Bagel#Preparation and preservation

{{Short description|Ring-shaped bread product}}

{{Other uses}}

{{pp-semi-indef}}

{{pp-move|small=yes}}

{{Infobox food

| name = Bagel

| image = Bagel with sesame 3.jpg

| image_size = 220px

| caption = Sesame bagel

| alternate_name = Bajgiel, beigel, beygl

| place_of_origin = Poland

| region = Europe, North America

| creator = Jewish communities of Poland

| associated_cuisine = Jewish, Polish, American, Canadian

| type = Bread

| served = Room temperature

| main_ingredient = Wheat dough

| variations = Montreal-style bagel, pizza bagel, bagel toast

| calories =

}}

A bagel ({{langx|yi|בײגל|translit=beygl}}; {{langx|pl|bajgiel}} {{IPA|pl|ˈbajɡʲɛl||LL-Q809 (pol)-Olaf-bajgiel.wav}}; also spelled beigel){{cite web |url=http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/beigel?r=66 |title=Definition: Beigel |website=Dictionary.com |access-date=July 11, 2011 |archive-date=March 5, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305014734/http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/beigel?r=66 |url-status=live }} is a bread roll originating in the Jewish communities of Poland. Bagels are traditionally made from yeasted wheat dough that is shaped by hand into a torus or ring, briefly boiled in water, and then baked. The result is a dense, chewy, doughy interior with a browned and sometimes crisp exterior.

Bagels are often topped with seeds baked on the outer crust—traditional choices include poppy and sesame seeds—or with salt grains. Different dough types include whole-grain and rye.{{cite web |url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/48756/bagel |title=Bagel |publisher=Encyclopædia Britannica |date=2009 |access-date=February 24, 2009 |archive-date=December 29, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081229143349/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/48756/bagel |url-status=live }}{{cite book |last=Roden |first=Claudia |date=1996 |title=The Book of Jewish Food: An Odyssey from Samarkand to New York |url=http://www.myjewishlearning.com/culture/2/Food/Ashkenazic_Cuisine/Poland_and_Russia/The_Bagel.shtml |access-date=April 7, 2015 |archive-date=March 18, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150318101717/http://www.myjewishlearning.com/culture/2/Food/Ashkenazic_Cuisine/Poland_and_Russia/The_Bagel.shtml |url-status=live }} The basic roll-with-a-hole design, hundreds of years old, allows even cooking and baking of the dough; it also allows groups of bagels to be gathered on a string or dowel for handling, transportation, and retail display.{{cite web |last=Nathan |first=Joan |date=12 November 2008 |url=http://www.slate.com/articles/life/food/2008/11/a_short_history_of_the_bagel.html |title=A Short History of the Bagel: From ancient Egypt to Lender's |publisher=Slate |access-date=10 March 2013 |archive-date=25 February 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130225105614/http://www.slate.com/articles/life/food/2008/11/a_short_history_of_the_bagel.html |url-status=live }}{{cite web |author= |publisher=Columbia University NYC24 New Media Workshop |url=http://www.nyc24.org/2002/issue01/story02/page03.asp |title=History of the Bagel: The Hole Story |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110822153619/http://www.nyc24.org/2002/issue01/story02/page03.asp |archive-date=2011-08-22 |access-date=February 24, 2009}}

The earliest known mention of a boiled-then-baked ring-shaped bread can be found in a 13th-century Syrian cookbook, where they are referred to as {{transliteration|ar|ka'ak}}.{{Cite book|last=Perry|first=Charles|title=Scents and Flavours (A Bilingual Translation of a 13th Century Syrian Cookbook)|publisher=NYU Press|year=2017|isbn=978-1479856282|location=|pages=xxxiv, 189}} Bagel-like bread known as obwarzanek was common earlier in Poland as seen in royal family accounts from 1394.{{Cite book|last=Dembińska|first=Maria|title=Food and Drink in Medieval Poland: Rediscovering a Cuisine of the Past|publisher=University of Pennsylvania Press|year=1999|isbn=0812232240|location=|pages=}} Bagels have been widely associated with Ashkenazi Jews since the 17th century; they were first mentioned in 1610 in Jewish community ordinances in Kraków, Poland.{{Cite book|last=Balinska|first=Maria|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-EPvWnuRjCQC&q=Bagel:|title=The Bagel: The Surprising History of a Modest Bread|date=2008-11-03|publisher=Yale University Press|isbn=978-0-300-14232-7|language=en|access-date=2021-09-03|archive-date=2023-07-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230703224414/https://books.google.com/books?id=-EPvWnuRjCQC&q=Bagel:|url-status=live}}

Bagels are now a popular bread product in North America and Poland, especially in cities with a large Jewish population. Bagels are also sold (fresh or frozen, often in many flavors) in supermarkets.

