Unlike their American counterparts, black Russian bagels are skinnier, dryer, sweeter, with the texture more like a soft pretzel.
Black Russian bagels – Bubliki – are a traditional “street food” that’s been eaten for as long as anyone can remember. Like a crossover between a western bagel and a soft pretzel, it’s usually topped with traditional bagel toppings like poppy seeds, sesame seeds or onion flakes. But contrary to what the name “Black Russian Bagels” suggest, they’re actually not always black or even dark.
These boiled bagels can be used for almost any style of sandwich as a meal in itself or a snack in between. Why not load them up with corned beef, sauerkraut and Swiss cheese for a Reuben style bagel? Or make a breakfast egg sandwich, perhaps with some added crispy bacon? Or serve it simple, with just cream cheese, and a slice of tomato. Make it more fancy? Throw some smoked salmon or another favorite protein on there, or upgrade to scallion cream cheese, with a little garlic added.
Combine starter ingredients in a bowl and knead until all flour is absorbed and dough clears the walls of the bowl with ease.
Shape the dough into a ball, grease the bowl, put the dough into the bowl, cover and place in a warm spot for 3-4 hrs.
Mix the final dough ingredients, add all of the starter, knead until smooth and very elastic, for at least 10 minutes by hand, or 7-8 minutes with a dough hook.
Shape the dough into a smooth ball again, and place into a large greased container, cover and let rise in a draft-free place for about 40 minutes to 1 hr. We are not looking for a spectacular double rise here, so time is more important than the volume.
Divide the dough into 15 part, 110 g each.
For each piece of dough, roll into a hot dog shape using confident high pressure movements – we want a smooth stick without cracks or yeasty blisters.
Wrap the “hot dog” around your four fingers, overlapping the ends at your thumb crease.
Confidently, applying great pressure with the thumb and index finger, squeeze the ends together; then, placing the hand down on a table with bagel still on it roll the pinched ends back and forth a few times until they fuse together nicely. The whole operation won’t take longer than 15-20 seconds for each bagel.
Lay shaped bagels on a parchment or clean counter, cover with plastic and let rise for 20-30 minutes. They won’t rise much, just soften and relax.
While the dough rests, bring a pot to a gentle boil. Add 1-2 tbsp salt to the water, and never reduce the heat.
Lower three bagels at a time into a boiling pot. If they sink to the bottom at first, don’t worry, they will surface when ready. If they remain on the surface, cook them for about 30 seconds on each side, and – using a slotted spoon – remove onto the parchment to dry.
Repeat with the remaining bagels as before.
If you decide to sprinkle your bagels (I did), the best time to sprinkle them is when they are still wet and tacky. You may also need to flip them over once to dry them on the bottom as well.
Once all bagels are boiled and no longer dripping wet (still tacky is ok), you can bake them.
Preheat the oven to 525°F.
Bake bagels for 20 minutes, or until nicely browned all over (check on the bottom at 15 minute point to see if they need to be flipped to brown underneath).
Cool on rack and enjoy.
Prep Time:5 hours
Cook Time:20 mins
Category:Baking
Yuliya Childers
Yuliya Childers is a self-proclaimed cooking and writing addict born and raised in a cosmopolitan city of Odessa on the Black Sea coast.She started cooking at quite an early age and learned most of her skills by watching others and reading cook books.Made-from-scratch naturally grown food is her passion. Yuliya believes that truly good food either creates or invokes memories. Her blog Eat Already! is focused on everyday creative yet un-pretentious cooking that anyone with basic skill can replicate. Yuliya's recipes are usually accompanied by childhood memories or family stories related to the dish in some way. Her recipes are honest, eclectic, multi-cultural, imaginative, and often outside the box. Currently she's into artisan breads, traditional cooking, and everything fermented… Yuliya is cooking and writing about it from Alabama.
Black Russian bagels are made from pumpernickel dough and covered in the classic everything seasoning blend. The pumpernickel offers a sweet and sour taste complemented by garlic, onions, poppy seeds, and sesame. This bagel has the classic chewy texture and pairs great with ham and cream cheese.
How long you boil a bagel greatly affects the crust and texture inside. A longer boil produces a thicker crust and very dense interior, while a shorter boil produces a thinner crust and softer interior. Sometimes lye or barley is added to water for flavor and to help the crust brown in the oven.
Over proofed dough will lose its strength too early and cause the bagels to deflate either during the second rise or while cooking. To correct this, try to find a warm, — not hot — spot to rise your dough.
In the final steps of making bagels, bakers add toppings to the boiled dough rings. These toppings can vary and include ingredients like sesame seeds, poppy seeds, or salt. After adding the toppings, the rings are placed in the oven. About halfway through the baking process, the bakers turn the rings over.
Sushki are a snack that you can find in any Russian store. They are small, ring shaped, dry and slightly sweet. They look like tiny little bagels. They are often sold tied on a string, like I have in the picture.
Rye bread has high amount of fiber, protein and iron, it has a small amount of fat, and has a lower glycemic index, which means it causes a slower increase in blood sugar than white bread after being eaten. This makes rye a healthy option.
Bread flour – Because of its high protein content, bread flour makes these homemade bagels delightfully chewy. This recipe also works with all-purpose flour, they're just a bit less chewy than bagels made with bread flour. Maple syrup – It activates the yeast and gives the bagels a hint of sweetness.
A brief boil gives bagels a thin and fairly elastic crust that will still allow the bagels rise quite a bit in the oven, resulting in a softer texture. A longer boil and a thicker crust prevents the bagel from rising very much at all, giving you a very dense interior.
Bagel dough rises fast and if you let the pre-shaped ropes hang out too long, they'll start developing giant air bubbles inside which you'll want to collapse in the next step.
According to Molly, “If the bagels proof too much, they'll deflate in the water bath.” If you're keeping an eye on your dough, she advises pulling it a little too early rather than a little too late (and definitely before they double in size), as it's better to be underproofed.
A good bagel should have a thin, shiny, crackly crust spotted with the kind of microblisters that you can only get from proper boiling followed by a high-temperature bake. It's these little bubbles that add both surface area and crunch.
Moreira: Cook your bagels for 15 minutes at 450 to 500°F. As long as your oven temperature is correct, they should be ready. If you're looking for signs: they should have a golden-brown crust, feel light and not heavy or dense, and the bottom should be crispy and golden-brown, as well.
FUN FACT. The Black Russian is the big brother of the equally famous White Russian. It's a simple yet tasty drink, combining Kahlúa coffee liqueur and vodka in a truly unforgettable way.
The standard combination of toppings on an everything bagel is as follows: sesame seeds, poppy seeds, dried onion, garlic, and salt. Some may add in black sesame and cracked pepper, too. The result is a supremely flavorful bite, a complex nutty flavor, and an exquisite extra crunch (and usually a ton of crumbs.)
Poppy seeds hold a strange place in the bakery. Outside of a few classics—like lemon poppy seed muffins—these small black bits aren't the most common addition to American recipes. This makes the poppy bagel all the more special.
Introduction: My name is Francesca Jacobs Ret, I am a innocent, super, beautiful, charming, lucky, gentle, clever person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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