Sourdough Bagels | Naturally Fermented Bagels.

Last updated on March 11th, 2022 at 06:25 pm

This recipe for sourdough bagels is great to have in any baker’s toolbox. They have a depth of flavour from the rye levain and a great chew from the boil.

Flour Specs:

• 90% Organic strong bakers flour 12.4% protein
• 10% Whole grain rye flour

Specialty Ingredients

For this sourdough bagels recipe you will need a few specialty ingredients.

• Diastatic malt will help the wild yeast grow to its full potential during fermentation. It will also help with the texture and beautiful brown bagel crust.
• Barley Malt Syrup will also help with the rich brown colour and fermentation in your sourdough bagels. You can use honey in place of the malt syrup but for boiling the results won’t quite be the same.

Sourdough Bagel Specs:

Yield	18 X 120g sourdough bagel
Total Dough Weight	2250g
Pre-Fermented Flour	9.6%
Levain % in Final Dough	22%
Total Hydration	59.5%

If you’d like to easily scale this sourdough bagel recipe, you can download my sourdough bagel dough calculator.

Total Formula

Weight	Ingredient	Bakers %
1202 grams	Bread Flour	90.3%
129 grams	Rye Flour	9.7%
790 grams	Water	59.3%
26 grams	Salt	2%
27 grams	Barley Malt Syrup	3%
6 grams	Diastatic Malt	0.7%
5 grams	Levain	0.5%

Sourdough Bagels Dough Schedule

To help simplify the process I have included a sourdough bagel dough schedule. This is meant to be a guideline and you can adjust it to fit your schedule.

Mix the Sourdough Bagel Levain – 9:00pm

We will use a rye levain to make our sourdough bagels. Using rye levain will give these bagels a great depth of flavour and deep sour notes.

Mix all ingredients together until well combined. Cover with a lid and place in a proofer or warm spot. This levain is meant to rise for 12-14 hours at 20°C/70°F. It will develop a strong acidity and rich smell.

Weight	Ingredient	Bakers %
129 grams	Rye Flour	100
129 grams	Water at 22.2°C/72°F	100
6 grams	Levain	5

Total 205 grams

Note: This levain is meant to rise for 12-14 hours at 20°C/70°F . It will develop a strong acidity and rich smell.

Mix the Dough – 11:00am

Weight	Ingredient
1202 grams	Bread Flour
661 grams	Water 26°C/80°F
26 grams	Salt
36 grams	Barley Malt Syrup
6 grams	Diastatic Malt Powder
264 grams	Levain

I have reserved __ grams of water to help mix in the salt

1. Add the water, malt syrup, diastatic malt and levain to the mixing bowl.
2. Add the flour to the bowl and mix on first speed until there are no dry bits. This should take about 3-5 minutes.
3. Mix the dough on secdond speed for another 2-3 minutes until well developed.
4. Cover and leave in a warm place.
5. Final dough temperature – 28°C/82°F.

Bulk Fermentation 11:30am – 2:30pm

Bulk ferment the dough for 3 hours. I have not been giving my dough any folds during this time but if you are using soft flour or feel that the dough is lacking in strength feel free to give it a fold halfway through the bulk. I am currently working on a sourdough bagel recipe using only whole grains and have found that it can benefit from a fold.

Divide and Preshape – 2:30pm-3:00pm

Flip the dough out of the container onto an un-floured work surface. You want to use the table to stretch the dough and extra flour will prevent your dough from sticking to the table.

Divide the dough into 110-120 gram pieces. Flatten the pieces and roll them into a cylinder pressing the dough into itself with each roll developing some surface tension by the time you are done rolling up the log. Cover the dough and let it rest for 20 minutes.

Final Shape – 3:00pm

Using the palms of your hands, roll the cylinder into a log about 15cm/6″ long. Wrap the dough around your and connect the two ends in the middle of your palm. using some force on the table roll the two ends back and forth until they stick together making an O shape.

It is important to make sure the dough is connected at this point, because if not when you blanch your bagels it will come apart and unravel.

Final Fermentation – Overnight

Leave the sourdough bagels out for 90 minutes then cover and place them in the fridge overnight.

Baking – 9:00am

While traditional bagels are baked in a wood-fired oven, often on a soaked board for this recipe we will be baking them in a home oven but using a high temperature. Preheat your oven to 260°C/500°F.

Bring a pot of water to a boil and add the malt syrup. There should be enough to colour the water. Boil the bagels for about 30 seconds per side and do not crowd the pot while boiling. If you’d like to add seeds you can do so after blanching while they are still a bit wet so the seeds stick to the sourdough bagel.

Remove the bagels from the liquid and place onto a silpat lined baking sheet then bake them for 18-20 minutes or until fully risen and a nice golden brown colour.

Sourdough Bagels Final Thoughts

Where you love New York, Montreal or another style of bagel there is no denying that a warm bagel is an amazing thing.

If you liked this recipe, be sure to check out my Rye Sourdough Pretzel and my Buckwheat Beer Bread recipe.

Sourdough Bagel Recipe Card

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