These sourdough bagels are thick and chewy, but not too dense. They are truly the best homemade bagels and they're super easy to make! I use a combination of sourdough discard and instant yeast to get that delicious sourdough flavor in just a couple hours.
I love to make a big batch of bagels in different flavors and freeze them, so that I can have fresh sourdough bagels whenever I want!
You might also like these sourdough pretzels or these sourdough blueberry muffins!
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Ingredient Notes
You just need a few simple ingredients to make the best chewy sourdough bagels!
Sourdough Starter - I typically use leftover sourdough discard to make these bagels because I always need to use up extra discard, but ripe sourdough starter works just as well! This recipe uses a little bit of yeast to help it rise, so the sourdough is just for that tangy flavor.
Bread Flour - I use bread flour to make the bagels a little bit chewier, but you can easily substitute all purpose flour. You just made need 2-3 extra tablespoons of flour.
Instant Yeast - The yeast helps the dough rise so that we can use sourdough discard. But I've included notes at the end of the recipe for making these sourdough bagels without yeast!
Non-Diastatic Malt Powder - You can leave this out if you can't get your hands on it, but I highly recommend it! Non-diastatic malt powder gives both pretzels and bagels their distinct flavor and shiny crust.
Baking Soda - Boiling the bagels in baking soda is crucial for helping them rise properly and get the perfect bagel texture!
The complete list of ingredients and amounts is located in the recipe card below.
How to Make Sourdough Bagels!
In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the sourdough starter discard, the water, and 200 grams of flour and let rest at warm room temperature for 1-2 hours until the surface is bubbly.
This first step is technically optional, but I promise it's worth it! It really helps develop that sourdough flavor and strengthen the dough.
Add in the rest of the flour, the instant yeast, sugar, malt powder, and salt. In a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment, knead the dough on medium-high speed for about 5 minutes. The dough should come together into a cohesive ball that pulls away from the side of the bowl. The dough will be very smooth and elastic but still a little bit tacky.
Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl and lightly cover with a kitchen towel. Let rise at warm room temperature (72-75 degrees) for 60-90 minutes until the dough is puffy and doubled in size.
Line 2 nonreactive baking sheets with parchment paper, then turn the dough out onto a clean surface and divide into 12 equal pieces. The total dough weight should be about 1200 grams, so you're shooting for 100 gram pieces.
Shape each piece of dough into a tight round. Pull the edges of each piece of dough towards the center and then pinch them shut. They should look like little round dumplings. Cup your hand so that just your fingertips touch the work surface and the ball of dough is beneath your palm. Make a circular motion with your hand, dragging the dough against the surface of the table. This motion will build surface tension along the top of the dough and tighten it into a ball.
Place your shaped dough balls onto your lined baking sheets and let rest for about 30 minutes.
While the dough balls are resting, preheat your oven to 425 degrees and prepare your water bath. Fill a large nonreactive pot with water and bring to a slow rolling boil and then add in the baking soda (it should foam up for a minute).
Shape the bagels by pushing a lightly floured finger through the center of the dough ball. Twirl the dough around your finger to enlarge the hole until it's about 2 inches in diameter (this will look too large, but the holes will shrink when the bagels are boiled and baked).
Boil the bagels for about 30 seconds on each side and then place back on your parchment lined baking sheets. Depending on the size of your pot, you will only be able to boil 3-4 bagels at a time.
Lightly brush the tops of your bagels with egg wash and sprinkle on your desired toppings.
[Don't skimp on the egg wash! That's what helps the toppings stick to the bagels!]
Bake at 425 for 20-25 minutes or until the bagels are golden brown. Make sure to rotate the trays halfway through baking so that the bagels cook evenly.
Sourdough Tips & Tricks
If you've never baked with sourdough before, it can be a little tricky. But don't worry, I have a full Sourdough Starter Guide all about making and maintaining a sourdough starter! I also have a full guide on different types of flour you can use to make sourdough and of course a guide on how to make a Beginner Homemade Sourdough Loaf. Below are a few quick tips and key terms you need to know.
- Sourdough Starter - A culture of wild yeast and bacteria that leavens and flavors sourdough bread. I use what's called a "liquid starter" versus a stiff starter. This means the starter is made with equal parts flour and water and should be a consistency similar to cake batter.
- Sourdough Discard - The portion of your starter that is discarded when feeding your starter (can be used in tons of recipes like sourdough discard blueberry muffins or sourdough pancakes).
