From-Scratch New York-Style Bagels

Name: From-Scratch New York-Style Bagels
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 50 min
Yield: 6 servings
Cuisine: Jewish, American
Ingredients: 4.5 cups Bread Flour; 1 tbsp Coarse Salt; 2 tbsp Dried Onion; 1 cup Honey; 1 tbsp Instant Rice; 2 tbsp Poppy Seeds; 1 tsp Salt; 2 tbsp Sesame Seeds; 3 tbsp Sugar; 2 tbsp Vegetable Oil; 1.25 cups Water

Breakfast 🍳Side Dish 🥗Lunch 🥪Snack 🍿 Jewish 🇮🇱American Low-Sodium Vegetarian 🥦Plant-Based 🌻Halal 🕌Kosher ✡️Comfort-Food Pescatarian 🐟

From-Scratch New York-Style Bagels deliver a glossy, crackly crust with a satisfyingly chewy interior, thanks to a brief boil before baking. The dough’s subtle sweetness balances savory toppings like sesame, poppy, onion, or coarse salt, making them perfect for weekend breakfasts or a brunch spread. Serve warm with cream cheese or piled high as sturdy sandwich rounds.

Prep30 mins
Cook20 mins
Serves6
DifficultyMedium

1

Make bagels: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, combine water, flour, sugar, salt, vegetable oil, and yeast. Mix on low speed until the dough is well developed, about 8 minutes. To check gluten development, cut off a walnut-sized piece of dough. Flour your fingers, then stretch the piece; if it tears right away, it needs more kneading. Properly developed dough should stretch into a thin, translucent windowpane.
2

Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl, cover it with plastic wrap and a kitchen towel, and let it rise for 2 hours.
3

Punch down the dough, place it on a lightly floured work surface, and use a knife or dough scraper to divide it into 6 pieces (or more for smaller bagels). Roll each piece into a sausage shape about 6 inches long, then join the ends to form a circle. Repeat with the remaining dough, and let the bagels rest for 15 minutes.
4

Preheat the oven to 475 degrees F (245 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set small plates with poppy seeds, sesame seeds, and onion flakes next to the baking sheet.
5

Bring 4 quarts of water to a boil in a large pot. Add honey, if desired (see Editor's Note). Boil three bagels at a time until they float to the surface, about 1 minute per side. Remove with a slotted spoon and place on the lined baking sheet.
6

Dip the tops of the wet bagels into the toppings and place them, seed-side up, on the baking sheet. Sprinkle with coarse salt, if desired.
7

Bake in the preheated oven until the bagels begin to brown, 15 to 20 minutes.