Bagel Recipe (Easy No-Yeast Yogurt Dough) - Skinnytaste (2024)

FAQs

What is the secret to making bagels? ›

There's no egg in the dough, and malt is used in place of sugar. A bagel is made by first cooking it in water — very hot boiling water — for one or two minutes to lock in its flavor. Then it's browned in the oven to create that hard, delectable crust.

If you want a thinner crust and airier texture in your bagels, shorten the boiling time slightly (around 45 seconds, instead of the 60 seconds called for in the recipe). The shorter boil means the crust has less opportunity to preset, which allows more rising, and thus a “fluffier” bagel.

When too much flour is kneaded in, bagels become dense, hard and tough, instead of crisp and chewy. It can easily take 10 minutes of mixing and kneading before the right texture and gluten strength is achieved.

Bread flour – Because of its high protein content, bread flour makes these homemade bagels delightfully chewy. This recipe also works with all-purpose flour, they're just a bit less chewy than bagels made with bread flour.

Homemade is Better Than Store-Bought

Store-bought options are not usually the healthiest. Many are made with more sugar than necessary and unhealthy ingredients. Making bagels at home allows you to see exactly what is being put into your mix.

Much like a specific vineyard terroir is used to make a wine, certain minerals in New York City tap water are attributed to creating the best bagels. These include low concentrations of calcium and magnesium and a high level of sediment.

A New York–style bagel is always boiled in water that has had barley malt added, which gives a bagel its signature taste, texture, and leathery skin.

A good bagel should have a thin, shiny, crackly crust spotted with the kind of microblisters that you can only get from proper boiling followed by a high-temperature bake. It's these little bubbles that add both surface area and crunch.

The microwave is a quick solution for many kitchen tasks. To help soften a hard bagel, simply wrap it in a moist paper towel and microwave it for 15 seconds. You can also set the bagel on a microwave-safe plate, then surround it with a few water drops or lightly mist it and put it in the microwave for 30 seconds.

Why did my bagels come out hard after baking? ›

Tough and Matte

The loss of air and super-long fermentation can also make bagels seem tough rather than chewy, so be careful when pushing the upper limits of the proof time.

Moreira: Usually if you get dense bagels, it's because they were underproofed. But it could also be that your yeast is bad. When you're at home using dry yeast—especially if you don't use it that often—you should always bloom the yeast in a little bit of sugar and water to make sure it's active.

How to know when to stop kneading: There are 2 ways to check whether the dough has been kneaded enough and is ready to rise, and you can use either or both. The first way to check is to simply poke the dough with your finger. If the dough bounces back without sticking to your finger, it's been kneaded enough.

Bake the bagels.

Bake the bagels for 12 minutes. Flip the bagels so that they are bottom-side up (this helps them maintain their shape). Bake until they are deep golden-brown, 8 to 12 minutes more.

A good bagel should have a thin, shiny, crackly crust spotted with the kind of microblisters that you can only get from proper boiling followed by a high-temperature bake. It's these little bubbles that add both surface area and crunch.

The Key to a Real New York Bagel

New York bagels get boiled prior to baking, defining their special texture in a solution of water and barley malt. A long boil and thicker crust inhibit rising, resulting in a dense interior while a short boil yields a crusty yet chewy bagel bite.

Salt is sometimes added for flavor, as is barley malt syrup or non-diastatic malt powder (for a New York bagel), or honey (in the case of a Montreal bagel); sugars like malt and honey also increase the bagel's sheen. (Molasses is a easier-to-source and similarly-flavored stand in for malt syrup.)

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.