In the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk together the flour, brown sugar, and salt. 

Add the active starter and water and mix until it’s all combined. Bagel dough has a fairly high flour percentage, so it may take a couple of minutes for all of the flour to be incorporated into the wet ingredients.

Knead the sourdough bagel dough for 8-10 minutes, or until the dough is smooth and stretchy. Take a small portion of dough and spread it out until it’s thin enough to see light through. If the dough has torn and has holes, continue to knead for a few more minutes. If it’s stretching out nicely without tearing, it’s ready for its first rise.

First Rise

Place the kneaded dough into a clean bowl (it doesn’t need to be oiled). Cover it with plastic wrap or a shower cap–something that will prevent the dough from drying out and developing a skin.

Let the bagels rise in a warm place for 4-6 hours, or until the dough is puffed up to about half again it’s size. 

The amount of rise time depends mostly on the temperature of the room the dough is rising in. An oven with the light on is a great place for letting dough rise.

Shaping the Bagels

Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Sprinkle it with either fine ground cornmeal or semolina (my preference). 

Remove the dough from the bowl it was rising in and divide it into 6 equal pieces. If you have a baking scale, I recommend weighing the complete dough and dividing that number by 6 to figure out how much each piece out how much each piece of dough should weigh.

Shape each portion of dough into a ball, then poke a hole through the center with your thumb. Gently work the hole until it’s big enough to fit both of your pointer fingers through in opposite directions.

Spin your fingers in circles, carefully stretching and widening the hole in the bagel as you turn them. If the dough starts to feel too tight or fight you, set that bagel down for 5-10 minutes to allow the gluten to relax, then finish stretching it.

Shape all of the bagels this way. You want the holes to be fairly large, since they will close up as the bagels rise and then bake.

Second Rise

Arrange the bagels on the lined, semolina dusted baking sheet with a few inches between each of them. Place the baking sheet in a large, clean plastic bag and fold then end under to keep the sourdough bagels from drying out.

Allow the bagels to rise for 1-2 hours, or until they look slightly puffed. When you touch them lightly, the indentation from your finger should spring back slowly. At this point they are ready to boil and bake, or you can let them ferment overnight.

Letting the Bagels Ferment Overnight {Optional}

After the bagels have been shaped and had their second rise, you can put them in the fridge overnight or up to 24 hours. Remove them the refrigerator and allow them to come to room temperature before boiling and baking. This allows the yeast to become active again. If you boil and cook cold bagels, they’ll be dense and have a poor rise.

Baking the Sourdough Bagels

First, preheat the oven to 400°F. Have some extra semolina or fine ground cornmeal ready.

Boiling The Bagels

In a large pot, boil about 12 cups of water–it doesn’t have to be an exact measurement. Once the water is at a rolling, steady boil, add 1 tablespoon of baking soda. It will cause the water to fizz for a second, but should die down quickly.

Carefully place the bagels in the water, one or two at a time, and boil the first side for 30 seconds. Flip the bagel over with a long utensil and boil the other side for another 30 seconds.

Remove the bagels with a slotted spoon or spatula, letting any excess water drain off. Sprinkle the lined baking sheet with a bit more semolina or fine cornmeal, then place the bagel back on the sheet.

Repeat this process until all of the bagels have been boiled. I like to stagger when I put them in (put one in for 30 seconds, flip it, then reset the timer and add the next one). This helps keep any of them from being in the water for more than 1 minutes.

A Note About Boiling Times

You can definitely boil a bagel longer than 1 minute, and it’s really up to you based on what kind of bagel you like.

The longer a bagel boils, the denser it will be when baked. Since more of the yeast has been cooked in the boiling process, it will rise far less in the oven. The crust will also be more thick and chewy.

Baking the Bagels

Lightly beat an egg white and use a pastry brush to spread a layer over the top of each bagel.

Place the bagels in the 400°F oven and bake them for 18-20 minutes, or until you are happy with the coloring on the top. They should be a deep golden brown.