Black Sesame Seed Bagels

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Homemade bagels coated in black sesame seeds (recipe adapted from King Arthur Flour)

Course Breakfast

Cuisine American

Keyword bagel, bagel recipe, bagels, black sesame

Prep Time 1 6

Cook Time 30

Servings 12

Author theforkedring

Ingredients

6 cups AP Flour
1 tsp active dry yeast
2 1/4 cups lukewarm water
2 1/2 tsp + 1 tbsp salt
2 tbsp molasses or barley malt syrup
2 cups black sesame seeds

Instructions

In a large bowl, combine 1 1/4 cups AP flour, 1/4 tsp yeast, and 3/4 cup lukewarm water. Mix until cohesive, then cover and rest for 4-6 hours.
When poolish is bubbly and ready, add 1 1/2 cups lukewarm water and mix. Then, add 4 3/4 cups AP flour, 3/4 tsp yeast, and 2 1/2 tsp salt.
Mix dough with a chopstick or fork until shaggy. Then, transfer to a clean work surface and knead for 5 minutes until a cohesive dough forms.
Place your dough in a clean, lightly-greased bowl for 2 hours, covered, folding the dough on top of itself on all 4 corners 2-3 times after the first hour. Then, refrigerate for 8-12 hours.
Remove dough from fridge and let come to room temperature for 1 hour.
Weigh and divide dough into 12 equal pieces. Form each piece of dough into a tight ball and place on a baking sheet or counter, covered, and rest for 30 minutes.
Next, form a hole in the middle of each ball with your finger and stretch the bagel hole to 2-3”. It will shrink when it rises.
Let the bagels rest another 30 minutes, covered. In the meantime, heat a large sauté pan, dutch oven, or pasta pot with about 4 quarts of water and bring to a boil. Add molasses and 1 tbsp salt when bubbling and stir.
Fill a baking sheet with black sesame seeds. Then, 3 at a time, transfer your proofed bagels into the boiling water mixture and cook for 45 seconds on each side.
Remove bagels with a slotted spatula and place directly onto the black sesame seeds. Shake pan and press gently to adhere. Then, transfer each bagel, sesame seed side up, onto a parchment-lined baking sheet (6 on each).
Preheat oven to 475°F. Boil the rest of your bagels in batches of three and cover with sesame seeds.
Bake both sheets of 6 bagels in the same preheated oven for 18-23 minutes, switching racks halfway.
Let cool for 10-15 minutes before slicing and serving.

Notes

Your bagel dough may need a little more or less flour, depending on your environment, humidity, and temperature. The more you make them, the more accurate you'll get.
You can use barley malt syrup instead of molasses, if you have it, which is the traditional ingredient used in boiling bagels.
I recommend baking one batch of bagels at a time in case you have issues with your oven temperature. Then, you can perfectly adjust for your second batch. If your oven runs hot, bake at 450°F instead.
You can form the bagel rings and refrigerate them overnight before boiling if you want to bake them first thing in the morning. Cover well and boil immediately when they come out of the fridge. I prefer their texture and flavor without this step, but it makes things easier if you want to spend less time in the kitchen.