These homemade sourdough discard bagels are the perfect balance of chewy and tender. The recipe was specially developed to ensure that they are still tasty for several days after they’re made, too!
My Bagel Conundrum
The challenge I ran into in my bagel journey, was that the very best bagels out there are most enjoyable when they’re fresh out of the oven, but chewy like shoe-leather not too long after.
I needed a bagel that tasted great fresh, but also was still enjoyable a few days later. And I’m happy to report I landed on the perfect balance.
What’s with All the Different Flours?
I know, I know. It’s a little much, right? You don’t have to use whole wheat flour, unbleached bread flour and all purpose flour. These bagels are still great if you skip the different flours and do 460g of unbleached all purpose flour instead.
But, if you do have the different flours, the addition of bread flour helps to develop stronger gluten bonds thanks to the higher protein content, giving you that little bit of chewy factor to the interior of the bagel.
The whole wheat flour helps make the bagels a little bit more tender.
So if you are a bread nut like me and have all three, I recommend this ratio. But, if not, feel free to go all in on all-purpose. They’re still going to be great!
Do note that unbleached is the way to go with any sourdough baking. Bleach and sourdough aren’t friends.
What is Sourdough Discard?
You get sourdough discard when you feed a sourdough starter. You typically need to discard a portion of it before feeding it with fresh flour and water to keep it active and healthy.
Obviously no one likes to waste food, so you can add the discard into various baked goods, such as pancakes, waffles, crackers, and bread recipes, to impart that distinct sourdough flavor and health benefits of sourdough.
However, discard is NOT active starter, so it won’t cause breads to rise. Thus why in this recipe and a lot of sourdough discard bread recipes, you’ll see use of active dry yeast.
How to Roll Bagels
Some folks prefer the method of forming the dough into balls and then poking a hole into the center and creating the bagel that way. However, I found that often the center hole of the bagel would fill in this way. I’m a fan of keeping it traditional with an opening in the center and I found this method to work better for getting that look.
I also like to add a little twist when I’m rolling the bagels to create a little personality in the outside of the bagels. It also adds a little surface tension, forming a nice crust.
Proofing in the Fridge is the Secret
The secret to these bagels is to stick them in the fridge overnight once you’ve formed them, before you boil and bake them. This gives them plenty of time to slowly rise and get some nice air pockets developed.
And because they’re cold when you boil them, you don’t risk over-proofing them. Over-proofing makes for flat bagels or bagels with an overly rippled exterior.
How to get the Crispy Blistered Crust
This method of proofing overnight in the fridge also ensures you’ll get that nice crispy blistered crust on your bagels. This is a hallmark of all great bagels. Proofing overnight gives the gluten plenty of time to develop and when the hot heat hits them, you get the signature bagel blisters.
They will stay crispy for several hours after they’re baked. They do soften the next day to a nice chew, but not too chewy. I don’t like bagels that are too chewy, personally.
Don’t Over-Boil Your Bagels
This was where so many recipes led me astray when I first started messing around with bagels. I saw folks boiling for a minute or more on each side. Which, if you love that super duper chewy, shoe-leather effect, go for it. But, I find 20 seconds each side to be total perfection. A hit of chewy exterior, a nice touch of color, that’s all ya need.
Of course you can enjoy these schmeared with cream cheese. My kids love when I make these for bagel sandwiches in their school lunches.
Freezing Bagels
They also freeze exceptionally well. Once they’ve cooled, I pre-slice them, stick them in a freezer bag and freeze them up to three months for optimal freshness. When you’re ready to enjoy, pop them into the toaster to reheat and enjoy.
You can also freeze them unsliced and just let them come to room temp naturally in a bread box or plastic bag to help them retain their moisure.
Love Sourdough?
Try out my Sourdough Sandwich Bread!
Print
Sourdough Discard Bagels
- Prep Time: 9 hours
- Cook Time: 40 min
- Total Time: 9 hours 40 minutes
- Yield: 8 bagels 1x
- Category: bread
- Method: baking
- Cuisine: Jewish
Description
These homemade bagels are a great way to use up sourdough discard and are the perfect balance of chewy and tender. They’re just as good for days after they’re made, too!
Ingredients
- 5g active dry yeast
- 275g 105F water
- 100g sourdough discard
- 10 grams granulated sugar
- 50g whole wheat flour
- 170g unbleached bread flour
- 240g unbleached all-purpose flour
- 8g salt
- 2 quarts water
- 2 Tbs molasses
- 2 tsp baking soda
Instructions
- Add 5g of active dry yeast to the bowl of a stand mixer and at 275g of 105F water and let it sit for 5 to 10 minutes until the yeast is foamy on top.
- Once the yeast is foamy, add 100g of sourdough discard, 10g granulated sugar, 50g whole wheat flour, 170g unbleached bread flour, 240g of unbleached all-purpose flour and 8g of salt to the stand mixer.
- Using the dough hook on your mixer, mix on medium low speed until a ball forms. You will notice that it becomes hard for the mixer to keep mixing the dough. Once that happens turn off the mixer and let the dough rest for 15 minutes to allow the flour to absorb and the dough to become more pliable.
- After the dough rests, knead the dough for 8 – 10 min on medium speed until it’s smooth and elastic.
- Cover the bowl with a damp towel or plastic wrap for 1 hour until it’s doubled in size. If you’re in a warm place (above 75F) this might happen faster so keep an eye on your dough.
- Once the dough has doubled, pull it out of the bowl onto a lightly floured surface.
- Divide the dough into 8 balls, approximately 105 – 110g each.
- For each dough ball, roll it into a 3 inch rope, then twist and secure the other side to join the ends, and roll them together on the surface so they fully connect, seamlessly.
- Place each formed bagel on a parchment or silpat lined baking sheet and cover with plastic wrap.
- Put the baking sheeting into the fridge for 6 – 12 hours (going longer than 12 hours will results in over-proofing and less springy bagels in the end).
- Right before you’re ready to bake, preheat your oven to 500F and heat 2 quarts water to a rolling boil with 2 Tbs molasses and 2 tsp baking soda.
- Take the bagels out of the fridge, and using a slotted spoon, gently lower the bagels one at a time into the boiling water and boil for 20 seconds, then flip and boil another 20 seconds.
- Shake off the excess water and place each boiled bagel on a fresh parchment or Silpat lined baking sheet.
- Put the bagels into the oven and reduce the oven temperature to 425F.
- Bake the bagels for 20 – 24 minutes minutes until golden brown and an internal thermometer inserted into a bagel registers 208 – 210F.
- Remove the bagels from the oven and once they’re cooled, enjoy!
- Keep bagels in an airtight bag or container up to five days or freeze up to 3 months.
Notes
If you don’t want to fuss with different flours, just use 460g of unbleached all-purpose flour instead.
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