Why Bagels Are Boiled | The Bagel Bakery (2024)

FAQs

Why Bagels Are Boiled | The Bagel Bakery? ›

The reason we boil the dough first is so that the outside crust sets before it goes in the oven. We generally let the dough boil for 30 to 60 seconds on each side, but the longer you let it boil, the thicker and chewier the crust. The amount of time the bagel is boiling also affects its interior texture.

It sets the outer layer of the dough, giving the bagel its distinctive chewiness. The boiling process gelatinizes the starches on the surface, creating a glossy, crackly crust during baking. Additionally, boiling gives the bagel its characteristic dense interior while maintaining a tender crumb.

Baking soda makes the water more alkaline, giving the bagels a pretzel-like quality that contributes to their chewiness. Just one teaspoon helps the bagels develop a shiny, dark-brown exterior as they bake. One thing to keep in mind: Keep the water bath at a constant simmer.

A New York style bagel is always boiled in water with barley malt and it gives the bagels their characteristic shiny crust and chew.

Boiling bagels gives the finished bagel their signature shine. By adding sugar and baking soda into the water it helps develop more flavour and deeper colour. The boiling cooks the outer layer of the bagel and helps it maintain its shape during the baking process.

The longer the boiling time, the harder the crust and the denser the bagels become. However, Panera went a different route with its bagels, opting to steam them with a steam-injection oven rather than boil them. Steaming is an easier option in Panera's kitchen.

Unlike the traditional boiling method, Janelle says Einstein has steam injection ovens that simulate the boiling process. “They're steamed for, I'd say, about 30 seconds,” Janelle said.

Traditional New York style bagels are submerged in boiling water for a couple of minutes before they're baked. Sometimes called "water bagels," boiling the dough sets the outside to give them a crispy exterior and chewy texture.

Baking the dough right away gives a bagel with a matte. finish and an open interior structure. Boiling the bagel pre gelatinizes the crust. for a shiny finish.

Over proofed dough will lose its strength too early and cause the bagels to deflate either during the second rise or while cooking.

Why does New York water make bagels better? ›

In fact, New York bagels are superior to other bagels due to two things: The New York water, which is a key ingredient, plus the way the bagels are cooked. Tap water in New York is very soft, meaning it has low concentrations of minerals like calcium and magnesium.

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.

Bagels are created in 17th century Poland as a response to anti-Semitic laws preventing Polish Jews from baking bread. Jewish bakers circumvented these restrictions by boiling the dough before baking it.

For one, the crust on a bagel shop bagel, created by boiling before baking, is much more substantial than that of the supermarket bagel, which is often merely steamed before the baking process.

No. Bagels are baked and boiled, donuts are fried, bagels are mostly savory, donuts are mostly sweet.

Either way, toasting transforms a bagel past its prime. It makes tough starches pliable again, and takes it in a different direction—crispy. Mass-produced (think grocery store) bagels benefit from this process a lot.