Add the flour, salt, and sugar to a large bowl and set aside.
Add the yeast to the hot water and stir. Once the yeast has fully dissolved, pour the water and yeast into the bowl of flour. Mix with your hands, combining all of the ingredients well. Knead the dough for about 2 minutes.
Cover with a kitchen towel and allow the dough to rise in a draft-free place for about 15-30 minutes.
Grab a cookie sheet or cover your work surface with a dusting of flour.
Tear the dough into 6 equal sized balls and place them onto the work surface.
Preheat the Air Fryer to 390 degrees. While the Air Fryer is preheating, take each ball and tear off a chunk of dough. Roll it in between your hands to create a rope of dough, about 1 inch thick in diameter.
Cut the dough into 1 1⁄2 - 2 inch strips.
Place the dough bites onto the prepared air fryer basket. Make sure to leave enough room in between each bite.
Cook the bites for about 6-7 minutes (**depending on your brand of air fryer. We used a Ninja Foodi Pro 5 in 1 for this recipe and cooked them for about 6 - 6 1⁄2 minutes.)
Carefully remove the pretzel bites from the air fryer basket and immediately brush with melted butter and sprinkle with pretzel salt. (Use kosher salt if you can’t find pretzel salt.)
Serve warm with a side of your favorite cheese sauce or mustard. Makes about 180 bites!
Video
Notes
You can use instant yeast (quick rise) for this recipe. Simply watch the rise, you want the dough to about double in size.
Bread flour may be used in place of all purpose flour.
Water can be hot from the tap or heated in the microwave. Just be sure to stir microwaved water to make sure the heat is evenly distributed. Use a thermometer to check the temp. You want it about 110 degrees F.