Sourdough Bagels, Rings of Chewy Goodness.

Sourdough Bagels may seem a bit intimidating. But really, these delicious rings of chewy goodness are a satisfying sourdough project to do. I have made bagels before but never tried to tackle sourdough bagels. Making bagels is a weird process. Who thought of first boiling rings of dough and then baking them after? But the result is those chewy interiors and crunchy outside vehicles for cream cheese that I love. The added sourdough flavor is a beautiful bonus that is delicious.

As with many things that are sourdough, sourdough bagels take more time than regular bagels. But the added sourdough flavor is definitely worth the effort. Most of the three days are actually just raising time, so other than the kneading, it isn’t that much work. Though the dough for this recipe starts out very stiff and a bit hard to work, by the time it has risen, it becomes this nice easy to work with dough, and shaping is fun to do. These beauties also sit in the fridge overnight and can easily be done in the morning, giving you fresh hot bagels for breakfast. It is a starting process to boil them first. But that is what gives bagels their distinct crust and chewy interior.

I found that if you have a baking steel, this is the place to use it. The baking steel helps promote that wonderful crust of bagel we love. I use my baking steel for many baking projects and find this a valuable tool to have. You can find one on Amazon (I get a tiny commission if you use any like on this page at no cost to you. Please consider helping fund my blog.) This recipe calls for barley malt syrup. The syrup imparts a familiar flavor that is part of a good bagel. You can find it in gourmet markets or here on Amazon. Your bagels will not taste right without it. But you can use a tablespoon of molasses in a pinch. Most bagel toppings can be found at your local store, including everything bagel seasoning, but also on Amazon.

If you have a sourdough starter, sourdough bagels are an excellent project for you. The dough is a bit stiff to work with but keep at it, and it will smooth out. I highly encourage you to play around with making these rings of happiness. I miss bagels from my New York days, and these definitely fill that void.

Be safe and smart out there. If we can just hold on a little longer until it is safe, life will be normal again. Please think of others and the consequences of your own behavior. We can do this! Well, that is all for this week. I hope you are all safe and well. Till next time!

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Sourdough Bagels

Sourdough Bagels, nice crust, and chewy interior with an awesome sourdough flavor, this recipe is a fun and delicious sourdough project.

Course: Baking, Breakfast, Sourdough

Cuisine: American

Keyword: bagels, sourdough, sourdough bagels, sourdough starter

Servings: 12 bagels

Ingredients

For the Levain

• 130 grams bread flour
• 60 grams cool water
• 60 grams active fed sourdough starter

For the dough

• 475 grams water at room temperature
• 30 grams sugar
• 30 grams barley malt syrup
• 18 grams salt
• The levain
• 850 grams bread flour

Cornmeal or cream of wheat for dusting

Toppings of your choice: poppy seeds, everything seasoning, sesame seeds, or dehydrated onion

Instructions

To Make the Levain on Day one.

1. The night before you want to make the dough around 9 pm, stir together in a medium nonmetallic bowl the 130 grams of bread flour, the 60 grams of water, and the active starter.
2. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit overnight or around 12 hours.

Day two, making the dough.

1. Combine the water, sugar, barley malt syrup, and salt in a small bowl or measuring cup.
2. Stir the mixture to dissolve the syrup and the sugar.
3. In a large bowl or mixing bowl of a robust mixer, combine the levain with the bread flour and the water mixture. Clean the levain bowl as you will need it again.
4. By hand or using a dough hook, combine the very stiff dough. If you are using a mixer, it may be too stiff to actually knead. Even my Kitchen Aid couldn't handle it for more than a few minutes. The mixer will help combine it and then continue by hand.
5. Turn the dough onto a clean work surface.
6. Knead the dough for around 10 minutes until it is smooth, springs back when pressed, and in a nice ball. You will probably not need any extra flour as this dough is very stiff. The dough will feel more like pasta dough. It takes some muscle to knead this stubborn dough but be patient. It will smooth out.
7. Place the dough back into the bowl you used for the levain.
8. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let rest for 1 ½ hours. Take the dough out and fold it onto itself into thirds, cupping it around to form a ball again.
9. Let rise again until the dough has doubled, around 2 hours more.
10. When you are ready to shape the bagels
11. Lightly sprinkle some cornmeal or cream of wheat onto the bottom of a baking sheet.
12. Divide the dough into 12 equal pieces.
13. Roll a piece of dough into a rope around 8 inches or so long. Seal the ends of the rope together by overlapping an inch or two and rolling them together to form a circle. The hole in the middle should be visible but not too large.
14. Place the formed bagel onto the prepared baking sheet, thinking about how all 12 will fit on the sheet.
15. Continue with the other bagels, rolling, sealing, and placing them evenly on the baking sheet. Keep in mind the bagels will rise.
16. Cover the entire baking sheet with plastic wrap or a big plastic bag.
17. Let rise for 2 hours. The bagels will have started to puff up but not doubled.
18. Place the wrapped baking sheet into the fridge and let retard overnight or between 15 and 24 hours. The longer you retard them, the more sourer they will become.

Day Three, when you are ready to bake the bagels.

1. Preheat the oven to 475°. If you have a baking steel or stone, heat the steel in the middle of the oven as it preheats. You can just bake these bagels on a couple of baking sheets. Let the oven heat for at least 45 minutes to really get it hot.
2. When the oven has preheated, place a large pot of at least 4 inches of water on the stove to a boil.
3. Have a couple of pieces of parchment ready to place the boiled bagels on and a cooling rack set near the stove.
4. Turn the water down to a low boil.
5. Drop 2-3 bagels at a time into the boiling water. The bagels will immediately float to the top. If yours do not, let them rise for an hour or so before proceeding boil. Let them boil for around 40 seconds.
6. Flip the bagels and let boil on the other side for another 40 seconds.
7. Lift the bagels out with a strainer spoon or a metal spatula onto the drying rack.
8. Repeat with more bagels until you have done 6 of them, as that is what will fit on your baking steel.
9. Place the 6 boiled bagels onto a piece of parchment, sprinkle with whatever you want as a topping.
10. Slide the 6 bagels with the parchment onto a peel or baking sheet and slide them onto the hot baking steel. If you are baking them on a baking sheet, you can place the sheet into the hot oven with the bagels.
11. Spray the walls of your oven with some water or throw some ice cubes onto the bottom of the oven and quickly close the door.
12. Let the bagels bake undisturbed for 10 minutes. Open the door and rotate the bagels and let the moisture out.
13. Bake for 8-10 minutes more.
14. Cool on a rack as you make the second batch.