We’ve been trying to conserve our American yeast, so I pulled this recipe together using sourdough starter as the leavening agent. Sourdough takes time to ferment, so you’ll need to plan ahead. Your patience will pay off though, as these bagels are both beautiful and delicious!
(Note: for a slightly faster version that uses yeast, try this recipe.)
Sourdough Bagels
Short on yeast but long on starter? You can use sourdough in lieu of yeast. Sourdough takes a while to rise, so you'll need to plan ahead... but these bagels are worth the wair!
Servings 8 bagels
Ingredients
- 650 grams bread flour
- 275 grams warm water
- 300 grams ripe sourdough starter / levain If you don't have a lot of starter hanging around, make this the night before. Add 1 tbsp starter to 200 grams of warm water, 100 grams of all-purpose flour, and 100 grams of whole wheat flour.
- 1 tbsp barley malt syrup
- 2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp baking soda (optional) Adding baking soda to the water bath helps give the bagels a darker crust, but it's not a mandatory step
- cornmeal for dusting the pan
- 1 egg white
Instructions
Morning of the Day Prior to Baking the Bagels
- Combine water, starter and malt syrup in a large bowl
- Stir in half of the flour. Let rest for 20-30 minutes.
- Add the remaining flour and the salt, remove to a clean work surface, and knead for 10 minutes. The dough will be very dry, and it will be difficult to combine all the dry ingredients into the dough. Keep kneading, and after about 5 minutes all of the ingredients will come together. At the end of kneading, the dough will be firm but smooth.
- Clean the bowl and place the dough in it. Cover with a plate or plastic wrap. Leave in warm (72F) place or proofing box for 8 to 12 hours or until doubled.
- Dust a rimmed baking pan with cornmeal
- Divide the dough into eight equal sized balls. Cover with a damp dishtowel or plastic wrap, and let rest for 5 minutes.
- Roll each ball into a “rope” long enough to wrap around the palm of your hand. Take care to roll the rope from the center out to ensure that the ends of each rope are no more narrow than the middle.Wrap the rope around your hand, pinching the ends to make a ring. Roll the place where ends are joined back and forth a couple of times on the counter top to seal the joint.
- Place each of the bagels on the cornmeal-dusted rimmed baking sheet
- Cover the baking pan with plastic wrap, place in refrigerator, and let rise overnight
The Next Morning -- Bagel Baking Time!
- Remove the bagels from the refrigerator, and let rest 1 to 2 hours. The bagels should rise a bit.
- After the bagels have rested for about 60 to 90 minutes , preheat oven to 450ºF / 230 ºC. This will allow the oven to come up to temperature while the bagels are rising.
- As the oven is warming, fill large pot with water and bring to a boil on the stove.
- When the bagels are finished rising and the oven is preheated, add the baking soda (if you're using it) to the boiling water.
- Now gently place 3 or 4 bagels into the boiling water. (You will cook the bagels in 2-3 batches.) Wait 40 seconds, flip the bagels, and boil them for another 40 seconds.
- Using a slotted spoon, remove the bagels from the water and let them drain on a cooling rack. Let cool for 10 minutes or so, and repeat the boiling process with the remaining batch(es).
- While bagels are cooling, combine the white of one egg with 1 tablespoon of water
- After bagels have cooled, brush each gently with the egg wash. If topping the bagels (e.g., with sesame seeds), now is the time to do it; the egg wash will help make the topping stick to the bagels.
- Gently place the bagels on a clean rimmed baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Slide the rimmed baking sheet into the hot oven, and cook until golden brown, about 16 to 18 minutes. Be sure to rotate the pan halfway through the bake.
- When bagels are done, remove them from the oven and let them cool on a rack. Eat warm or at room temperature.