An updated recipe for delicious bagels

[solarbird]

I like to post progress notes and photos to Mastodon while doing my Sunday baking. It mostly ends up being about bagels, but not always – sometimes I’ll make baguettes or sweetbreads or something else entirely.

But mostly, it’s all about the #bagels. I post about bagels so regularly that people have started using my bagel posts as a warning that Monsterdon – the weekly monster-movie watch with live commentary – is incoming.

(#monsterdon is in fact a monster, trending Federation-wide each Sunday evening, starting shortly after my baking posts wrap up. It’s great. Follow #MonsterdonAlert for news and voting on which films to watch.)

Anyway, in response to my latest baking thread, MHowell asked me if I’d blogged about baking bagels, particularly for people who bake only occasionally. And the answer was… sort of? So I threw them a short post that linked my recipe.

But since it’s been a while – and I’ve learned some things – here’s a new, more comprehensive version of the bagel recipe! This version adds more dough variations, includes a couple of important process discoveries, and explains a bunch of steps left unexplained in the original.

It is a bit wordier, I’m afraid, but it is very complete, which should make it good for beginners and occasional bakers.

Unfortunately, that also keeps it from fitting onto a single page, so it’s RTF only this time. If you want a single-page version like last time, you’ll have to put together your own. (ETA: And even so, I didn’t have room to describe how to make your bagels nice and smooth and regular. So have a second post just for that.)

Of course, the more you do this, the less you’ll need the recipe – I barely reference it these days, and then only for ingredient weights. But if that’s you, you probably don’t need a recipe! At least, not more than once.

Anyway. Enjoy DELICIOUS BAGELS! ^_^

Posted via Solarbird{y|z|yz}, Collected.

Comments

[talkswithwind]

As a bagel baker myself, that was interesting. Mine is based on a recipe from the WaPo and tweaked a bit over the years. I've been using an overnight fridge autolyse before boiling, which brings out more flavor to the bagel. Set the bagels on the counter to warm while the oven heats to get them warmer and maybe rise a bit. I have a pizza steel in my oven, so my bagels go on top of that to make the bottoms nice and brown!

[solarbird]

Oh I don't have time (or room lol) in the fridge for that, but - what kind of flavour does it bring? Wheatiness, maltiness?

I've had no trouble getting a nice brownness on my bagel... oh holy hell I didn't see what the crossposter was doing to the feature image until just now, I'm gonna hit post on this and see if I can fix it.

[continued] There, that's better.

new fucking tricks every day I tell you but good to know I GUESS

where was I? Oh yes.

I haven't had any problems getting a nice brownness on the bottom of my bagels; before I was using the parchment paper, if anything, I was getting too much on the contact points. But the parchment solved that for me nicely, and the foil is really most useful on the everything-variant toppings.

The large-grain brown sugar is new just two weeks ago, an experiment that combined with the lightest flour (all purpose 100%) moved the bagels almost to the point of being crullers! But still just bagel... ish. I don't know if it's for everyone (and it would be hideous with a savoury) but on a sweet it made it legitimately almost a confection. And since I like variety, I'm definitely good with it!

[talkswithwind]

The addition is a bit more of a fermented flavor. Not quite sourdough (which I've done, too much work for my taste) but definitely more interesting. I also add 1 tbsp and a smidge of Barley Malt Syrup to the dough, which definitely aids browning. It's a different approach than the egg wash you're using. I find it in the local co-op.

And yeah! When I was out of bread flour and still needed to make bagels and used AP, the bagels were... fine, I guess. Lighter, not as chewy.

Oh! An experiment I've done a few times is add a third cup of baking soda to the boil water (add it in stages, because it gets foamy due to decomposing CO2) which gives them the pretzel bun look. It also gives the bagels a bit of the soda-water taste, which is a fun variation.

I do 30 seconds a side, not two minutes. My guess is that makes a pretty chewy skin?

[solarbird]

Exactly - two minutes is a strong chew, which is my preference.