History

Linguist Leo Rosten wrote in The Joys of Yiddish about the first known mention of the Polish word {{lang|pl|bajgiel}} derived from the Yiddish word {{transliteration|yi|bagel}} in the "Community Regulations" of the city of Kraków in 1610, which stated that the food was given as a gift to women in childbirth.{{cite web |last=Trowbridge Filippone |first=Peggy |url=http://homecooking.about.com/od/foodhistory/a/bagelhistory.htm |title=Bagel History: Bagels date back to the 1600s |website=About.com |access-date=March 27, 2013 |archive-date=May 18, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160518125308/http://homecooking.about.com/od/foodhistory/a/bagelhistory.htm |url-status=dead }} There is some evidence that the bagel may have been derived from pretzels made in Germany brought by immigrants to Poland.{{Cite web |last=Weinzweig |first=Ari |date=March 26, 2009 |title=The Secret History of Bagels |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2009/03/the-secret-history-of-bagels/6928/ |access-date=February 3, 2021 |website=theatlantic.com |language=en |archive-date=February 7, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210207210232/https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2009/03/the-secret-history-of-bagels/6928/ |url-status=live }}

In the 16th and first half of the 17th centuries, the {{lang|pl|bajgiel}} became a staple of Polish cuisine.{{cite web |last=Altschuler |first=Glenn C. |date=November 5, 2008 |url=http://www.forward.com/articles/14502 |title=Three Centuries of Bagels |website=forward.com |access-date=December 29, 2008 |archive-date=January 31, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120131155435/http://www.forward.com/articles/14502/ |url-status=live }} Its name derives from the Yiddish word {{transliteration|yi|beygal}} from the German dialect word {{lang|de|beugel}}, meaning 'ring' or 'bracelet'.{{cite book |last=Davidson |first=Alan |title=Oxford Companion to Food |date=2006 |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=Oxford |isbn=978-0192806819 |page=49 |edition=2nd}}

Variants of the word {{lang|de|beugal}} are used in Yiddish and in Austrian German to refer to a similar form of sweet-filled pastry; {{lang|de|Mohnbeugel}}, a pastry filled with poppy seeds, and {{lang|de|Nussbeugel}}, a pastry filled with ground nuts. The term is also used in southern German dialects, where {{lang|de|beuge}} refers to a pile, e.g., {{lang|de|holzbeuge}} ('woodpile'). According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, bagel derives from the transliteration of the Yiddish {{transliteration|yi|beygl}}, which came from the Middle High German {{lang|gmh|böugel}} or 'ring', which itself came from {{lang|goh|bouc}} ('ring') in Old High German, similar to the Old English {{lang|ang|bēag}} ('ring') and {{lang|ang|būgan}} ('to bend, bow').{{cite web |author= |url=http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bagel |title=Dictionary definition of 'bagel' |date=2009 |website=merriam-webster.com |access-date=April 24, 2009 |archive-date=April 27, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210427220159/http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bagel |url-status=live }} Similarly, another etymology in the Webster's New World College Dictionary says that the Middle High German form was derived from the Austrian German {{lang|de|beugel}}, a kind of croissant, and was similar to the German {{lang|de|bügel}}, a stirrup or ring.{{cite web |author= |url=http://www.yourdictionary.com/bagel |title=Dictionary definition of 'bagel' |website=yourdictionary.com |date=2005 |access-date=April 24, 2009 |archive-date=April 28, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210428104513/http://www.yourdictionary.com/bagel |url-status=live }}

In the Brick Lane district and surrounding area of London, England, bagels (locally spelled "beigels") have been sold since the middle of the 19th century. They were often displayed in the windows of bakeries on vertical wooden dowels, up to a metre in length, on racks.{{Citation needed|date=February 2021}}

File:*this* is a bagel.jpg and lox (cured salmon) are considered a traditional part of American Jewish cuisine (colloquially known as "lox and a schmear").]]

Bagels were brought to the United States by immigrant Polish Jews, with a thriving business developing in New York City that was controlled for decades by Bagel Bakers Local 338. They had contracts with nearly all bagel bakeries in and around the city for its workers, who prepared all their bagels by hand.

