How to Shape Bagels (2024)

FAQs

Do you let bagels rise after shaping? ›

Bagels are made with a basic stiff yeast dough. We basically let the dough rise, shape it into 8 balls, then let those balls rise again.

5) When it comes to boiling, the gentler the better

To get her bagels into the pot to boil, Molly uses her hands to lay them down gently (being careful not to touch the boiling water!), which she says helps prevent them from deflating.

These bagels have been overproofed; as a result, they're flat and are missing their signature hole in the middle. In all honesty, flat bagels are the most common issue you can encounter when making them from scratch. It was certainly the biggest one for me. The good news is that flat bagels are still delicious!

“It is said that bagels made by hand create a stronger gluten structure, which leads to a light and chewy interior, rather than machined bagels, which result in a dense, cake-like texture,” Priya explains in the video. “The problem with the machines is their bagels are too perfect. They all look the same.

Wet the ends of the rope slightly and overlap them, twisting them together. Put your hand through the hole in the center. Then use your palm to roll the dough back and forth where the ends overlap to seal them. Repeat with the remaining dough until you have a baking sheet full of beautifully shaped bagels.

Most bagel makers agree that the rope technique is the proper way of making bagels. In this method, forming a ring of bagel dough is done by first rolling out pieces of risen dough into snakes and then wrapping it around your hand to connect the ends.

What you're trying to do, by boiling or steaming bagels before baking, is to kill the yeast, so the bagels won't rise in the oven and become puffy, rather than staying rather dense and chewy. You're also adding a very thin coating of sugar—malt, in this case—which gives bagels their distinctive shiny crust. Eureka!

Bagels deflate when they're overproofed. If you're making wood-fired bagels and leave them on the board too long before flipping, then they get flat too, but I don't think that's a problem many home cooks are having. I think they're overproofed and/or they're boiling longer than they need to.

The boiling process gelatinizes the starches on the surface, creating a glossy, crackly crust during baking. Additionally, boiling gives the bagel its characteristic dense interior while maintaining a tender crumb. Baking: Once they're boiled, bagels are transferred to the oven for baking.

Baking soda makes the water more alkaline, giving the bagels a pretzel-like quality that contributes to their chewiness. Just one teaspoon helps the bagels develop a shiny, dark-brown exterior as they bake. One thing to keep in mind: Keep the water bath at a constant simmer.

Why do you put honey in boiling water for bagels? ›

Add honey and baking soda to boiling water in a large pot. This will help give the bagels a nice sheen and golden brown color when out of the oven. Add a few bagels at a time to the pot, making sure they're not crowded. They should float immediately when added to the water.