Sourdough Bagels
If you've been following me for a while on Instagram you know this is one of my all time favorite recipes. And based on how many of you have made it, clearly it’s a winner for you as well!
For this dough, you’ll want to feed your sourdough starter so that you have at least 100g ready to use. What I usually do is take out ~50g of starter from my master jar and feed it in a clean container with 50g flour & 50g water. In the winter, I put my fed starter into the oven with the oven light on & door cracked open. This creates an even 75 degrees, which is perfect for my starter. Every kitchen and starter is different, so you’ll have to experiment and see what works best for you and the environment around you!
Bagel Ingredients
345g flour (AP or bread)
220g water
100g ripe starter
1/2 tsp (4g) honey
10g salt
Boiling & Toppings:
Large pot of water
1/4 cup maple syrup
1 egg
Sesame seeds
Poppy seeds
Everything bagel seasoning
Pretzel salt, etc. whatever you want!
Instructions
Mix the honey & water to dissolve. Add the starter into the water and combine thoroughly with a whisk.
Pour the water/starter/honey mixture into the flour bowl and mix by hand to combine (either with your hand or with a wooden spatula). Mix until you see no dry bits of flour. Cover and let rest for 1 hour.
After 1 hour, sprinkle the salt on top and pinch it into the dough with lightly wet hands. Pull the dough around to create a smooth ball. Let rest for 1.5 hours. This dough is lower hydration, so you won’t need to build up as much structure. It’s mostly about time and letting the dough ferment.
After 1.5 hours perform pull/folds all around the dough by stretching the dough up on one side and folding it back over into the center. Again, it helps to do this with wet hands. Do this on all sides until you have a smooth round of dough in the bowl. Cover and let rest for another 2 hours.
After two hours have passed, it should be ready to go into the fridge for the night. No need to move it to a new container, just pop it right in. Timings will vary depending on the time of year, the temperature, humidity, strength of your starter, etc.
Instructions continue below.
Above, photo of baked & cooled bagels. Below on the left is a photo of the pre-shaped dough balls (the two on the far left are “seam side” up and the four on the right are “seam side” down, after pre-shaping). Below on the right is a photo of the final shaping.
6. In the morning, line a baking sheet pan with parchment paper and flour a work surface. Turn the dough out, gently press it into a flat-ish circle, & divide into 6 equal pieces (approx. 112g each).
7. Shape each piece into a ball, pinching it up and then rolling it around a bit with the pinched/seam side down. Make little circles of flour on the parchment paper where each ball will sit, seam side down. Sprinkle a little flour on top of each dough ball, and then cover with plastic wrap, a damp linen, or place it into a giant plastic bag. Let them rest for about two hours.
8. Pre-heat the oven to 425F. Bring a large pot of water + 1/4 cup maple syrup to a low boil. Uncover the bagel dough balls and get ready to shape them!
9. To shape the bagels, flour your hands, pick up a dough ball and press your thumbs into the center top of the dough. Press all the way through until you form a hole in the center. Then with your other fingers under the dough, gently pull the inside of the bagel toward the outside, but don’t fully inside out the bagel. (I have videos of this saved in my Instagram highlights under “Bagels!” as well as a video called “Bagel Shaping” saved in my IGTV.
10. Once you’ve shaped all the bagels, bring the pot of water/maple syrup to a roiling boil. Carefully place two bagels at a time into the boiling water (“seam” side down) and let them poach for 30 seconds before flipping them over and letting them poach for another 30 seconds. Remove the bagels using a spider or slotted spoon. Let the excess water drip off before you place them down on the parchment paper again, the same side up as before (“seam” side down).
11. Prepare an egg wash by beating 1 egg with 1 tbsp of water. Let the boiled bagels cool for a couple of minutes before brushing them with the egg wash. (If you don’t have eggs or are vegan, you can brush the bagels with a bit of non-dairy or dairy milk).
12. Brush the egg wash (or milk) generously onto all the bagels, and then sprinkle toppings on OR pick up the bagels and dip them down into a shallow bowl full of toppings.
13. Bake the bagels for 25-30 minutes at 425F. When you take them out, they might feel hard initially but will soften up as they cool. Immediately move them to a cooling rack and let them sit for about an hour.
14. Slice and enjoy!!
The bagels will keep at room temperature in a sealed container for about a day. After that, move them into the fridge and toast one when you’re hungry. You can also slice all of them and freeze them.
I’d love to see your creations! Tag @nokneadtoworry on Instagram.
Read next
My Sourdough Method
Winter Focaccia