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Took me 6 months to figure out why my bagels were tough
I kept making bagels that came out dense and chewy in a bad way, not the good New York style. Turns out I was overworking the dough for like 10 minutes longer than I needed to. Checked a timer one day and realized I was kneading for 20 minutes instead of the 10 the recipe said. Switched to a gentler hand and now they come out light and airy. How long did it take you guys to catch a dumb mistake like that?
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gibson.oliver20d ago
Sat down one day and watched a video of myself kneading. Turns out I was adding way too much bench flour every time the dough felt sticky, which dried it out before it even hit the water bath. So I was essentially making overworked, flour-crusted bricks instead of bagels. Took a friend who actually bakes bread to point it out during a beer and bagel night.
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