The bagel came into more general use throughout North America in the last quarter of the 20th century with automation. Daniel Thompson started work on the first commercially viable bagel machine in 1958; bagel baker Harry Lender, his son, Murray Lender, and Florence Sender leased this technology and pioneered automated production and distribution of frozen bagels in the 1960s.{{cite web |last=Klagsburn |first=Francine |url=http://www.thejewishweek.com/viewArticle/c55_a16243/Editorial__Opinion/Opinion.html |title=Chewing Over The Bagel's Story |publisher=The Jewish Week |date=July 8, 2009 |access-date=July 15, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-date=January 14, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130114133636/http://www.thejewishweek.com/viewArticle/c55_a16243/Editorial__Opinion/Opinion.html }}{{cite news |first=Dennis |last=Hevesi |title=Murray Lender, Who Gave All America a Taste of Bagels, Dies at 81 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/23/business/murray-lender-dies-at-81-gave-all-america-a-taste-of-bagels.html |work=The New York Times |date=2012-03-22 |access-date=2012-04-19 |archive-date=2012-04-14 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120414073010/http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/23/business/murray-lender-dies-at-81-gave-all-america-a-taste-of-bagels.html |url-status=live }}{{cite news |first=Lily |last=Rothman |title=Murray Lender, the man who brought bagels to the masses |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/murray-lender-the-man-who-brought-bagels-to-the-masses/2012/03/23/gIQACt47VS_story.html |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=2012-03-23 |access-date=2012-04-19 |archive-date=2012-03-29 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120329204358/http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/murray-lender-the-man-who-brought-bagels-to-the-masses/2012/03/23/gIQACt47VS_story.html |url-status=live }} Murray also invented pre-slicing the bagel.{{cite news |title=Murray Lender |url=http://www.economist.com/node/21552989 |newspaper=The Economist |date=21 April 2012 |access-date=30 August 2012 |archive-date=11 September 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120911230500/http://www.economist.com/node/21552989 |url-status=live }}

Around 1900, the "bagel brunch" became popular in New York City.{{cite book | last1=Adamson | first1=M.W. | last2=Segan | first2=F. | title=Entertaining from Ancient Rome to the Super Bowl: An Encyclopedia | publisher=ABC-CLIO | year=2008 | isbn=978-0-313-08689-2 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PPDIx6WWuOQC&pg=PA94 | page=94}} The bagel brunch consists of a bagel topped with lox, cream cheese, capers, tomato, and red onion. This and similar combinations of toppings have remained associated with bagels into the 21st century in the United States.{{cite book |last1=Parker |first1=Milton |last2=Freeman |first2=Allyn |title=How to Feed Friends and Influence People: The Carnegie Deli: A Giant Sandwich, a Little Deli, a Huge Success |date=2005 |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |location=Hoboken, NJ |isbn=0471710350 |page=97 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vE6I74CXk4kC&q=bagel+lox+cream+cheese+capers+tomato+onion&pg=PA97 |access-date=2015-12-20 |archive-date=2023-07-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230703224411/https://books.google.com/books?id=vE6I74CXk4kC&q=bagel+lox+cream+cheese+capers+tomato+onion&pg=PA97 |url-status=live }}{{cite news |last=Clark |first=Melissa |title=Setting Out the Bagels and Lox |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/25/dining/setting-out-the-bagels-and-lox.html |access-date=2015-12-20 |work=The New York Times |date=2013-09-24 |archive-date=2016-04-17 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160417064331/http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/25/dining/setting-out-the-bagels-and-lox.html |url-status=live }}{{cite book |last1=Warner |first1=Justin |title=The Laws of Cooking* *and How to Break Them |date=2015 |publisher=Flatiron Books |location=New York |isbn=978-1250065131 |page=83 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gQaJCgAAQBAJ&q=bagel+lox+cream+cheese+capers+tomato+onion&pg=PA83 |access-date=2015-12-20 |archive-date=2023-07-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230703224411/https://books.google.com/books?id=gQaJCgAAQBAJ&q=bagel+lox+cream+cheese+capers+tomato+onion&pg=PA83 |url-status=live }}

In Japan, the first kosher bagels were brought by {{Interlanguage link multi|BagelK|ja|3=ベーグルK}} from New York in 1989. BagelK created green tea, chocolate, maple-nut, and banana-nut flavors for the market in Japan. Some Japanese bagels, such as those sold by {{Interlanguage link multi|BAGEL & BAGEL|ja|3=BAGEL & BAGEL}}, are soft and sweet; others, such as Einstein Bros. bagels sold by Costco in Japan, are the same as in the U.S.{{Citation needed|date=February 2021}}

