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These delicious and easy homemade Sourdough Bagels are so much better than anything yo can buy at the grocery store! Think your favorite plain bagel, but with the addition of sourdough to REALLY give it some wonderful flavor. These bagels are extra soft and chewy, just like a good bagel should be. Serve with cream cheese, peanut butter, use for sandwiches, or keep it simple with a generous smear of salted butter. Honestly, with a bagel THIS good, the options are limitless! So. GOOD.

bagels on white napkin with more bagels around, one cut open beside, with a knife and cream cheese beside, a cup of coffee, and flowers around

About The Recipe

When it comes to getting a good start in the mornings, the most important thing is a delicious (and nutritious) breakfast. Though, sometimes getting up and actually making a good breakfast feels like a bit of a daunting task…but with these Sourdough Bagels, that feeling is GONE!

Bonus? These bagels are actually fairly simple to make and taste amazing.

overhead shot of cut open bagel on white plate with knife, bowl of cream cheese, flowers, and cup of coffee

three stacked bagels on white plate with cup of coffee, stack of white plates, and flowers

Honestly, these bagels are the perfect make-ahead breakfast for anytime of year. Mix them up, let it proof, shape, boil, and bake. That simple. Then, once they’re done (and cooled), you can pre-slice them and put them in the freezer!

From there, if you have a busy morning, you can make just about ANYTHING. Sandwiches, avocado toast, or even toss a salad inside and start your day! The options are limitless. Especially with these.

I mean, everything goes with sourdough. Sweet, savory, somewhere in-between. So, they’re also the perfect breakfast/lunch/snack for the whole family!

angled shot of three bagels in pie plate with white napkin, four bagels behind with a glass vase of flowers, and cup of coffee

We eat them differently pretty much every day, which works really well because then we don’t have to think about it. Though, I will admit, these bagels are just SO. GOOD. They really don’t need anything. There’s really nothing better than a warm, toasted bagel with a smear of salted butter to really bring out those amazing sourdough flavors.

The best part? These bagels are great for busy people to make on the weekends or for people who just want to take things slow and enjoy!

Reasons You Will Love These Sourdough Bagels

Only FIVE ingredients!
No commercial yeast is needed.
Super simple to make.
No overnight proofs. Ready in 5 hours or LESS!
Can be made with savory OR sweet toppings.
Perfectly chewy crust!
Naturally vegan.

overhead shot of three bagels in white napkin with two bagels on a plate above, another bagel on marble counter, and one cut open on book page with knife and bowl of cream cheese beside

Equipment Needed

Ingredients

(Full ingredient amounts and instructions can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of the post)

flour, sourdough starter, barley malt, salt, and water on marble counter

How To Make Sourdough Bagels

Step 1: Make the dough

In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine starter and water. Mix until smooth.

sourdough starter and water mixed together

Add the barley malt and mix until combined.

barley malt syrup stirred into sourdough mixture

Add the flour and salt. Mix on low speed until ingredients are combined, about 1 minute. Increase the speed to medium and knead until dough is smooth, about 8 minutes.

Step 2: Let proof

Turn dough into a clean bowl. Proof at warm room temperature until increased by 25%, about 2 hours.

Step 3: Divide and shape

Turn dough out onto un-floured surface and divide into 4 ounce pieces. Roll each piece of dough into a ball. Cover and let rest 5 minutes.

overhead shot of dough balls on marble surface

Beginning with the first piece of dough you formed into a ball, use a floured thumb to push through the center of the dough ball. Insert other thumb and work around. As the center circle increases, use your index fingers to twirl it around until you have a large (3 inch) center hole. Place on prepared sheet pan – 6 on one, 5 on the other.

Cover pans with plastic wrap that has been sprayed with cooking spray. Allow to proof until increased by 25%, about 1 hour.

bagels covered with plastic wrap on lined sheet pan

Step 4: Boil and bake

Combine water and malt syrup in a 9 quart dutch oven. Bring to a rolling boil. Place bagels, 2 at a time, into boiling water. Cook one minute on each side.

