Easy Homemade Sourdough Bagels
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Sourdough bagels are just as chewy, soft, and delicious as New York-style bagels, and they’re much easier to make than you might expect. With my helpful step-by-step instructions, you can make them just like a professional baker.
Sourdough bagel recipe
If you feel stuck in a rut, making the same sourdough recipes over and over, you aren’t alone. Many people shy away from trying new recipes, afraid they’ll make a mistake and waste ingredients.
Fortunately, there are only 3 ingredients in this recipe, and my step-by-step instructions will walk you through the process. A bit of patience is truly all you need to create this breakfast treat!
While the process of making this sourdough bagel recipe does take a bit of time, I promise it’s worth it—and you can easily fit this recipe into your daily routine.
Why you’ll love this recipe:
Ingredients and substitutions
- All-purpose flour: I keep things simple, using all-purpose flour. Other bagel recipes call for bread flour, but I think the bagels are perfect with AP flour. If you want to use a substitute, bread flour, spelt flour, and whole grain flour will work. Note: Although there are more nutrients in whole-grain bagels, they will be a bit denser and chewier than those made with white flour.
- Active sourdough starter: If you don’t already have one, you can learn how to make a sourdough starter – it’s really easy!
- Salt: Since this recipe only uses a few ingredients, I like to use a high-quality sea salt
- Water: Technically, this isn’t an ingredient, but since you’ll need it, I thought I would list it here.
Bagel bath
The bath is the key to creating sourdough bagels that are chewy on the inside and crisp on the outside.
- Brown sugar: This adds color and a slight sweetness to the crust
- Baking soda: Adding baking soda gives the crust a bit more chewiness
Sourdough bagel recipe – step by step
This is just a summary of the steps. For the full instructions, see the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
1. Feed the starter (or make sourdough discard bagels)
Unless you already have a very active sourdough starter, you will want to mix a small amount of starter or sourdough discard with some rye flour and water. Let it sit in a warm spot for 4-8 hours, or until it has visibly risen and has lots of bubbles.
2. Make and knead the dough
To the bowl of your stand mixer or another large bowl, add the sourdough starter, warm water, flour, and salt. With the dough hook attachment, knead the dough for 7-10 minutes on low speed, then for 5 minutes on medium-low speed.
If you don’t have a stand mixer, you can use your hands to knead the dough until it doesn’t stick to your hands anymore.
Cover the bowl and let the dough rest at room temperature for 30 minutes.
3. Shape and proof the dough
Divide the dough into 10 equal pieces and form them into smooth balls. To ensure that they are the same size, use a kitchen scale to weigh the dough. Each dough ball should weight about 130 grams.
Rest the dough balls at room temperature for 30 minutes. Next, roll each dough ball into a long rope shape and bring the ends together to create a bagel shape.
Transfer them onto a parchment-lined baking sheet, cover them with plastic wrap, and let them rise in a warm place for 2-5 hours. Then, let them proof in the refrigerator overnight, or for 8-12 hours.
4. Boil and bake the sourdough bagels
After the proofing, bring one quart of water to a boil and preheat your oven to 400˚F.
Add the brown sugar and baking soda to the boiling water. Carefully add the bagel dough to the boiling water. Note: You will have to do this in batches.
Boil each bagel for about 40 seconds. When they float to the surface, use tongs to flip them over, then boil the second side for 40 seconds.
Using a slotted spoon, remove the bagels and place them on the prepared baking sheet.
Optional: Sprinkle your favorite toppings on the wet bagels at this point.
5. Bake the bagels
Transfer the boiled bagels to the preheated oven and bake them for 20-25 minutes, or until golden brown. **Depending on your oven, you may need to adjust the baking time.
Once fully baked, remove them from the oven. Transfer them to a wire rack and let them completely cool down.
Bagel seasoning and topping ideas
This is the fun part! I like to use “everything seasoning” (aka, Everything But the Bagel seasoning), but there are plenty of other ways to switch up the flavor:
- sesame seeds
- pumpkin seeds
- poppy seeds
- dried onion flakes
- garlic powder or garlic salt
- cinnamon
- raisins
- dried cranberries
- blueberries
- Asiago cheese
Everything Bagel Seasoning
If you want to use the same seasonings I do, just mix these ingredients together in a small bowl.
- 1 tablespoon black sesame seeds
- 1 tablespoon white sesame seeds
- 1½ tablespoons poppy seeds
- 1½ teaspoons flaky sea salt
- 2 teaspoons dried onion flakes
- 2 teaspoons garlic flakes
Serving suggestions
My favorite way to enjoy them is to slice a fresh bagel in half, smear it with cream cheese, add smoked salmon, and top it with some capers and red onion. But there are a lot of different ways you can enjoy your homemade sourdough bagels: toasted with butter, nut butter, only cream cheese, some homemade jam, or any of your favorite toppings.
