New York Style Bagels

This bagel recipe gets you pretty dense and deliciously chewy bagels, so you can have bagels any time you want some. Best served warm with smoked salmon and cream cheese, or butter with berry jam.

Yield: Makes 12
Prep Time: 5 mins
Cook Time: 30 mins
Difficulty Level: 3/5

Ingredients

• 3 tsps (10 g) dry yeast
• 1 tbsp caster sugar
• 1/2 cup (125 ml) warm water
• 1 cup (250 ml) warm milk
• 3 cup (450 g) plain flour
• 3 tsps salt
• 1 tbsp caster sugar, extra
• 1 egg yolk
• 1 tsp water, extra
• 1 tbsp poppy seeds
• 2 tsps sea salt

Steps

01. Combine yeast, sugar, water and milk in large bowl, whisk until yeast is dissolved. Cover bowl, stand in warm place about 10 minutes or until mixture is frothy. Stir sifted flour, salt and extra sugar into yeast mixture in 2 batches; mix to a firm dough.

02. Turn dough onto a floured surface, knead about 10 mins or until dough is smooth and elastic. Place dough into a large greased bowl, cover, stand in warm place about 1 hour or until the dough has doubled in size.

03. Turn dough onto a floured surface, knead until smooth; divide the dough into 12 portions. Knead each portion into a ball. Press finger in the centre of each ball to make a hole, rotate the ball with a finger until the hole is one- third the size of the bagel. Place bagels about 3cm apart on greased oven trays, cover, stand in warm place about 15 mins, or until risen.

04. Drop bagels individually into a pan of boiling water; they must not touch. Turn bagels after 1 min, boil further minute, remove with a slotted spoon.

05. Place bagels on greased oven trays. Brush tops with combined egg yolk and extra water, sprinkle with combined seeds and sea salt. Bake in moderately hot oven about 20 mins. Cool on wire rack.

Store them in a sealed plastic bag at room temperature or wrap tightly in foil and freeze. Refrigerator storage will dry them out.Photo: bauersyndication.com.au