Use a slotted spoon or spider to drain bagels and place on rack. Let drain slightly. Place boiled bagels on sheet pans. Bake for 10-12 minutes, until light golden brown.

FAQ’s & Troubleshooting

I don’t have sourdough starter, but I want to make these bagels! If you don’t have a starter, that’s okay! We have a really simple and easy to take care of sourdough starter recipe on our blog. You can find it by Clicking Here! The best part? The starter only takes 5 days to make!

Can I make these bagels with new sourdough starter? While an older sourdough starter is preferred (as it has a more pronounced flavor), you can make these bagels with a new starter. Just remember that with each bake, your starter is only going to get better and better!

I don’t have a stand mixer. Can I make this by hand? While you can absolutely make this by hand, it’s always best to use a stand mixer! It’s MUCH easier and less time consuming!

Why is my dough/bagels not rising in the times stated in the recipe card? The recipe card/post states the times it took our dough to rise. We live in Central Texas. So, it tends to be a bit warmer here and doughs generally take less time to rise. I promise there’s nothing wrong with the dough! Just let it do its thing.

Why are bagels boiled before baking? The double cook may be a little confusing, but it’s necessary! Boiling the bagels sets the crust and ensures the bagels hold their shape. Boiling for 1 minute on each side of the bagel yields in the perfect crust!

Why is there malt syrup in the water? The syrup is, essentially, sugar. This helps promote even browning on the bagels!

The bagels have a lot of dark spots after baking. Don’t worry! This is actually pretty normal. The darker spots, if you followed the directions exactly, are just air pockets. Due to the layer of dough being so thin on the air pocket, it browned more quickly than the rest of the bagel.

My bagels are super brown/burnt on the bottom! Did you line your sheet pans with parchment? If you did, it may be because the bagels were baked on the bottom rack. We’ve found that baking one sheet pan at a time, in the middle rack, prevents over-browning on the bottoms.

close up o three bagels on white napkin with two bagels on white plate and two more stacked bagels behind

Topping Ideas

If you would like to jazz up these bagels a little bit, feel free! You will need to add the toppings after boiling, but before baking. Here’s a quick list of a few of our favorite toppings!

Sesame Seeds
Everything Bagel Seasoning
Shredded Cheese (parmesan, cheddar, etc.)
Poppy Seeds

What To Make With Bagels

Since these bagels are sourdough, they truly are SO versatile. Sweet? Delicious. Savory? Even better! The skies the limit on what you can top these bagels with/make with them. Though, here are a few of our favorite things!

Avocado and a fried egg
Salted Butter
Cream cheese
Peanut Butter and Bananas (also just PB and honey!)
PB&J’s (especially using our homemade Strawberry Jam)
Bacon (or sausage), fried egg, and cheese
Ham and cheese
Club Sandwich (chicken, lettuce, tomato, bacon, and cheese)
Hummus
Pizza Bagels (tomato sauce, cheese, and pepperoni!)

How To Store

Once these bagels are cooked and cooled, we recommend pre-slicing them with a bread knife. From there, the best way to store them is in a freezer safe bag. They can keep for 3-4 months!

three bagels on white napkin with flowers and other bageks around

Expert Tips

If you would like a more pronounced sourdough flavor, immediately after forming the bagels and covering them, place them in refrigerator overnight! Allow the dough an extra 30-45 minutes to proof after removing it from the refrigerator.
Refrigerating (also known as retarding) the dough overnight will give the bagels a bubbly appearance when baked.
Unsure if your bagels are properly proofed? No worries! Use water test to check if bagels are ready. Place one bagel in a bowl of water. If it floats, they are ready to cook. If it sinks, they need to proof longer.
To easily remove bagels from parchment paper, use scissors to cut the parchment paper between bagels. Lift the square, tip the bagel into the boiling water, and peel the parchment off. Super simple!
Be sure to use a slotted spoon or spider strainer when boiling the bagels.

When you make these Sourdough Bagels, leave a comment down below! We love hearing from you and answering any questions you might have! Also, be sure to tag us on social media and hashtag it #BakersTable.

5 from 2 votes