It’s best to enjoy homemade bagels while they are fresh, within two days of baking.
Freezing for longer storage: To keep them for up to 3 months, wrap the cool bagels individually in plastic wrap, then place them in a freezer-safe container.
Other sourdough recipes you might like
Useful tools and equipment
I am sure you have most if not all of these:
- Kitchen scale: Weighing ingredients is much more accurate than using volume measurements and digital scales are really inexpensive
- Stand mixer: If you don’t have one, you can absolutely knead the dough by hand
- Large pot: You will need this for boiling the bagels before baking
- Slotted spoon: This kitchen essential helps get the bagels in and out of the bath
- Baking tray: For baking the bagels
- Parchment paper: I like to line my cookie sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat
Sourdough Bagels
Ingredients
Bagel dough:
- 750 g flour
- 380 g warm water
- 200 g active sourdough starter
- 10 g sea salt
Bagel bath:
- 1 TBSP brown sugar or honey
- 2 tsp baking soda
Toppings/additional ingredients:
- bagel seasoning, poppy seeds, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, dried flaked onions, etc.
- cinnamon and raisins, blueberries, etc.
Instructions
- Add the bagel ingredients to the bowl of a stand mixer. Mix on low speed for 7-10 mins. and medium-low for 5 mins. Cover the bowl with a kitchen towel or plastic wrap and let the dough rest at room temperature for 30 mins.
- Transfer dough to a clean work surface and divide into 10 equal pieces (about 130 g each). Roll into a smooth ball and let them rest for 30 mins. Roll each ball into a long log, press the ends together to form the bagel, and place them onto a baking sheet. Cover with a towel and let them rest for 2-5 hrs.
- Preheat oven to 400˚F. Bring water in a large pot to a boil. Add sugar and baking soda. Boil the shaped bagels for 40 secs. each side. Remove with a slotted spoon and place onto a parchment-lined baking tray. Optional: sprinkle with your favorite toppings. Repeat until all the bagels have been boiled.
- Bake the bagels for 20-25 mins. or until golden-brown. When done, transfer them to a wire rack and let them cool down completely.
Notes
- 1 tablespoon black sesame seeds
- 1 tablespoon white sesame seeds
- 1½ tablespoons poppy seeds
- 1½ teaspoons flaky sea salt
- 2 teaspoons dried onion flakes
- 2 teaspoons garlic flakes
Nutrition
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I have Einkorn Berries I’m milling (in my vitamix blender) that I want to use with these bagels but unsure of the exact measurement for them. I’ve made these bagels with regular Bread Flour many times before and they are perfect but this will be my first time using freshly milled.
You can perfectly use einkorn flour, just know that its gluten is very weak compared to bread flour. You might want to mix the bagel dough in a stand mixer for 10 minutes to best activate the gluten. Hope that helps ~ Anja
Anja, this sounds delicious! One question: In the detailed description (above the recipe), you added an overnight proofing of the shaped bagels as well. Do you suggest doing that along with letting them rise for 2-5 hours first?
Thankyou,
Deborah
You can certainly let them sit in the fridge overnight. Longer rise times will produce lighter but also more sour bagels. Hope this helps ~ Anja
They look gorgeous, but can the Sourdough starter be made with whole wheat or strong flour, as i don’t have rye flour? Thank you!
Yes, that should work just fine ~ Anja
I started my sourdough starter 12/18/2024. I did make a slight mistake during this process. I’m over run with starter, froze most of it last night. My starter just doubled, so I’m going to try making blueberry bagels today. But on your recipe it doesn’t say how many frozen blueberries to use. I plan on 380 g water including blueberries. I hope it works out. I have been terrified I would just make poison. Thank you very much !
Nice! As for the blueberries, it depends on your personal preference. Do you want just a sprinkling or have them stand out? You can add some to the dough and see what it looks like ~ Anja
I’m having a hard time waiting for these bits of Heaven to cool down! Recipe went without a glitch. Thanks again Anja. 💕
Nice! So glad you liked them ~ Anja
wondering if you can plz put the American standard measurements with the gram ones ?
i am not familar with the gram ones, and wont work on a recipe ,if i don’t know how to measure itas soon as i see grams in a recipe i shy away from it no matter how much i love the recipe its all new to me to use grams .
Will do (I have to do it manually) so please check back again ~ Anja