= Size change over time =

Bagels in the U.S. have increased in size over time. Starting at around {{convert|2|oz|g|-1}},{{Cite web|last=Blasey|first=Laura|date=2 August 2018|title=Why have bagels become so big and bready?|url=https://www.newsday.com/long-island/suffolk/big-bagel-evolution-1.20250025|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180803121623/https://www.newsday.com/long-island/suffolk/big-bagel-evolution-1.20250025 |archive-date=2018-08-03 |access-date=2021-02-03|website=Newsday|language=en}} by 1915, the average bagel weighed {{convert|3|oz|-1}};{{Cite news|last=Levine|first=Ed|date=2003-12-31|title=Was Life Better When Bagels Were Smaller? (Published 2003)|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2003/12/31/dining/was-life-better-when-bagels-were-smaller.html|access-date=2021-02-03|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=2021-01-30|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210130145415/https://www.nytimes.com/2003/12/31/dining/was-life-better-when-bagels-were-smaller.html|url-status=live}} the size began to increase further in the 1960s. By 2003, the average bagel sold on a Manhattan coffee cart weighed around {{convert|6|oz}}.

Preparation and preservation

{{more citations needed section|date=December 2018}}

File:MontrealBagels.jpg, Montreal, Quebec]]

At its most basic, traditional bagel dough contains wheat flour (without germ or bran), salt, water, and yeast leavening. Bread flour or other high gluten flours are preferred to create the firm, dense but spongy bagel shape and chewy texture. With a dough hydration of around 50–57%, bagel dough is among the stiffest bread doughs.{{cite web |url=http://www.stellaculinary.com/scs20 |title=SCS 020{{!}} Bread Classifications {{!}} Stella Culinary |access-date=2023-01-08 |archive-date=2023-01-08 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230108183105/https://stellaculinary.com/scs20 |url-status=live }} Most bagel recipes call for the addition of a sweetener to the dough, often barley malt (syrup or crystals), honey, high fructose corn syrup, or sugar, with or without eggs, milk or butter. Leavening can be accomplished using a sourdough technique or a commercially produced yeast.

Bagels are traditionally made by:

  • mixing and kneading the ingredients to form the dough
  • shaping the dough into the traditional bagel shape, round with a hole in the middle, from a long thin piece of dough
  • proofing the bagels for at least 12 hours at low temperature ({{cvt|40–50|F}})
  • boiling each bagel for 60–90 seconds in water that may contain additives such as lye, baking soda, barley malt syrup, or honey
  • baking at a temperature between {{cvt|175–315|C|F|order=flip}}

This production method gives bagels their distinctive taste, chewy texture, and shiny appearance.

In recent years, a variant has emerged, producing what is sometimes called the steam bagel. To make a steam bagel, the boiling is skipped, and the bagels are instead baked in an oven equipped with a steam injection system.{{cite book |last=Reinhart |first=Peter |date=2001 |title=The Bread Baker's Apprentice |publisher=Ten Speed Press |page=115}} In commercial bagel production, the steam bagel process requires less labor, since bagels need only be directly handled once, at the shaping stage. Thereafter, the bagels need never be removed from their pans as they are refrigerated and then steam-baked. The steam bagel results in a fluffier, softer, less chewy product more akin to a finger roll that happens to be shaped like a bagel. The dough used is intentionally more alkaline to aid browning, because the steam injection process uses neutral water steam instead of an alkaline solution bath.{{citation needed|date=February 2018}}

Bagels can be frozen for up to six months.{{cite web |last=Croswell |first=Jonathan |url=http://www.livestrong.com/article/510977-how-to-keep-a-bagel-moist/ |title=How to Keep a Bagel Moist |date=August 8, 2011 |access-date=February 9, 2013 |archive-date=February 18, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130218074858/http://www.livestrong.com/article/510977-how-to-keep-a-bagel-moist/ |url-status=live }}

Quality

According to a 2012 Consumer Reports article, the ideal bagel should have a slightly crispy crust, a distinct "pull" when a piece is separated from the whole by biting or pinching, a chewy inside, and the flavor of bread freshly baked. The taste may be complemented by additions cooked on the bagel, such as onion, garlic, sesame seeds, or poppy seeds. The appeal of a bagel may change upon being toasted. Toasting can have the effect of bringing or removing desirable chewiness, softening the crust, and moderating off-flavors.{{cite web|url=http://consumerreports.org/cro/bagels/buying-guide.htm|title=Top Bagels – Bagel Buying Guide|work=Consumer Reports|date=July 2012|access-date=2014-03-06|archive-date=2014-03-06|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140306211346/http://consumerreports.org/cro/bagels/buying-guide.htm|url-status=live}}