- Ripe Starter - A starter that's ready to be used in baking. Your starter is ripe roughly 6 hours after feeding and will have doubled in size, have lots of visible bubbles, and a fresh acidic aroma.
Weigh your ingredients! For all my sourdough recipes, I measure the ingredients in grams because it's much more accurate! I highly recommend getting a kitchen scale if you don't already have one! However, I have included alternate US customary measurements for your convenience.
Use an oven thermometer! Just because your oven says it's 350, doesn't mean it is! If your oven hasn't been calibrated recently, it can be as much as 30 degrees off, which will negatively affect all breads and baked goods! An oven thermometer is the easiest/cheapest way to ensure your oven is always at the proper temperature.
Easy sourdough recipes for beginners! If you've never made sourdough bread before, I recommend starting with some simple, no-fuss recipes like my sourdough naan or sourdough bagels! But if you're already a pro, I have a ton of fun sourdough recipes you can try!
Bagel Toppings
These sourdough bagels are delicious on their own, but there's endless options for toppings! I always go for shredded cheese but you can add whatever you want!
- Asiago cheese
- Cinnamon sugar
- Sesame
- Everything bagel seasoning
Make Your Own Everything Bagel Seasoning!
Everyone knows that Trader Joe's Everything But The Bagel Seasoning is the best! But then I realized that it's insanely easy to just make my own! All the ingredients can be found in the baking aisle at your local grocery store. You'll need:
- ¼ cup dried minced garlic
- ¼ cup dried minced onion
- ¼ cup black and white sesame seeds (or 2 tablespoons each)
- 2 tablespoons poppy seeds
- flaky kosher salt (start with 1-2 tablespoons but add more if desired)
Just mix it all together and store in an airtight container!
Recipe Notes
These sourdough bagels will stay fresh at room temperature for about 2 days.
If you can't eat 12 bagels in 2 days, they freeze great! Once the bagels are fully cooled, slice them in half and wrap in aluminum foil/plastic wrap/wax paper/etc. and then seal in an airtight freezer bag.
I prefer to vacuum seal the bagels, but since the bagels are so soft, you can't vacuum seal them fresh. So it's best to freeze them in the vacuum seal bag for 2 hours, then remove the air. [I love my Zwilling Fresh & Save set!]
To thaw, simply remove the bagel from the freezer and let sit at room temperature for 10-15 minutes then pop in the toaster! The bagels will keep in the freezer for up to 2 months.
Recipe FAQ's
Nope! You can also use ripe sourdough starter to make these bagels.
Absolutely! It will just extend the rising time of the dough. After kneading the dough in your mixer, place in a covered bowl and let rise at room temperature for 2-3 hours. Then place in the fridge and let the dough continue rising overnight (up to 48 hours). Follow the rest of the recipe as instructed.
Boiling the dough causes it to instantly puff up, creating a chewy interior and helps the outside crisp up while baking. The baking soda also helps the bagels become a dark, golden brown.
A "reactive" pot refers to metal cookware that can react chemically with certain ingredients that are either especially acidic or alkaline. It can make food taste metallic and also discolor your pans as the metal is literally leeching into your food. The most common culprits are tomatoes, citrus, and vinegar because they're highly acidic. However, baking soda is highly alkaline and will also react with certain metals. So since the bagels are boiled in baking soda and then transferred to a baking sheet, it's important that both your pot and baking sheets are nonreactive.
Some metals that are considered "reactive" are uncoated aluminum, unlined copper, and cast iron. Whereas "nonreactive" materials are stainless steel, ceramic, aluminized steel, and enamel coated metal (so enameled cast iron is fine).
Most baking sheets are either aluminum or aluminized steel. So just remember that aluminized steel is what you want to use when working with baking soda!
Tips for Success!
For best results I always recommend using weight measurements (especially when baking) because it's the most accurate. Kitchen scales are super affordable and also reduce the number of dishes you have to do! However, all my recipes also include US customary measurements for convince. Use this chart to convert measurements for common ingredients!
Substitutions: In all my recipes, I've included substitutions that I know will work, but I cannot guarantee results if you substitute ingredients that I have not recommended. [For example, granulated sugar and honey are indeed both sweeteners but they have very different properties so they can not always be swapped 1:1. Using honey in a cookie recipe that calls for granulated sugar will yield a giant mess.] In the recipe card you'll find links to the specific ingredients/brands that I use.
A note on salt: I almost exclusively use Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt because it's the best all-purpose salt for cooking and baking. If you're not using kosher salt, consult this handy guide for a conversion chart! When in doubt, if you're using table salt just reduce the amount by half for baked goods. When cooking, I prefer to under-salt because you can always add more! If you've over-salted, adding a little bit of acid (like lemon juice) can help.
