Hold the ends of the rope, cross them over each other and press onto the bottom of the U in order to form the shape of a pretzel. It will probably take you a couple of tries to get it down.

Place each formed pretzel onto a parchment-lined half sheet pan that has been lightly brushed with vegetable oil.

Place the pretzels one at a time in the boiling water/baking soda mixture for 30 seconds. Remove with a large spatula and place back on the parchment lined sheets.

Brush with a beaten egg yolk and then dust with the salt. If you don't have eggs, brush with melted butter and add salt.

Bake for 12-14 minutes at 450 degrees. When golden brown remove from the oven. Let cool on a rack for at least 5 minutes before serving.