Bagels are surprisingly easy to make—even New York-style ones!
New York is blessed with a rich and storied bagel-baking culture. With a local corner bakery in every neighborhood to champion, New Yorkers are spoiled for phenomenal bagels that are a cut above anywhere else. Montreal bagels? Never heard of ’em.
Here, bagel standards are incredibly high. Between special ingredients needed for the trademark New York flavor, a multi-day baking process, and fierce competition just a few minutes from your house, a homemade bagel better be darn good to be worth it.
But bagels are easier to make than you would expect. Even a beginner can do it! They just require a little bit more time and care. If you are a New York bagel faithful, you can also learn how to make your very own from the comfort of your own kitchen. And once you learn, you can start perfecting that art to make a bagel that will meet any New Yorker’s standards.
In order to make a proper New York bagel, you will need a few ingredients you might not have on hand. Most notably, barley malt syrup.
For experienced bakers: This recipe makes a batch of six bagels with 58% dough hydration. This might seem lower than you are used to, but it is integral to creating a bagel’s unique, chewy texture. For first-time bakers, this dough hydration ratio shows how much water to add: 58 grams of water per 100 grams of flour. The lower the hydration, the stiffer the dough will be.
The ingredients needed to make a New York bagel are made up of three components: The bagel dough, a poaching liquid to boil your bagel in, and optional toppings to taste.
• 500 grams bread flour (your grocer may call it high-gluten flour)
• 290 grams water kept at room temperature.
• 10 grams salt
• 15 grams barley malt syrup
• 6 grams of instant yeast starter
• 2 liters water.
• 25 grams barley malt syrup.
• 5 grams baking soda.
• Sea salt or coarse salt
• Sesame seeds
• Poppy seeds
• Everything seasoning
• 2 teaspoons minced dehydrated garlic
• 2 teaspoons minced dehydrated onion
• Grated cheese (such as Asiago)
• Caraway seeds
• Cinnamon sugar
Experienced bakers will notice that this recipe does not call for sugar, a necessary ingredient for making dough rise. That is where the barley malt syrup comes into play. This substitution is one of the most important steps toward making an authentic New York bagel.
Barley malt syrup is an uncommon ingredient that not all grocery stores may carry. If you are having trouble getting some, you can use diastatic malt powder or honey. Sugar will, of course, also work, but at that point, it might not be a true New York-style bagel.
One major difference between bagels and other baked goods is that they are boiled before baking. For a NY bagel, this process is a little bit more complex than just boiling water in a pot. You will also want to mix in more barley malt syrup and baking soda.
From sesame seeds to salt, there are a number of traditional toppings you can include, but they are not necessary to bake a delicious, incredible bagel. If you do want to put a few fixings on, though, this recipe will let you know how and when to include them. For the truly adventurous, FreshDirect offers the FarmSteady Neon Bagel Making Kit, which includes its own neon liquid gel food coloring. If you want bagels that truly pop, this kit will help you make your own eye-catching delights that look as good as they taste.
Baking your own New York-style bagels is a lengthy, multi-step process, but it is straightforward enough that even a novice baker can try.
The most involved part of any bake is getting the dough prepped. This is where precision is most important to ensure that the bread rises properly. This recipe’s fairly low hydration ratio means that the dough will be tougher and require additional kneading to develop the gluten than you may be used to. If ever in doubt, err on the side of more kneading, not less. This stiffness will challenge (and could potentially even break!) some stand mixers. Hand kneading is strongly recommended. If you must use a mixer, exercise caution, watch carefully for any signs that it is straining, and do the rest by hand if it does.
1. Dissolve 15 grams of barley malt syrup into 290 grams of room-temperature water in a large mixing bowl.
2. Add 6 grams of instant yeast, 500 grams of bread flour, and 10 grams of salt to the bowl. Stir the ingredients together until they begin to mix and the dough forms.
3. Knead the dough for at least 10 to 12 minutes. Continue working until the dough is smooth and very firm. If the dough feels tough or unusually stiff to work with, don’t worry. It’s working as intended.
4. Leave the dough in the bowl, cover with a damp towel, and allow it to ferment at 71 degrees Fahrenheit. Let it sit for one hour until the dough has slightly risen.
5. Once the dough has risen enough, divide the bulk into six even pieces (roughly 135 grams each). Preshape each piece into a tight ball, then let them rest for 10 minutes.
There are two popular methods for shaping bagels: the poke-and-stretch or the rope-and-loop method.
The poke-and-stretch is a simpler method to shape your homemade bagel that is safer for beginners.
• Take one ball of bagel dough and poke a hole through the center of the ball with your finger.
• Start stretching the dough outward into a ring shape until the hole is about 8 to 9 centimeters in diameter. Do it slowly and evenly to ensure that you do not tear the ring open while you expand the dough.
The rope-and-loop method is the traditional method to shape your bagel. It’s a technique the pros use, but it is more complicated and requires a bit of practice. This method will affect both the look and texture of the finished bagel, and most consider it more authentic.
1. Roll each dough ball into a thick rope 9 to 10 inches long.
2. Drape the rope over the back of your hand over your knuckles, then close the loop by pressing the two ends together under your palm.
3. Roll the ends between your hands and a cutting board until they have sealed together, then take the ring off your hand.
4. Finish shaping the ring to your desired shape by gently expanding it further. Aim for an inner hole about 8 to 9 centimeters in diameter.
Once you have shaped your bagels, they will need to spend some more time fermenting in the fridge. It is strongly recommended that you let them ferment for a full 24 hours, but this recipe allows for less time if you are in a hurry.
Get a pan or baking sheet, cover it with parchment paper, and apply a little bit of oil or cornstarch to prevent sticking. Place each finished bagel on the sheet.
Gently cover the sheet with a damp towel, place it inside the fridge, and let it ferment undisturbed for 12 to 24 hours.
A unique step that differentiates every bagel from other baked goods is that they are boiled first. This critical step is what gives all bagels their signature chewy texture. This is also the step where you will put any desired toppings on your bagel, so be sure to have those already prepped and on hand before you begin. Before starting, preheat your oven to 475 degrees Fahrenheit in preparation to bake immediately after.
1. Prepare the boiling bath. Bring 2 liters of water to a boil, then mix in 25 grams of barley malt syrup and 5 grams of baking soda. Let the mixture return to a boil.
2. Individually boil each bagel for 30 seconds on each side. Drain the bagel afterward.
3. If you are adding any toppings to your bagel, do so immediately while the bagel is still wet. That dampness is what makes the toppings stick to the bagel.
The home stretch. It is finally time to make the finished product!
1. If you have not already, preheat your oven to 475 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Place the bagels back on a baking sheet and put them in the oven for six minutes.
3. Rotate the tray and reduce the oven’s temperature to 445 degrees Fahrenheit. Bake for another 8 to 10 minutes until golden brown.
4. Once the bagels are finished baking, it is recommended to let them sit and cool for 30 minutes.
After all that work, you have certainly earned it! Bagels are not a fast bake, but they are a deeply satisfying one, and you can’t cut corners to make a truly fantastic, authentic New York bagel.
Above all, do not be discouraged if your first batch is not perfect. Baking is often considered a precise science, but bagels make it an art again. Like any art, they require a little intuition and practice, but once you have tried a few times, you will start to get the knack for it. Give it enough time, and you will be able to make a bagel that gives your local bodega a run for its money.
