Bagels are loved worldwide, but they can be quite polarizing! If you ask five different people where the best bagels are, you will probably get five different answers and thats not even getting into the whole “chewy vs fluffy”, New York or Montreal style, boiled or not and if you are boiling them, are you using honey or molasses? Then you have the whole toppings situation. Decisions, decisions…
I am more of a general bagel connoisseur and I just want a great bagel that has been lightly toasted and smeared with cream cheese. That’s it and this recipe gives you consistently good bagels with a lightly chewy texture and great flavor. Good all around bagels that can be topped however you want them to be!
Let’s get these bagels started…
Although they may look like they are complicated, bagels are actually really simple to make.
Start by blooming 1 packet of active dry yeast in 300 grams of warm water with 30 grams of honey whisked in. Let this mixture sit for 5-10 minutes.
While the yeast is blooming, combine 500 grams of bread four with 2 teaspoons of salt in a large bowl or a stand mixer. Once the yeast has bloomed, add it to the flour and salt mixture and mix to combine.
Once the dough comes together, knead by hand for about 8 minutes or on medium speed in a stand mixer for 4-5 minutes. You are looking for a smooth, springy dough that is just a little tacky.
Form the dough into a ball and place it in a large lightly greased bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a kitchen towel and let it rest in a warm spot for 90 minutes or until it has doubled in volume.
Once the dough has doubled in size, punch the air out of the dough and transfer it onto a floured work surface.
Divide the dough into 8 equal portions with a sharp knife or pastry cutter and roll each portion into a round ball. Now if you try to roll these soft little wedges of dough into a ball, you won’t find much success, but if you tuck all of the edges into the center like in the photo below and pinch those pieces together, as soon as you flip the dough over, you’ll have a nice smooth round ball of dough…
The dough has one more short proof and it will puff back up again, so I always make the bagel holes a little larger than normal so they don’t close up when they puff.
Once all of the bagels have been formed, place them onto a parchment lined baking sheet leaving some space between each one. Cover them with a light kitchen towel and let them rest for 30 minutes.
While they are resting, bring a large pot of water to a boil and preheat your oven to 450 degrees.
Once the water is boiling, add 2 tablespoons of brown sugar into the water and stir until it is dissolved. Carefully place 2 or 3 bagels into the boiling water using a large slotted spoon and boil the bagels for 60 seconds on each side.
Once the bagels have boiled for 60 seconds per side (2 minutes total), transfer them back onto the parchment lined baking sheet and repeat the process with the remaining bagels.
Once all of the bagels have been boiled, whisk 1 egg with a teaspoon of water and brush the egg wash over the tops all of the bagels.
Note: If you are adding toppings, add them immediately following the egg wash. I love making a variety of bagels, so I sprinkle some with sea salt and others with some shredded cheese, dried onion flakes, poppyseeds or everything bagel seasoning. Add what you love!
Bake the bagels on parchment lined baking sheets for 22-25 minutes in a 450 degree oven. Rotate the baking sheet half way thru and if you notice that any of your toppings are becoming too dark, tent them with foil to prevent burning.
These bagels are just fabulous. They have a thin crust and the outer edges are nice and chewy. The centers are soft, but not fluffy, still very bready and just how a bagel should be.
If you are storing the bagels, let them cool completely on a cooling rack, but if you want to enjoy the fruits of your hard work then feel free to dig right in! Slice one in half, toast it and add some cream cheese and maybe some chives or a little extra bagel seasoning.
As amazing as fresh made bagels are, they do not keep very well at room temperature and they get stale even quicker in the refrigerator, so your best options is to slice fully cooled bagels in half and slide a little piece of parchment paper in between the halves. Place the bagels into an airtight freezer bag and freeze the bagels on day one. This is my favorite way of keeping them at their best texture. Whenever you want a bagel, simply pull one out and pop it into the toaster. If you don’t want your bagel toasted up crispy then just pull it out as soon as it has been warmed through. I love my bagels toasted, so I keep them in until they are golden brown with crunchy edges.
However you decide to enjoy them, you will have a batch of bagels ready and waiting for the next time the mood strikes. Just be sure to keep cream cheese in your refrigerator!
You’ll be glad you did…
Bagels
Ingredients
Bagels
- 500 grams of bread flour (approximately 3 3/4 cups), plus more for kneading)
- 2 teaspoons of salt
- 7 grams of packet of active dry yeast (1 packet)
- 30 grams of honey (1 1/2 tablespoons)
- 300 grams of water, warm (around 110 degrees)
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 egg
Optional Toppings
- dried onion flakes, everything bagel seasoning, sea salt, poppyseeds, cinnamon sugar, finely shredded cheddar cheese, finely chopped herbs (parsley, dill, thyme, rosemary)
Instructions
- Whisk 30 grams of honey into 300 grams of warm water (between 100-110 degrees) in a small bowl
- Add 7 grams of active dry yeast and let it sit for about 5 minutes or until foamy
- Combine 500 grams of bread flour and 2 teaspoons of salt in a large bowl
- Once the yeast has bloomed, pour it over the flour and salt and mix
- Transfer the dough onto a floured work surface and knead for 7-8 minutes, lightly dusting in additional flour if necessary until a firm, smooth dough comes together
- Form the dough into a ball and transfer it into a greased large glass bowl
- Cover the bowl and let it rest in a warm place until it has doubled in size (about 90 minutes)
- Punch the air out of the dough and transfer it out onto a flat dry work surface
- Divide the dough into eight equal portions
- Roll each portion into a round ball and form it into a bagel by poking your finger through the center and gently forming the outer ring into a even round shape
- Transfer the shaped bagels onto parchment lined baking sheet, cover with a light towel and rest for 30 minutes
- Preheat your oven to 450 degreesand stir in 2 tablespoons of brown sugar
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil and stir in 2 tablespoons of brown sugar
- Carefully drop 2-3 bagels into the boiling water, being sure not to crowd them
- Boil the bagels for 60 seconds on each side (2 minutes total)
- Transfer the boiled bagels onto a parchment lined baking sheet
- Whisk together 1 egg with a teaspoon of water and brush this egg wash over the top surface of all of the bagels
- If you want to add toppings, add them immediately after the egg wash
- Bake the bagels in a 450 degree oven for 22-25 minutes
- Transfer the freshly baked bagels onto a cooling rack
- Allow the bagels to come to room temperature before storing or freezing them
- Store bagels in a paper bag for 1-2 days or slice them in half and freeze them for longer storage
