For the pretzels, dissolve yeast and salt in water. Add the flour little by little and knead the whole thing into a firm dough.
Knead properly for 10 minutes until the dough separates from the bowl. Form a ball and cover with a wet tea towel and let rise at room temperature for 2 hours.
Now knead the dough vigorously again. The pretzel dough should be smooth and dry and not sticky.
Form a roll and cut into 9 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a string about 50 cm long, thinner at the ends, and shape into a pretzel.
Cover the remaining pieces of dough with the tea towel in the meantime so that they do not dry out.
Let the pretzels rise for 10 minutes.
Grease the baking tray carefully. Bring water with baking soda to a boil in a wide saucepan and stir until the baking soda is completely dissolved. Place 1-2 pretzels at a time in the baking soda for 30 seconds.
Keep submerging the pretzel with the slotted spoon so that the surface is also moistened. Then take them out, let them drain a bit and put them on the baking tray.
Finally, sprinkle with coarse salt. If necessary, brush the surface carefully with baking soda so that the salt adheres.
Place the pretzels on the middle rack in the cold oven and bake at 225 degrees for 25-30 minutes until brown and crispy.