Sourdough Bagels

Today I will prepare sourdough Montreal and New-York bagels. The Montreal bagel and the New York bagel are similar, with one difference: the first is poached in water sweetened with malt syrup or honey and the other in salted water. My recipe combines both methods.

Choose the desired list of ingredients

Ingredients for 12 bagels of 62.0% hydration all-purpose flour

• 603 g plain all-purpose flour
• 11 g non-iodized salt
• 188 g fed ripe sourdough starter
• 315 g water
• 13 g honey
• 9 g olive oil
• 6 cups very hot water
• 1 tbsp. honey
• 1 tbsp. salt
• 1 egg lightly beaten
• 1 tbsp. lukewarm water
• 1/4 cup sesame seeds or poppy seeds

Ingredients for 12 bagels of whole wheat, spelt or kamut 65.5% hydration all-purpose flour

• 590 g plain whole wheat, spelt or kamut flour
• 11 g non-iodized salt
• 184 g fed ripe sourdough starter
• 332 g water
• 13 g honey
• 9 g olive oil
• 6 cups very hot water
• 1 tbsp. honey
• 1 tbsp. salt
• 1 egg lightly beaten
• 1 tbsp. lukewarm water
• 1/4 cup sesame seeds or poppy seeds

Ingredients for 12 whole wheat, spelt or kamut (28.5%) 63.1% hydration bagels

• 401 g plain all-purpose flour
• 198 g whole wheat, spelt or kamut flour
• 11 g non-iodized salt
• 187 g fed ripe sourdough starter
• 321 g water
• 13 g honey
• 9 g olive oil
• 6 cups very hot water
• 1 tbsp. honey
• 1 tbsp. salt
• 1 egg lightly beaten
• 1 tbsp. lukewarm water
• 1/4 cup sesame seeds or poppy seeds

Ingredients for 12 rye bagels (10.0%) at 62.4% hydration

• 532 g plain all-purpose flour
• 69 g rye flour
• 11 g non-iodized salt
• 188 g fed ripe sourdough starter
• 317 g water
• 13 g honey
• 9 g olive oil
• 6 cups very hot water
• 1 tbsp. honey
• 1 tbsp. salt
• 1 egg lightly beaten
• 1 tbsp. lukewarm water
• 1/4 cup sesame seeds or poppy seeds

Ingredients for 12 country bagels at 63.2% hydration

• 389 g plain all-purpose flour
• 150 g plain whole wheat flour
• 60 g rye flour
• 11 g non-iodized salt
• 187 g fed ripe sourdough starter
• 321 g water
• 13 g honey
• 9 g olive oil
• 6 cups very hot water
• 1 tbsp. honey
• 1 tbsp. salt
• 1 egg lightly beaten
• 1 tbsp. lukewarm water
• 1/4 cup sesame seeds or poppy seeds

Ingredients for 12 rustic 64.4% hydration bagels

• 208 g plain whole wheat flour
• 178 g plain all-purpose flour
• 149 g spelt flour
• 59 g rye flour
• 11 g non-iodized salt
• 185 g fed ripe sourdough starter
• 327g water
• 13 g honey
• 9 g olive oil
• 6 cups very hot water
• 1 tbsp. honey
• 1 tbsp. salt
• 1 egg lightly beaten
• 1 tbsp. lukewarm water
• 1/4 cup sesame seeds or poppy seeds

Ingredients for 12 oatmeal, millet, barley or buckwheat (8.6%) bagels at 62.0% hydration

• 543 g plain all-purpose flour
• 60 g oat, millet, barley or buckwheat flour
• 11 g non-iodized salt
• 188 g fed ripe sourdough starter
• 315 g water
• 13 g honey
• 9 g olive oil
• 6 cups very hot water
• 1 tbsp. honey
• 1 tbsp. salt
• 1 egg lightly beaten
• 1 tbsp. tablespoon lukewarm water
• 1/4 cup sesame seeds or poppy seeds

Preparation

In a large bowl, place the flour and salt. Mix everything well with your fingers, then set aside.

Put a small container that can hold hot water in a ramekin. Fill a bowl large enough to wet your hands with lukewarm water. Set everything aside on the work surface.

Diluting the sourdough starter: Place the sourdough starter in a large bowl, then pour in the water and add the honey and oil. Dilute the starter in the liquids using a wooden spoon, stirring everything well to provide the microorganisms in the sourdough with a sufficient supply of oxygen to promote their proliferation.

Mixing: Add the flour and salt mixture to the bowl containing the diluted starter. Start incorporating them into liquids with a wooden spoon at first, then with your hand. Using a scraper, loosen the flour stuck to the inner wall of the bowl, then incorporate it into the dough.

First fermentation period: As soon as the dough is relatively uniform and homogeneous, place it, using the scraper, in a dough bin. Put the ramekin and the small container in it, then pour in a little hot water. Cover the bin and let the dough rise there for the time required for the first proofing.

