[boulderbrewer]

OK, I will pimp some NaOH (food grade), you pay for legal shipping and I can hook you up. Mine is from Essential Depot.

[euge]

Made some more. Same recipe but fermented for 36 hours or so. Used 1 Tbs lye for 3 qt of boiling water. Wow they changed color just like I suspected they would. And they look amazing. I can see how pretzels get that mahogany color and shine. Kosher salt and celery seed.

[punatic]

You realize, of course, that bagels are just doughnuts with a masters degree, yah?   

[Al Equihua]

they look very good and tasty Euge, is been so long since i baked my last bagels
like the color

[gmac]

Can you post a recipe from start to finish? 
I've wanted to make bagels but haven't.  There's a long list of things I haven't found time for.

[The Professor]

Made some more. Same recipe but fermented for 36 hours or so. Used 1 Tbs lye for 3 qt of boiling water. Wow they changed color just like I suspected they would. And they look amazing. I can see how pretzels get that mahogany color and shine. Kosher salt and celery seed.

Wow.  Interesting. 
I never heard of a lye soak/boil for bagels.  I've always boiled them in water with some malt extract the way most old time bagel shops do.
Yours look interesting and I may have to give that technique a spin.  They really look good!

[euge]

I got the base recipe from "How to Cook Everything" by Mark Bittman. This is a handy volume on just about everything. I don't agree with everything in the book but it is useful. Then there's google for extra tips.

1 pound flour. I used 50/50 bread/AP flour
2 tbs sugar
2 tsp salt
1-2 tsp dry yeast
1tbs malt extract (I used diy dark candy syrup)

For the water 1tbs lye (sodium hydroxide) per three quarts

I have a stand-mixer but you can use a food-processor or by hand.

Mix dry ingredients except tbs sugar

Proof yeast in 150ml tap water for 15 minutes and add remaining tbs of sugar and syrup when hydrated.

Let sit until foaming and add to the dry mix and achieve a dough. The dough should be slightly sticky but very plastic. Place in greased bowl, cover and let double in size then turn out onto floured surface and punch down a bit. Let rest for 10 minutes covered. Then divide into 8+/- balls or equal pieces. Let rest covered a few minutes to relax. Quickly form bagels and let rest again for 30 minutes covered. I suggest consulting google/youtube for forming techniques.

Once the 30 minute count-down starts turn the oven to 400F and fill a pan with the water and add the lye. Watch out this can be caustic. Probably you could get by with less lye. Cleaned my pan very well!

Add the bagels to the pan and boil them 1-2 minutes each side being careful not to crowd them and remove to racks to cool slightly before going into the 400F oven for 20-25 minutes. Salting or topping is done slightly cooled right before going into the oven.

Now what I did was proof my dough slower which increases flavor and improves consistency. Once made and in it's bowl the dough was covered with cling-wrap and placed into the fridge for 36 hours. It was then removed to the counter until it doubled in size which took about 8 hours. This lag was due to the ceramic bowl being chilled and the AC vent blowing nearby.

In the meantime I brewed two batches of beer because I knew the dough would take that long from experience.

The lengthy rise has given way to a very tasty dough and bagel! So the only other variation was the lye water which I adopted from advice on this thread. I can't see myself making bagels without it now.

[Delo]

Made some more. Same recipe but fermented for 36 hours or so. Used 1 Tbs lye for 3 qt of boiling water. Wow they changed color just like I suspected they would. And they look amazing. I can see how pretzels get that mahogany color and shine. Kosher salt and celery seed.

Those look good. Never heard of adding the lye either. They remind me of pretzel rolls I had in Germany.  I love bagels and would love to make them, but have been putting it off since I finally found a shop with good ones.  Now I'll have to try it..... Maybe start on Good Friday and have fresh bagels for Easter.  Thanks for the recipe

[gmac]

Thanks Euge.  I will give these a try.

[james]

I got the base recipe from "How to Cook Everything" by Mark Bittman. This is a handy volume on just about everything. I don't agree with everything in the book but it is useful. Then there's google for extra tips.

I've severely downsized my collection of cookbooks and this is one of the few that made the cut.  If I need to look something up I'll check that book and then search online.

I've gotta get back into working on my bagels, the best bagels around came from a grocery store by my old house.  Now that I've moved I'm screwed.

[tygo]

I got the base recipe from "How to Cook Everything" by Mark Bittman.

A good editor could almost go through this forum and collect a book of articles entitled, "How to Do Everything From Scratch."

Nice bagels Euge!

[marty]

The lye hydrolizes the proteins in the flour and allows the outside to brown well.

So that's the technical term, I've been saying it "gooifies" the outside

[euge]

B

The lye hydrolizes the proteins in the flour and allows the outside to brown well.

So that's the technical term, I've been saying it "gooifies" the outside

Lol it does something special!

[bo]

B

The lye hydrolizes the proteins in the flour and allows the outside to brown well.

So that's the technical term, I've been saying it "gooifies" the outside

Lol it does something special!

I like gooifies better.

[euge]

Have the dough in the fridge. Will pull it out and place in unlit oven for 8 hours while I'm at work! See how well that approach works.

And my last bagel fell victim to mold.

Is there any natural way to inhibit such rapid growth of mold? Honey?