Plain Bagels
Homemade plain bagels are chewy, slightly dense bread rolls with a crisp, golden-brown crust and a soft, flavourful interior. Unlike store-bought versions, homemade bagels offer a freshness and customizability that cannot be matched!
In this blog post, you will learn how to make homemade plain bagels.
Why Make My Own Homemade Plain Bagels?
Homemade plain bagels are a rewarding baking project that yields delicious results. Their chewy texture, golden-brown crust, and flavourful, dense interior make them perfect for enjoying plain, toasted, or with your favourite spreads and toppings. The process of making bagels from scratch, from kneading and shaping the dough to boiling and baking, ensures a fresh and superior product compared to store-bought versions.
How to Shape My Bagels?
Once your dough has risen after 60-90 minutes, punch the air out of the dough. Now it is time to shape the dough. Shaping your bagels involves dividing the dough into equal portions, forming smooth balls, and then creating the characteristic hole in the centre.
Once your dough has been rolled into balls, poke a hole through the centre of each dough ball. Stretch the hole by inserting both index fingers into the hole and gently stretch the dough outward, rotating as you go, until the hole is about 1.5-2 inches (3.8-5 cm) in diameter. The dough will contract slightly during boiling and baking, so make the hole slightly larger than you want the final size to be.
Place the shaped bagels onto the parchment covered baking sheets and cover with a clean tea towel as you wait for the honey water to come to a boil.
Why Do the Bagels Need to Be Boiled?
This is an important step in the bagel making process. Boiling your bagels makes them chewy, sets the shape, enhances browning, increases the flavour, and always your toppings to better stick to them.
Boiling Process
- Prepare the Boiling Water:
- Large Pot: use a large pot and bring water to a rolling boil.
- Additives: add your ingredients like honey or brown sugar to the boiling water if desired. These additives can enhance browning, flavour, and texture.
- Boil the Bagels:
- Careful Handling: gently lower the shaped bagels into the boiling water. It is important to handle them carefully to maintain their shape.
- Timing: boil the bagels for about 1-2 minutes on each side. The longer they boil, the chewier the crust will become.
- Remove and Drain: use a slotted spoon to remove the boiled bagels and let them drain briefly on a wire rack or clean kitchen towel.
- Bake the Bagels:
- Preheated Oven: transfer the boiled bagels to a baking sheet and bake in a preheated oven until they are golden brown and fully cooked.
This is an essential step that contributes to their unique chewy texture, sets their shape, enhances browning, improves flavour, and helps toppings adhere. Skipping this step would result in bagels that lack the traditional characteristics that make them distinct from other types of bread or rolls.
Why Do I Need to Put Honey or Brown Sugar into the Boiling Water?
Incorporating honey into the boiling water when making bagels is a crucial step that enhances browning, adds a subtle sweetness and depth of flavour, and contributes to the desired chewy texture of the bagel crust. This traditional technique ensures that your homemade bagels have an authentic and appealing taste and appearance. Since there is such little sugar in the bagel, boiling the bagels in honey water (or brown sugar water) helps to add sweetness to the bagel. It also helps to make the bagels chewier.
Can I Skip Boiling the Bagels?
Yes, you can skip this step. There is a notable difference; however, between boiled bagels and non-boiled bagels. Non-boiled bagels will have a harder crust, not be as sweet, and not as chewy as boiled bagels. Even if you choose not to boil your bagels, they are still quite good, and you will enjoy this recipe!
Even if you choose not to boil them, the plain bagels still need to be given an egg whitewash.
Storing My Bagels
Homemade bagels can be stored at room temperature for a couple of days, in the refrigerator for up to a week, and in the freezer for up to three months. Proper storage methods, such as using airtight containers and wrapping bagels tightly, will help maintain their freshness. Reheating methods like toasting or baking can help revive the texture and flavour of stored bagels.
Ingredients
Bread Flour/Strong Flour: Provides the necessary gluten structure for a chewy texture. Bread flour is higher in protein than all-purpose flour, which is essential for bagel dough.
Water: water hydrates the flour and activates the yeast. The water content is carefully measured to ensure the dough is firm and not too sticky.
Yeast: yeast leavens the dough, creating air pockets that contribute to the bagels’ texture. Active dry yeast or instant yeast can be used.
Sugar: sugar feeds the yeast and adds a touch of sweetness to the dough.
Salt: salt enhances flavour and strengthens the dough by tightening the gluten network.
Boiling Water: the bagels are boiled before baking, often in water mixed with malt syrup, honey, or baking soda. This step creates the characteristic crust and chewiness.
Honey: honey imparts a subtle sweetness to the bagel’s crust, enhancing the overall flavour profile without making the bagel taste overtly sweet.
Egg White: the egg white makes the egg wash with just a little bit of water added. It can be brushed onto the bagels before baking to give them a shiny, golden-brown finish.
Tips
- Ensure that each portion of dough is the same size helps the bagels bake evenly.
- When forming the initial ball and stretching the dough, aim for a smooth surface to achieve a nice finish after baking.
- Make the bagel hole larger than you think it needs to be, as it will shrink during the boiling and baking process.
- Boiling your bagels helps to differentiate them from other types of rolls that you can bake.
- Use a skimmer spoon to put in and remove your bagels from the boiling water.
- The best way to get an even egg wash is to use a silicone pastry brush.
Want to Try Something Different?
If you want to try something different, try making these Homemade Blueberry Bagels! Simple to make as well and just as delicious and chewy!
Plain Bagels
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 c. warm water
- 7 g packet of instant yeast (1 ½ tsp.)
- Pinch of sugar
- 4 c. bread flour/strong flour
- 2 tsp. salt
- 1 tbsp. granulated sugar
- 2 Quarts boiling water approx. fill 2/3 of your pot
- 1/8 c. honey or brown sugar
Instructions
- Whisk your warm water, packet of instant yeast, and pinch of sugar together in a large bowl. Set aside for 5-10 minutes in a warm place to let the yeast activate.
- In a separate medium bowl, mix your bread flour, salt, and sugar together.
- Once the yeast is activated, pour the dry ingredients into the yeast mixture and stir until it has come together in a rather dry ball.
- Pour the dough out onto a floured worktop and knead for 6-7 minutes. Form into a ball.
- Once you have finished kneading, lightly oil a bowl and place the lightly oiled kneaded dough into the bowl. Cover with plastic wrap or a clean tea towel and place in warm place to let rise for 60-90 minutes or until doubled in size.
- Once your dough has risen, punch down into the dough to release any air trapped inside. Pour out onto a lightly floured surface and cut the dough into 8 even pieces of dough.
- Roll each dough piece into a ball. Press your fingers through the middle to make a 1”-2” hole in the centre and place onto a tray lined with parchment paper. Cover with a tea towel while the water is brought to a boil.
- In a pot, pour in the 2 quarts of water or to fill it to approximately 2/3 full of water. Pour your honey (or brown sugar) into the water and bring to a boil.
- Preheat oven to 425℉/220℃/Gas Mark 7.
- Once your water has boiled reduce the heat to medium. Place your bagels into the boiling water. You want them to float comfortably in the water so it will depend on the size of your pot how many bagels can be put into the water at a time. For most pots it will be 2-4 bagels.
- Boil on one side for 1 minute then flip and boil on the other side for 1 more minute.
- Remove from the water and place onto your baking sheet. Continue to do this for the rest of your bagels.
- Brush your egg whitewash over each bagel, making sure to get the sides.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes, rotating the baking trays halfway through the baking time to ensure even baking of the bagels.
- Remove from the oven and let cool. After 5 minutes remove from the trays and transfer to a cooling rack.