These soft, chewy sourdough bagels are a delicious homemade treat! Once you start making them, you may find yourself being asked to make them again and again!
Why sourdough bagels? The long fermentation process of sourdough baked goods breaks down the phytic acid in the flour, making the nutrients in it more easily digestible. Some people who are sensitive to wheat discover they can tolerate sourdough just fine.
To start, you’re going to need some sourdough starter. You can tell your sourdough “pet” is healthy and happy when it is bubbly and pleasantly sour.
I like to start my sourdough bagels the night before, that way they can ferment for several hours and be fresh for breakfast. My two year old daughter Charleen loves to help me make the dough.
In a mixing bowl add your starter, honey (or sweetener of choice) and salt. Stir together.
Whisk (or stir) the water into the starter mixture until well combined.
Stir in the flour and then knead for a few minutes.
Form into a ball and place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease the top. I like to use avocado oil for this, but any oil will work fine. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap, beeswax wrap or a damp kitchen towel. Leave on your counter to ferment overnight (or all day if starting in the morning).
The next morning, your dough should be nicely risen.
Gently punch down the dough and turn onto lightly greased counter top or other smooth work surface. You can use flour to coat your work surface instead, but just note the flour you work with will not be fermented like the bagel dough. Do not knead your dough at this point. You want to keep those air bubbles for texture. Divide the dough into 8 pieces.
Gently stretch and fold each section of dough into a round shape. Then use your thumb to create the hole in the middle.
Place all of your bagels on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper to rise in a warm place another 30-60 minutes. Be sure to cover with damp towel, beeswax wrap or plastic wrap if they will be rising longer than 30 minutes. This will keep the tops from drying out.
Bring roughly 6-8 cups of water to a boil. Really you just want about 4 or 5 inches of water in your pot, and the exact amount will vary depending on the diameter of the pot you use.
Boil the bagels for two minutes on each side. Only boil a few at a time so the pot is not over crowded.
Once the bagels have cooled slightly, dip one side into desired seasoning. Here I am using “everything” bagel seasoning. You could also use poppy seeds, sesame seeds, dried chopped onion, etc. Only dip one side, as the bottom of the bagel will burn during baking if seasoned.
Once the sourdough bagels are all boiled and seasoned, place on cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake in preheated oven for 30-35 minutes at 400*F.
When your bagels are done and lightly golden you can toast them up right away for a fresh treat, or allow to cool completely and store in an airtight container for later use!
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Everything Bagel Seasoning
Himalayan Salt
Raw Honey
Yield: 8
Sourdough Bagels Recipe
These soft, chewy sourdough bagels are a delicious homemade treat! Once you start making them, you may never want store bought again!
Prep Time
12 hours
Cook Time
40 minutes
Total Time
12 hours 40 minutes
Ingredients
- 3/4 Cup Sourdough Starter
- 1 1/4 Cup water
- 4 Tablespoons Honey
- 2 teaspoons Salt
- 4 1/2 Cups Flour
- Approx. 8 Cups Water for Boiling
- 1 Tablespoon Sugar
Instructions
- Mix sourdough starter, honey, salt and water in a mixing bowl until well combined.
- Stir in flour. Once mixed, turn out on floured surface and knead for a few minutes.
- Form dough into a ball and place into greased bowl, turning once to grease the top. Cover with plastic wrap, beeswax wrap or damp clean towel and let ferment on the counter over night.
- In the morning, gently punch down the dough and form into a ball. Do not knead. Divide into 8 equal pieces. Shape each piece into a ball and poke a hole in the middle using your thumb. Place on baking sheet lined with parchment paper and cover to let rise 30-60 minutes.
- Boil water in a pot (6-8 cups, or about 5 inches in depth) with one tablespoon of sugar. Boil bagels, a few at a time for two minutes on each side.
- Cool slightly and dip one side into seasoning of choice if desired. Place on baking sheet with parchment paper, seasoned side up.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes at 400* until lightly golden. Toast, butter and serve! Allow to completely cool before storing in an airtight container.
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What’s oven temp to bake the bagel?
Hello Laura! So sorry I am just now seeing your comment! I didn’t realize I forgot to state the oven temp for this recipe! 400*F. I have fixed the post and the recipe card so they now both state 400*F for the oven temp. Thank you for checking out my blog and happy baking!
Hi! What type of flour do you recommend?
Hello!
I use unbleached all purpose mostly. I have not used this recipe with any other kind of flour yet.