Homemade Everything Bagels. They make the perfect breakfast and freeze really well! A lot easier to make than you think and so much better than store-bought!
Serve these homemade bagels with my Veggie Loaded Cream Cheese! It is the perfect combination!
I have a huge weakness for Everything Bagels. They are my go-to choice for breakfast. I am so excited to share this recipe with you guys on how to make these bagels at home!
These bagels are perfectly chewy with a golden brown exterior and are loaded with tons of seasoning!
I made my own everything seasoning to go on the bagels. If you are not a fan of the everything seasoning you can always bake them plain or with a sprinkle of cheddar cheese + jalapeño.
They are totally worth the effort. There is nothing like a homemade bagel for breakfast!
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Ingredients for Homemade Everything Bagels
- Dry active yeast + warm water: Warm water activates the yeast, helping the bread to rise. The ideal temperature for the water is between 105°F-110°F.
- Flour: I used bread flour this time as is made for making the best bread like these bagels. All purpose flour would work as well.
- Sugar: The active yeast is a living organism and it needs to eat too! Sugar or honey are great for this job, so I added in some brown sugar. Replace it with white sugar or honey if desired.
- Salt: Salt seasons these homemade bagels perfectly.
- Honey + water: When you’re cooking bagels, they need to be boiled for a couple of minutes, so I boiled mine in honey water. The honey adds extra caramelization when the bagels bake in the oven. You could also use barley malt syrup.
- Egg white + water: Egg wash is brushed on top to give the homemade bagels a beautiful shine, and it also helps the everything bagel seasoning to stick to the bread.
- Homemade Everything Seasoning: My version of homemade everything seasoning has onion flakes, garlic flakes, sesame seeds, poppy seeds, and salt in it. You’ll be adding it to everything. It is delicious!
How to make Homemade Bagels
- Dissolve your yeast in warm water and add all of the ingredients to a stand mixer. Mix the dough for about 8 minutes.
- Form into a ball and rest for 1 1/2 hours or until the dough is puffy.
- Divide the dough into 8 balls. Use your thumb to push a hole through the center of each ball.
- Boil the bagels for 1-2 minutes in a honey + water water bath.
- Brush with egg wash then sprinkle with seasonings.
- Bake in a 425°F oven for 20-25 minutes or until the bagels are golden brown.
How to make your own Everything Seasoning
The everything seasoning makes these bagels! I like to make extra of this seasoning and use it on everything from eggs to chicken to salads! Simply combine onion flakes, garlic flake, sesame seeds, poppy seeds, and salt in a small bowl and store them in an airtight container or jar for up to 6 months in your spice cabinet!
Storage Instrustions for Homemade Everything Bagels
- Store: Store these homemade bagels at room temperature in an airtight container or bread bin for up to a week.
- Heat: Toast the bagels in a toaster or under the grill in your oven.
- Freeze: These bagels can be frozen up to 3 months. Defrost in the fridge overnight then toast them in the morning!
frequently asked questions
Is it cheaper to make your own bagels?
Yes! It is so much cheaper to make your own breads at home, especially bagels! The ingredients (flour, water, yeast, sugar, honey, and eggs) are pretty cheap to buy compared to the price of premade bagels.
Why do you boil bagels before baking?
We boil the bagels to set the crust before popping them in the oven. This gives the bagels that chewy texture. The longer you boil them, the chewier they are so I recommend sticking to about a minute per side.
What is the best flour for bagels?
Bread flour! Bread flour has more protein in it that all purpose flour, which also helps with the homemade everything bagel’s chewy texture.
Tips for Success
- Mix the active dry yeast with water that is between 105°F-110°F. This is the perfect temperature to ensure your bread rises up nice and fluffy. Any colder and it won’t active as well. Any hotter is too hot for the yeast and it won’t work either.
- These bagels can be made plain or with other toppings as well. Sesame and sea salt, cheddar and jalapeno, and poppy seed and cinnamon are some of my favorites!
- Boiling the bagels in a honey water bath is the most important step! It may seem intimidating but it’s actually really easy.
Here are more breakfast recipes to try!
- Super Easy Breakfast Bake
- Shakshuka
- Overnight Blueberry French Toast Bake
- The BEST Zucchini Muffins
- Chewy Chocolate Chip Granola Bars
Homemade Everything Bagels
Ingredients
Bagels
- 1 1/2 cups warm water
- 1 tablespoon active yeast
- 4 cups bread flour, I sometimes do a mix of whole wheat and bread flour
- 1 tablespoon light brown sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 2 quarts water
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1 egg white + 1 tablespoon water, whisked together
Homemade Everything Seasoning
- 1 tablespoon onion flake
- 1 tablespoon garlic flake
- 2 tablespoons sesame seeds
- 2 tablespoons poppy seeds
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
Bagels
- Combine water and yeast in a small bowl and let sit for 5 minutes until the yeast is dissolved.
