Homemade Sourdough Bagels

Taking the time to make a bagel is worth every minute of your time in the kitchen.

These homemade sourdough bagels are different than the traditional yeast bagels. It has a little tang with a softer chew and is not so dense of a dough. A bagel that makes it to the table for lunch and dinner, not just breakfast.

Ingredients Needed

• Bubbly Starter
• Bread Flour (I use King Arthur Bread flour)
• Water
• Honey
• Salt (I used Himalayan salt, but sea salt will work just fine)
• Toppings (in this recipe, I used everything bagel seasoning and asiago cheese)

Equipment Used

Here is a list of my favorite pieces I have in my kitchen that I used to make the bagels

• Kitchen Aid Mixer
• Slotted Spoon
• Wide Mouth Pot
• Half Size Pan

3 steps to making chewy sourdough bagels

Step 1: Start with a levain. What is a levain? I'm glad you asked. It is a sourdough starter used in your recipe: a combination of water, flour, and sourdough starter. All of the levain made will be used in the bagel recipe.

I suggest using a mixer. I have a Kitchen Aid mixer, and that worked well without overworking the mixer at all. Combine all the ingredients for the levain in the mixer bowl and mix with a spatula. Once all ingredients are combined, cover with plastic wrap.

I placed a bowl of hot water under the mixer bowl and let the steam from the water warm up the levain and help the fermentation process. I didn't boil the water. I just used hot water from the faucet, which was plenty warm.

Allow the levain to start bubbling. It will not double in size but will grow slightly and form bubbles on the top. My house was about 71*F at this time, and with the hot water under the mixer bowl, this fermentation time took 2 hours. I have let it stay for 3 hours and have achieved the same result.

Step 2 Once the levain is ready and slightly bubbly, it's time to make the dough. Add the ingredients in the same mixer bowl with the levain—honey, flour, salt, and fresh starter. It seems like a lot of starter, but trust me, this makes this bagel so light yet chewy.

Using the dough hook, start mixing the dough at a low speed. Make sure all the dry ingredients have been hydrated, no flour. From this point, mix the dough for about 5-6 minutes.

The dough will not stick to the sides of the mixer bowl but will still have a sticky feel. That is normal. Remember, this is not your traditional bagel so that the dough will be different from your typical bagel recipe.

Right after mixing the dough, divide it into 12 equal pieces. Each ball will weigh 4.6-4.7 oz. Prepare a pan with parchment paper and spray it with cooking oil. This will help prevent the dough from sticking to the paper. Cover the dough balls loosely with plastic wrap and let them rest for 20-30 minutes.

Now is a good time to clean up while you wait for the dough. No wasted time here!

After the dough rests, now it's time to shape these homemade sourdough bagels. This is the fun part because you can see the bagels come to life.

Step 3 There are several ways to shape bagels. I use one method and only one. Why? It's the easiest way, and it works every time! Poke a hole with your thumb in the center of the dough ball. I like to have fun, so I twirl the dough on my thumb until I get the desired width in the center, typically a ½-inch diameter or so.

If this is your first time making bagels, don't twirl just yet, haha. Poke a hole in the center of the dough ball with your thumb. Then stretch the center evenly on each side as best you can until you get the desired width in the center. I recommend ½-1 inch.

Place the bagel shapes on a pan with parchment paper and lightly spray them to prevent them from sticking. A half-size pan holds 6 bagels comfortably. Follow up with spraying the top of the bagels with cooking oil as well. This will prevent the bagels from sticking to the plastic wrap. Cover each pan loosely with plastic wrap, but ensure the dough is not exposed to the air.

Step 4 These shaped bagels are ready to rest and rise just a little before heading into the fridge. In my 71*F house, the rise took about 1 ½ hours. How did I know they were ready to go into the fridge? I did the float test.

Float test: Prepare a bowl with room-temperature water. Place a bagel in the water. If it floats to the top within 10 seconds, it is ready to go in the fridge. If not, let the bagels continue to rise. Check every 15 minutes after that.

Once your bagels have passed the float test, they are ready to go in the fridge and slow down the fermentation process. Your work is done on day one!

Step 5: Day Two! It's time to boil the homemade sourdough bagels. Take them out of the fridge 30 minutes before boiling them, and allow them to come to room temperature slightly.

Prepare any topping you would like toppings for your bagels that you wish to use. I bought store-bought everything: bagel seasoning and asiago cheese. I placed the seasoning in a bowl wide enough to fit a bagel. Shred the cheese and place it into a bowl, ready to sprinkle on the bagel.

Turn your oven to 500*F so it can preheat.

Fill a wide-mouth pot with water, baking soda, and honey. Adding a little baking soda will give it a chew, and honey will add sweetness and color.

Allow the water to come to a boil on high heat. Once the water starts to boil, place 2-4 bagels into the pot. You can lower the heat to medium so the water does not start foaming up. Boil one side of the bagel for 1 minute. Flip the bagel with the slotted spoon or spatula and allow it to boil for 1 minute on the other side.

While the bagels are boiling, sprinkle the parchment paper with cornmeal. You can use the same parchment paper and pan the bagels rested on overnight in the refrigerator.

Immediately after boiling the bagel, turn it upside down and dip it in the everything bagel seasoning to coat the top. Shake off the extra seasoning and place it on the pan with cornmeal.

If you are using asiago cheese, immediately after boiling, sprinkle bagel with asiago cheese.

After boiling, a plain bagel needs no further action other than placing it on the pan with cornmeal.

Place the pan in the preheated oven. I baked the bagels one pan at a time on the middle rack for 10 minutes. If you like your darker bagels, bake for another 2 minutes.

Remove the bagels from the oven and allow to cool for 10-15 minutes. It will be tempting to cut into them right away, I know. But I do suggest waiting so that you can enjoy the flavor of the bagels without burning your tongue.

There you have it! These homemade sourdough bagels have the perfect chew! Grab your favorite spread and enjoy.

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