A couple of years ago I was fortunate enough to spend some time in New York City. During my stay there I fell in love with the New York Bagel. Unlike anything I had tasted back home it had a remarkable chewy texture.
Since then I have been on a quest to try and replicate that flavor, and while some say it is impossible due to the local New York City water, I would like to share with you this recipe.
I have tried literally dozens of different mixtures found all over the internet. This is the best one I have come across.
Flour
First, a quick note about the flour. This recipe won’t work with all purpose flour. You need to use a high gluten bread flour or bakers flour.
You can find 5kg bags of bakers flour in most Coles and Woollies. Two readily available brands are Defiance Bakers Flour and Laucke Wallaby Flour.
The Process
As with any good bread, time is the key ingredient allowing the yeast do work slowly and develop the flavour. This recipe takes 2 days to make, but they are well worth the wait!
It’s a two step “cooking” process, first you boil the bagels, then bake them.
It’s also important to have a set of digital scales so you can accurately measure all your ingredients.
Malt Powder
One of the secret ingredients to this recipe is the addition of Malt Powder. You can pick this up for around $2 from any home brew shop or health food shop. If you can’t find malt powder, you can substitute malt syrup.
The Recipe
This recipe makes 12 large bagels
1. The Sponge
1 teaspoon instant yeast
500 grams unbleached high gluten bread flour
560 luke warm water
The first step is to make your sponge. Stir the yeast into the flour in a large mixing bowl and make a well in the centre.
Gradually pour in the water and mix with a wooden spoon until it forms a smooth sticky batter.
Cover with cling-wrap and leave it at room temperature until the mixture becomes very foamy and bubbly. In summer this will take about 2 hours, in winter it could take 3-4 hours.
The mixture should double in size and collapse when you tap the bowl on your benchtop.
2. The Dough
½ Teaspoon Instant Yeast
400 grams + an additional 80 grams unbleached high-gluten bread flour
2 and ¾ tablespoon salt
2 teaspoons malt powder or 1 tablespoon malt syrup
In the same mixing bowl, stir through the additional yeast. Then add 400 grams of flour, the salt and malt. Stir until the ingredients form a messy ball.
Dust your bench top with the other 80 grams of flour and turn the dough out of the bowl.
I find its best to use my bench, not a chopping board as the wooden boards soak up moisture from the dough.
Knead the dough with the palms of your hands for about 10 minutes until it forms a stiff smooth ball. Don’t worry, this is meant to be a stiff dough!
Immediately divide the dough into 12 pieces and roll each of them into a ball.
Cover with a tea towel and let them rest for 20 minutes.
Shaping the Bagels
After your balls have rested, roll each of them out into 20 cm long rope. You may find the dough springs back, don’t worry, just let it rest for another 5 minutes and then keep rolling.
Wrap the dough around your hand overlapping the two ends by 5 cm. Stretch the dough to go the distance and press the ends together to join.
Turn an oven tray upside down and place a piece of baking paper on top. Lightly mist the baking paper with spray oil and place the newly formed bagels on top.
Once you have shaped all your bagels, lightly mist the bagels with spray oil, and cover with cling wrap.
Let them rest at room temperature for 20 minutes, then place them in your fridge overnight. This time, at a cold temperature slows down the rate at which the yeast goes to work and gives the bagels time to develop their full flavor.
The Next Day
The next day, when your ready to make your bagels, preheat your oven to 240 degrees Celsius.
Grab a really large pot, fill it with water and bring it to the boil.
When it’s boiling, add 1 tablespoon of Bi Carb Soda (Baking Soda). This alkalizes the water.
Prepare another oven tray, lined with baking paper, misted with spray oil and dusted with semolina. This makes sure they won’t stick when you bake them.
Pull your bagels out of the fridge and gently pick them up by hand and drop them into the water. You can do as many as comfortably fit at any one time.
The bagels should float to the top within 10 seconds. Boil them for 1 minute, flip them over and boil the other side for a further 1 minute.
Pull them out of the pot with a slotted spoon and place them on your prepared oven trays.
Top the bagels with sesame seeds or poppy seeds (or a combination of both) and place them in the oven.
Bake for 5 minutes, then rotate the tray 180 degrees and bake for a further 5 minutes.
When they are brown – about 15 minutes – pull them out of the oven and let them rest on a wire rack for at least 30 minutes.