- In a stand mixer with the hook attachment combine flour, brown sugar and salt.
- On low slowly add the yeast mixture and increase the speed to medium and beat for 8 minutes. The dough will be stiff / dry (that is ok!)
- Shape the dough into a ball and place in a lightly greased bowl, turning to coat all the sides in oil. Cover the bowl with a clean kitchen towel and allow the dough to rise for 1 1/2 hours. The dough will look larger and puffy. (It will not quite double in size)
- Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Place a wire rack over a third baking sheet. Set aside.Divide the dough into 8 equal pieces. Shape each piece into a ball. Using your fingers poke a hole in the center of the dough about 1 1/2 – 2 inches in diameter. Cover the bagels you are not working with with a damp towel.
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees.Fill a large pot with water and whisk in the honey. Bring water to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Drop bagels in, 2-3 at a time, making sure not to overcrowd. Cook the bagels for 1-2 minutes on each side. Using a slotted spoon place the bagels on the wire rack and brush the egg wash on each bagel, then sprinkle with the homemade everything seasoning.
- Place the bagels onto the prepared baking sheets and bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from the oven and allow the bagels to cool on the baking sheets for 10 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Homemade Everything Seasoning
- Combine all of the seasoning in a small bowl. Set aside.
Nutrition Information
Did you make this?
I’d love to hear your feedback! Leave a review and make sure to share your pictures on social media! Don’t forget to follow @thechefsavvy.
Eric
My dough keeps coming out soft and wet with this, any ideas?
Kelley
Hi Eric,
Your dough should be pretty stiff. I would try adding more flour and kneading it a little longer.
Hope this helps!
Kelley
Amy
I’d love to incorporate spinach (my favorite bagel is a spinach everything) Any tips on how to get that variation to work? More flour? Less water? I’m thinking the spinach will make the dough very watery.
Kelley
Hi Amy,
I would try using fresh spinach and cooking it and adding it to the batter. If it looks a bit watery I would add a bit of flour.
Thanks!
Kelley
Judy
After they are done , can I store them in the cabinet or store them in fridge ? They came out amazingly delicious… Thanks for the recipe
Kelley
Hi Judy!
I store them in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days.
Thanks & Enjoy!
Kelley
Lisa
Turned out yummy using all purpose wheat flour and Everything seasoning. Thank you!
Kelley
So glad you enjoyed this! Thank you!
Marnie
Wonderful recipe and I am sure for a bread newbie would be perfect. Had trouble telling if my dough had risen and in the end had beautiful unrisen dense bagels. These are my troubleshooting questions. When I placed the bagels in the boiling water they did not float. Can I try at this point to let the dough proof again or is this too late? Is there a chance I overworked the dough after the first proof when forming the balls causing it to be so dense? I keep the house cold, but is that really a factor? Thanks so much!!!
Kelley
Hi Marnie,
A good way to tell if your dough has risen is checking to make sure it doubled in size. Also a way to tell if they are proofed is to gently stick two fingers in the risen dough up and then take them out. If the indentations remain the dough is “ripe”. If not, cover and let the dough rise longer. Repeat test.
As for them not floating it is hard to say. Any one of those factors could be the cause. You could let them rest for longer on the counter to continue to proof and try the “float test” to see if it floats in room temperature water.
I hope this helps! Thanks!
Kelley
Kacie
I’m not sure what I was doing wrong, but mine kept falling apart after I cooked them for 1-2 minutes in the simmering water. Any thoughts as to my mistake?
Other than that, these were fairly simple and really fun to make!
Kelley
Hi Kacie!
You can in fact over boil your bagels. They do not need very long in the water. I would try next time boiling them for less time and this should help them stay in tact.
Thank you!
Kelley
Joyce Winget
Best bagel recipe I’ve ever baked!
Kelley
Thank you so much Joyce! I am so glad you enjoyed this!
Patricia
much easier than how I originally learned to do it, and EXCELLENT.
Thank you.
Nathan
Hi Patricia,
I’m so glad you liked them!
Thank you for trying them out!
Nathan
@chefsavvy
Evan
Hmm, seems like you forgot to add the rising time into the total time.
Kelley
Hi Evan,
Thanks for pointing this out to me! I have included the rise time in the recipe.
Thanks!
Kelley
Susan Viane
After the bagels are boiled can they be wrapped in plastic and held in the fridge overnight and baked in the morning?
Nathan
Hi Susan,
Yes they can! Let us know how you like them! Thank you for commenting!
Nathan
@chefsavvy