First Stretching/folding: Remove the ramekin. Gently fold the dough down in the centre 4 times, making a quarter turn each time, then turn it upside down.

Second fermentation period: Put a little hot water in the ramekin, then put it back in the bin. Cover the bin and let the dough rise there for the time required for the second proofing.

Second Stretching/folding: Remove the ramekin. Gently fold the dough down in the centre 4 times, making a quarter turn each time, then turn it upside down.

Third fermentation period: Put a little hot water in the ramekin, then put it back in the bin. Cover the bin and let the dough rise there for the time required for the third proofing.

Third Stretching/folding: Remove the ramekin. Gently fold the dough down in the centre 4 times, making a quarter turn each time, then turn it upside down.

Fourth proofing (if there is still proofing time): Cover the bin and let the dough rise there for the time required for the fourth proofing. If necessary, put the bin in the refrigerator, having previously taken care to cover the dough with lightly oiled cellophane wrap to prevent it from drying out. Leave it there for the required time.

Preparing the baking sheets: Once the time for the last proofing has elapsed, cut two parchments papers and place them inside two baking sheets. Apply a light coat of oil to them with a kitchen brush, a spray bottle or with hand. Put an empty cup in the top centre and an empty cup in the bottom centre of each sheet. Between the cups, put a small container filled with hot water. Cover each sheet with a large plastic bag (they will help maintain some humidity when the time comes). Set aside.

Do not flour the work surface. On the work surface, put a pastry cutter (or scraper), a toothpick. Set aside.

Transfer the dough to the work surface with hands.

Dividing: Using the dough cutter or scraper, divide the dough into equal pieces (if necessary, weigh each piece and remove a piece from one to add it to the other), then put each piece in the bin.

Shaping: Place one piece on the work surface, flatten it with the palms of your hands, gently stretch it with your fingers to give it the shape of a rectangle, then shape it into a cylinder. To do this, fold one third of the dough over another third lengthwise, then press your fingers very lightly at the junction of the two pieces of dough to seal the joint. Fold the roll over the last third. Place the palms of the hands in the centre of the cylinder, then roll it on the work surface by making a back and forth movement (close to you and away from you) with the hands, exerting slight pressure and gradually spreading the hands of each other so as to lengthen and thin it. Repeat the operation several times until you have a sausage of approximately 12 in. If air bubbles appear on the surface of the dough, burst them with the toothpick. Wrap the sausage around the hand, connecting the two ends to the centre of the palm. Roll the joint on the work surface with the palm of the hand to smooth the joint. Place the piece of dough on a sheet of parchment paper, then cover it with the plastic bag. Follow the same procedure for the other pieces of dough.

Proofing: Leave the baking sheets on the work surface. Allow the dough to rise for the required time.

Preparing the oven: Place the rack in the third position in the lower part of the oven. Preheat the oven to 450°F for at least 30 minutes.

About 15 minutes before the end of proofing, place on the work surface a wooden spoon, a flat slotted spoon, a bowl containing the egg and water for the glaze, a kitchen brush and a ramekin containing the sesame or poppy seeds. Set aside.

Pour boiling water into a pot. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to moderate so that the water simmers but does not boil. Add the honey and salt, then mix gently with the wooden spoon.

Baking - first part: Once the preparation time is over, plunge 2 or 3 bagels upside down in hot water, poach them for 1 minute on each side, remove them using a slotted spoon, then put them back on the sheets. Follow the same procedure for the remaining bagels (the bagels should float immediately when dropped in the water; if not, they are too dense because the primer has not been long enough; extend the primer period next time).

Topping and decorating: Brush bagels with egg wash, then sprinkle with sesame or poppy seeds with your fingers.

Baking - second part: Transfer the baking sheets to the oven rack. Bake at 450°F for 25 to 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted from edge to edge of the sausages comes out clean and the sausages are no longer soft when pressed between two fingers (if still soft, the crumb will be more like the crumb of regular bread; if too hard, the bagels will be too hard; usually 28 minutes is ideal). If necessary, cover the bagels with aluminum foil for the last 5 or 10 minutes to avoid burning them.

Taking out of the oven: Take the baking sheets out of the oven.

Suggested Timetables

Schedule without Refrigeration: Mixing around 10h / Between 3h and 5h bulk fermentation (45 mins. between each of the 3 stretches) / Dividing and Shaping / Between 1 h 30 and 2 h final proofing / 2 mins. poaching / 25-30 mins. baking at 450°F (230°C).

Schedule with Refrigeration: Mixing around 19h / Between 2h and 3h bulk fermentation (30 mins. between each of the 3 stretches) / Putting the dough in the fridge / Taking the dough out of fridge between 8 a.m. and 9 a.m. / Dividing and Shaping around 9 h / Between 1 h 30 and 2 h final proofing / 2 mins. poaching / 25-30 mins. baking at 450°F (230°C).

* Schedules must be adapted according to the total maturation time of your sourdough starter. The longer this time, the longer the first fermentation time must be extended.