Here's the link for the lye pellets I purchased years ago, but
apparently the company still sells them. This was the only site that
(at the time) I could find that didn't require an affiliation with a
university or a chemical or scientific license of some sort. I
didn't research any further with this company now (I bought my
pellets pre-9/11), but hopefully they still sell to the general
public. If for some reason the link doesn't come up properly for
you, go to www.vgdllc.com, and search for "Sodium Hydroxide F.C.C.,
No. S1303". This is lye that is safe for use in food preparation. I
bought 500 grams about 5 years ago, and I still have more than half
left (I don't bake the pretzels all that often, they are somewhat
time-consuming!)
http://www.vgdllc.com/pharmacy/Fine-Chemicals/17805-Sodium-Hydroxide-Pellets-FCC.asp
Corina
[[Editor's note: <http://www.vgdusa.com/saleitems.htm> shows the
food-grade Sodium Hydroxide, item number S1303 and includes a link to
a site that accepts PayPal. They ship world-wide.]]