Bagel

A bagel is a bread product originating in Jewish communities of Poland. It is shaped by hand in the form of ring , that is first boiled for a short duration in water and then baked. It has a dense , chewy crumb with a crisp exterior. These are often topped with seeds.

There are easy steps involved in baking these bagels;

• mixing and kneading the ingredients which include all purpose flour, salt, sugar/honey, yeast and warm water and butter  to form a dough.
• dividing the dough into equal portions and shaping them into ring.
• proofing them for at least 8 hours or overnight  in  refrigerator.
• boiling each bagel in water ( baking soda, salt ,sugar are added to the water ) .
• baking them at 190° C.
  
  

It's  surprisingly an easy recipe  which has three parts 

• dough,
• water for poaching the bagels and
• the topping.

Why do we poach them?

 When you boil the bagels in water , it gives them  the shiny coating and chewy crumb. It prevents them from puffing  up  in oven and loosing the ring  shape.

When to boil?

before boiling the bagels, do the float test . Place the bagel in a small bowl of water, if it floats, it's ready. If it doesn't float, let it proof for some more time. Don't skip this step . If the bagels are not ready to be boiled , it'll result in dense bagel.

Toppings

Feel free to top them up  with whatever you like. They are good  with sesame seeds , salt flakes or plain.

Ingredients

All purpose flour                       3 & 1/2 cups

Instant yeast                              1 & 1/2 tsp

Salt                                               1& 1/2 tsp

Sugar                                           2 tbsp

Milk powder                               3 tbsp

Warm water                               1& 1/2 cup + more if required

Olive oil                                        2 tbsp

For poaching liquid

Water                                       10 cups

Baking soda                            2 tsp

sugar                                        2 tbsp

Salt                                            2 tsp

Toppings

White sesame seed, black sesame seeds, salt  and mixed herbs .

Method

• Prepare the dough- In a large mixing bowl , mix flour , yeast, salt , sugar and milk powder.
• Add warm water and oil gradually to get a smooth dough . The dough for the bagels is not soft , it is slightly stiff which will get smooth by kneading it for some more time.
• Cover it in a greased bowl and keep it to proof in a warm place until it doubles.
• Line baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Once the dough is doubled , gently punch it down to release the air pockets and knead it for 2-3 minutes.
• Divide the dough into equal portions , depending on the size you want.
• Shape each portion into a ball and poke your finger into the centre to make a hole in the centre.
• Shape it into a ring and place them on parchment paper. Cover the baking sheet with cling wrap and keep it refrigerated for minimum 8hours or overnight.
• Remove from refrigerator and let them come to room temperature.
• Do the float test for one bagel, if it floats start preparing the poaching liquid.
• Boil  water and add salt, sugar and soda.
• Boil each bagel for one minute each side.
• Keep the poached bagels on baking sheet.
• Mix the topping ingredients together and place the bagel on top so that the topping clings to the surface of bagel.
• Keep the bagels on baking sheet and bake in preheated oven at 190°C for 18-20 minutes.