My sourdough discard bagels are soft, chewy, and perfectly golden! The base recipe makes six bagels so that it can work easily for small families or be doubled to twelve for larger households without there being an overwhelming amount of bagels in the end. I've tested this recipe countless times and I am so excited to hear what you think of them.
My family and I love to have these bagels classically toasted with cream cheese or butter for breakfast or to make a fun bagel breakfast, lunch, or dinner sandwich. My very picky toddler also loves to eat these completely plain while leaving crumbs all over the house. To each their own! The bagel possibilities are endless. 🙂
I make these bagels a lot for my family in rotation with my sourdough sandwich bread or sourdough discard sandwich bread! We always need some sort of basic bread food in the house at all times!
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Ingredients
I played around with a few different combinations for this recipe and ended up with this! I wanted to use ingredients that maximize the amount of discard used while also maintaining a classic bagel flavor (this is where the malt comes in). These sourdough discard bagels use minimal ingredients so it's super easy to whip up any day of the week. I purposefully made this recipe for 6 bagels so that it can be doubled to 12 for larger families without it being an overwhelming amount of bagels.
- Warm water
- Sugar
- Baker's yeast
- Sourdough discard
- All-purpose flour (bread flour preferred)
- Salt
- Malted milk powder (optional, but recommended)
- You can leave this out if you don't have it. If you want to substitute it, use milk powder or malt powder.
- For the water bath: brown sugar and baking soda
See the recipe card for quantities.
Instructions
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Step 1: Add warm water (less than 120F), sugar, and yeast to the bowl of a stand mixer (recommended, but you can use a regular mixing bowl if you don’t have a stand mixer). Let rest for roughly 5 minutes until the yeast has bloomed (pictured)
Step 2: Add the remaining ingredients to the bowl and mix on low speed. This is a very dry dough, so it will take some time to come together. Once the dough starts to become cohesive, it usually takes about 15 minutes of kneading or so before it is ready to rise. Pictured is an example of how it will look at first— keep kneading! It will come together. Be sure to periodically give your stand mixer a break during kneading as it can be hard on it to work such a dry dough.
Step 3: Once the dough has been thoroughly kneaded and passes the windowpane test, let it rest in a warm place covered with a wet towel or cling wrap for 60-90 minutes.
Step 4: Once the dough has doubled, turn it out onto a floured surface and split it into 6 equal pieces (if you want to be technical, each piece will be about 130-135g in weight). Use your finger to poke through the center of the dough ball and stretch it out to look like a bagel or donut. The holes will shrink while baking and rising so give it a really good stretch if you want a pronounced hole at the end.
Step 5: Let the bagels rest for 30-60mins or until they are slightly puffy. I notice if I let them rise too long here, they won’t be as puffy after baking, so don’t over-proof! If you want a pronounced hole after baking, gently give the hole another stretch before boiling.
Step 6: While the bagels are rising, bring a pot of water to a rolling boil. Add brown sugar and baking soda to the water (it will foam at first). Drop the bagels into the water and let boil for 1 minute then flip with a slotted spoon or spatula and let it boil for another minute on the other side. Immediately place on a lined baking sheet, sprinkle with optional toppings, and bake at 425F for 18 minutes.
Hint: Over-proofing in the final rise will lead to flatter, wrinkly bagels so be conservative with how long you let them proof for! They will still be delicious even if they are a little deflated, so don't worry if they rise a little too long!
Substitutions
- Flour - Use all-purpose flour if you don't have bread flour. (this is what I do most of the time)
- Malted milk powder - Use regular milk powder or malt powder (preferred). You can leave it out altogether if you don't have any of these. I like to use it because it gives the bagels a classic taste that can't be replaced.
Toppings
- Sweet - sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar after boiling.
- Savory - top with everything bagel seasoning after boiling.
- Simple - Sprinkle with sesame seeds after boiling.
Equipment
- Stand mixer (optional but recommended)
- Large pot for boiling
- Slotted spoon or spatula
- Baking sheet
- Parchment paper
Storage
Store in a ziplock bag at room temperature for up to 3-5 days.
Freeze in an airtight container for up to 6 months.
Top tips
- Don't skip the baking soda! This is what gives the bagels their bolden-brown coloring.
- Make sure you give your stand mixer periodic breaks while kneading so you don't burn up your motor.
FAQ
Yes! Just use malt powder or omit the milk powder altogether in this recipe. There are no eggs, milk, or other dairy products in this recipe.
Yes! Just make sure you weigh the starter since active starter weighs less per cup than discard.
Related recipes
Looking for other sourdough bread recipes like this? Try these:
Other breakfast ideas
Looking for more breakfast ideas? Try these:
Sourdough Discard Bagels
Equipment
- Stand Mixer (optional but recommended)
- Large pot for boiling
- Slotted spoon or spatula
- Baking sheet
- Parchment Paper
Ingredients
Bagels
- 1 teaspoon Yeast if doubling you can use a packet which is 2 ¼ tsp.
- ¾ Cup Warm water 171g
- 1 ½ tablespoon Sugar
- ¾ Cup Sourdough discard 190g
- 3 ½ Cup Bread Flour 420g — all-purpose is fine too
- 1 tablespoon Malted milk powder can use milk powder, malt powder, or leave out
- 1 ½ teaspoon Salt
Water Bath
- 1 tablespoon Baking Soda
- 1 tablespoon Brown Sugar
Instructions
- Add warm water (less than 120F), sugar, and yeast to the bowl of a stand mixer (recommended, but you can use a regular mixing bowl if you don’t have a stand mixer). Let rest for roughly 5 minutes until the yeast has bloomed (pictured)
- Add the remaining ingredients to the bowl and mix on low speed. This is a very dry dough, so it’s going to take some time to come together. Once the dough starts to become cohesive, it usually takes about 15 minutes of kneading or so before it is ready to rise. Pictured is an example of how it will look at first— keep kneading! It will come together. Be sure to periodically give your stand mixer a break during kneading as it can be hard on it to work such a dry dough.
- Once the dough has been thoroughly kneaded and passes the windowpane test, let it rest in a warm place covered with a wet towel or cling wrap for 60-90 minutes.
- Once the dough has doubled, turn it out onto a floured surface and split into 6 equal pieces (if you want to be technical, each piece will be about 130-135g in weight). Use your finger to poke through the center of the dough ball and stretch it out to look like a bagel or donut. The holes will shrink while baking and rising so give it a really good stretch if you want a pronounced hole at the end.
- Let the bagels rest for 30-60mins or until they are slightly puffy. I notice if I let them rise too long here, they won’t be as puffy after baking, so don’t over-proof!
- While the bagels are rising, bring a pot of water to a rolling boil. Add brown sugar and baking soda to the water (it will foam at first). Drop the bagels into the water and let boil for 1 minute then flip with a slotted spoon or spatula and let it boil for another minute on the other side. Place on a parchment paper lined baking sheet and bake at 425F for 18 minutes.
Notes
Food safety
- Wash hands after touching raw dough.
- Never leave baking food unattended.
- Always have good ventilation when using a gas stove.
Paige Gary
Homemade bagels can’t be beat - sourdough discard bagels sound amazing! Also your bagels came out incredible. Can’t wait to see how mine turn out!!