More Sourdough Recipes You Might Like!
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Recipe Card
Sourdough Bagels
Ingredients
- 227 grams sourdough starter discard
- 341 grams water, room temperature
- 622 grams bread flour, substitute all purpose flour
- 2 ¼ teaspoons instant yeast, about 1 packet
- 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons non-diastatic malt powder, optional
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons baking soda, for boiling
- 1 egg, beaten for egg wash
Instructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the sourdough starter discard, the water, and 200 grams of flour and let rest at warm room temperature for 1-2 hours until the surface is bubbly.
- Add in the rest of the flour, the instant yeast, sugar, malt powder, and salt. In a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment, knead the dough on medium-high speed for about 5 minutes. The dough should come together into a cohesive ball that pulls away from the side of the bowl. The dough will be very smooth and elastic but still a little bit tacky.
- Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl and lightly cover with a kitchen towel. Let rise at warm room temperature (72-75°F) for 60-90 minutes until the dough is puffy and doubled in size.
- Line 2 nonreactive baking sheets with parchment paper, then turn the dough out onto a clean surface and divide into 12 equal pieces. The total dough weight should be about 1200 grams, so you're shooting for 100 gram pieces.
- Shape each piece of dough into a tight round. Pull the edges of each piece of dough towards the center and then pinch them shut. They should look like little round dumplings. Cup your hand so that just your fingertips touch the work surface and the ball of dough is beneath your palm. Make a circular motion with your hand, dragging the dough against the surface of the table. This motion will build surface tension along the top of the dough and tighten it into a ball.
- Place your shaped dough balls onto your lined baking sheets and let rest for about 30 minutes.
- While the dough balls are resting, preheat your oven to 425°F and prepare your water bath. Fill a large nonreactive pot with water and bring to a slow rolling boil and then add in the baking soda (it should foam up for a minute).
- Shape the bagels by pushing a lightly floured finger through the center of the dough ball. Twirl the dough around your finger to enlarge the hole until it's about 2 inches in diameter (this will look too large, but the holes will shrink when the bagels are boiled and baked).
- Boil the bagels for about 30 seconds on each side and then place back on your parchment lined baking sheets. Depending on the size of your pot, you will only be able to boil 3-4 bagels at a time.
- Lightly brush the tops of your bagels with egg wash and sprinkle on your desired toppings.
- Bake at 425°F for 20-25 minutes or until the bagels are golden brown. Make sure to rotate the trays halfway through baking so that the bagels cook evenly.
- Remove from the oven and let cool on a wire rack.
Notes
Nutrition
The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
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Kristin says
Yum. My days of store bought bagels are over.
Mary says
Easiest sourdough bagels I've ever made. The flavor and texture were great. Only change I would make is to lower the oven temperature to 400 degrees. At 425 dgrees in my oven, they were a little too dark and that is a really minor thing. The egg wash really helps keep the sesame seeds in place.
Sam says
I loved that this recipe used discard, the sourdough flavor really came through. I subbed 200g of the bread flour with a light rye and did an overnight rise in the fridge so we could have them in the morning. With a little extra rest time post-shaping, this worked well. Wonderful recipe.
Elizabeth W. says
Great recipe--
A few notes: I used a lot of egg wash, which was a mistake. I suggest just using egg white and brushing lightly as in the instruction
Half bread and half AP flour was good. A little rye flour probably would be nice
I put kosher salt in the boiling water, which was good
These are fluffier than traditional bagels, but really delicious, highly recommend
Linda says
I happened to have sourdough discard and turned it into bagels. Love this recipe and the best part is I can make bagels at home
Nora says
Thank you so much for that bagel recipe! I've never made them at home before, but now I can!! That's awesome! Thank you for sharing!
Freya says
These bagels were so delicious. I love anything sourdough! We all loved your Everything but the Bagel style sprinkle too!
Priti says
These are sooo tempting when they're freshly made. They're dangerous, I must have had three of them with just a dab of butter. Definitely making them again!
Jennifer Bratt says
Wow these came out perfectly! I'll definitley be making again
Andrew says
I'm not gonna lie, I love some Bruegger's Everything Bagels... but these are comfortably on top of my list. So soft on the inside, but nice and crisp on the outside. I'm definitely going to test some different toppings!
Georgia says
These are so chewy and perfect!
Ariana says
Loved it! Modified the boiling and baking but flavour was amazing. Thanks!!