by Risa Wolf

Created on: October 10, 2009   Last Updated: April 25, 2012

Bagels are very easy to make; my grandmother taught me how to make perfect bagels when I was 10 years old. Bagels are both delicious and economical.

Tip 1:

The most important tip for making perfect bagels is to make plain bagels first. Once you have the feel for the correct texture of the dough, you can always try later to make fruit or sesame or whole wheat flour or semolina (farina) or what-have-you bagels.

Recipe for 8 plain bagels:

There is no special bread recipe for plain bagels. If you already have a favorite recipe for white bread, halve the amounts and use it. If not, then here is what you will need:

1 cup potato water (see below) or tap water
1 yeast cake or packet of dried yeast
1 tablespoon fat
1 and a half tablespoons sugar
One half teaspoon salt
3 to 3 and a half cups flour

Tip 2:

Potato water is the water in which 1 or 2 peeled potatoes have been boiled. Potato water will help keep the center of the bread or bagel soft. It also helps bread doughs to rise faster. Remember to cool the potato water down to body temperature before adding the yeast. (If you do not have a baking or candy thermometer, test the temperature on the inside of your wrist.)

Now you have to decide on whether you want to use the straight dough or sponge dough method. I prefer to use the straight dough method.

Straight dough method:

Preparation time: 15 minutes.

In your mixing bowl, place the fat, sugar, salt and three-quarters of the liquid. Stir together. Dissolve the yeast in the cooled liquid, then add to the rest and beat until yeast is amalgamated with the other ingredients. Now, add the flour, slowly at first, beating it into the other ingredients. When the mixture becomes too thick to beat, add the rest of the flour and knead the dough until it is smooth and elastic to the touch. This takes about 10 minutes. Let dough rise until double in bulk. Punch down, then knead and roll into a long roll.

Cut the roll into 8 equal parts. For pretzel bagels, roll each of the 8 pieces into the width of your index finger and twice as long, tapering at both ends. For sandwich bagels, roll each of the 8 pieces into double the width of your index finger and slightly longer than your finger - again, tapered at both ends. Shape into rings; slightly moisten the tapered ends and pinch together. Place each ring on a floured board and let rest only until the dough starts to rise again. While the dough rests on the board, fill a large shallow pot or pan half full of water.

Tip 3:

*Do not bring the water to a rolling boil*; bagels are simmered. Slip each bagel into the just-below-boiling-point water one-by-one. When the bagel rises to the surface, it is done on one side. With a skimmer, turn it over and cook on the other side. When turned over, the uncooked side will sink slightly and then bob to the surface again as it cooks. Remove the bagel from the water with the skimmer and place on a cookie sheet. When all 8 bagels are simmer-cooked and on the cookie sheet, place the cookie sheet in a hot oven (400 degrees Fahrenheit) and let bake until crisp and golden.

Cooking time: simmering, 5-6 minutes; baking, approximately 12-15 minutes.

And there you have it; perfect fresh plain bagels all ready for the traditional cream cheese and lox or whatever you love to spread on your bagels.

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