Making Bagels - what am I doing wrong?

[ari_belle]

Sorry if this is already a topic!

I've been baking bread for years and years, and last year I started occasionally making bagels. I've made them quite a few times, and they always taste good, but they always turn out lumpy, small, and sometimes pretty dense. I think it's happening before I boil them. Does anyone know what's going wrong?

[doggie]

dense is good in a bagel. letting them raise enough before boiling them?

[ari_belle]

dense is good in a bagel. letting them raise enough before boiling them?

How long should I raise before boiling? I usually do 10 - 30 mins.

[OkToBeTakei]

Dense IS good but sounds like they are not risen enough, at least doubled in size which normally takes me an hour even with a warming drawer.

I love bagels! I'm not so great with making other breads but make these quite often.

[ari_belle]

Dense IS good but sounds like they are not risen enough, at least doubled in size which normally takes me an hour even with a warming drawer.

I love bagels! I'm not so great with making other breads but make these quite often.

Great to know!!! I wondered why they always looked too small. I grew up on Long Island amongst the best bagels around, and my homemade ones seemed way too dense. I can't wait to try making them again!

[OkToBeTakei]

Ooooh, let us know if it works!

[ari_belle]

I let them rise more, and then I boiled them for 2 minutes on each side. They were BEAUTIFUL!!!!!!