Traditionally New Yorkers do not toast bagels; they argue that if a bagel is well made and fresh it should never be toasted.{{Cite web |last=Zachary |first=Kussin |date=January 16, 2020 |title=Commit these food crimes in NYC and you'll be roasted |url=https://nypost.com/2020/01/16/commit-these-food-crimes-in-nyc-and-youll-be-roasted/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221016005252/https://nypost.com/2020/01/16/commit-these-food-crimes-in-nyc-and-youll-be-roasted/ |archive-date=October 16, 2022 |access-date=February 23, 2024 |website=New York Post}}{{Cite web |last=Bovino |first=Arthur |date=December 6, 2012 |title='We Don't Toast,' A Happy New York Morning Bagel Rebuff |url=https://www.thedailymeal.com/we-dont-toast-happy-new-york-morning-bagel-rebuff/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221205181516/https://www.thedailymeal.com/we-dont-toast-happy-new-york-morning-bagel-rebuff/ |archive-date=December 5, 2022 |access-date=February 23, 2024 |website=The Daily Meal}}{{Cite web |last=Bovino |first=Arthur |date=February 11, 2011 |title=Real New Yorkers Don't Toast Bagels |url=https://www.thedailymeal.com/real-new-yorkers-dont-toast-their-bagels/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230203013848/https://www.thedailymeal.com/real-new-yorkers-dont-toast-their-bagels/ |archive-date=February 3, 2023 |access-date=February 23, 2024 |website=The Daily Meal}} Some New York City bagel shops, like Murray's in Chelsea and Ess-a-Bagel at 21st and Third Avenue, have had no-toasting policies. Toasting of bagels in New York City is considered a bastardization and sacrilege. Former New York Times food critic Mimi Sheraton called the practice of eating toasted bagels obscene.{{Cite magazine |last=Sheraton |first=Mimi |date=February 8, 1988 |title=Food: The Bagel Takes to the Road, Mainstream America eats it up -- but has it lost authenticity? |url=https://content.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,966654-2,00.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240223140001/https://content.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,966654-2,00.html |archive-date=February 23, 2024 |access-date=February 23, 2024 |magazine=Time}}

A typical{{Clarify|reason=context needed: how much does this "typical" bagel weigh?|date=February 2021}} bagel has {{cvt|260|–|350|kcal}}, 1.0–4.5 grams of fat, 330–660 milligrams of sodium, and 2–5 grams of fiber. Gluten-free bagels have much more fat, often 9 grams, because of ingredients in the dough to supplant the wheat flour of the original.

Varieties

=New York style=

{{Main|New York style bagel}}

File:H&H_Bagel.JPG

The New York bagel contains malt, is cold-fermented for several days to develop the flavors and enhance the crust, and is boiled in salted water before baking in a standard oven.{{cite web|title=The untold truth of New York bagels|url=https://www.mashed.com/150118/the-untold-truth-of-new-york-bagels/|website=Mashable|date=11 April 2019|access-date=4 August 2020|archive-date=31 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201031021416/https://www.mashed.com/150118/the-untold-truth-of-new-york-bagels/|url-status=live}} The resulting bagel has a fluffy interior and a chewy crust. According to CNN, Brooklynites believe New York bagels are the best due to the quality of the local water.{{cite web|title=Bagels, water and an urban legend|url=http://eatocracy.cnn.com/2011/09/29/bagels-water-and-an-urban-legend/|website=CNN|access-date=18 May 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151114020138/http://eatocracy.cnn.com/2011/09/29/bagels-water-and-an-urban-legend/|archive-date=14 November 2015}} According to Brooklyn Water Bagels CEO Steven Fassberg, the characteristics of a New York bagel are the result of the recipe formula and preparation method.

=Montreal style=

{{main Article|Montreal-style bagel}}

File:Bagels-Montreal-REAL.jpgs: one poppy and two sesame bagels]]

Different from the New York style, the Montreal-style bagel contains malt and sugar with no salt; it is boiled in honey-sweetened water before baking in a wood-fired oven. It is predominantly of the sesame "white" seeds variety (bagels in Toronto are similar to those made in New York in that they are less sweet, generally are coated with poppy seeds and are baked in a standard oven).{{citation needed|date=March 2020}}

= St. Louis style =

The St. Louis style bagel refers not to composition, but to a particular method of slicing the bagel.{{Cite web|url=https://www.delish.com/food-news/a26973427/st-louis-sliced-bagel-reactions/|title=In Defense Of The Bread-Sliced Bagel, From A St. Louis Native|last=McDowell|first=Maya|date=2019-03-28|website=Delish|language=en-US|access-date=2019-03-30|archive-date=2019-03-30|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190330201246/https://www.delish.com/food-news/a26973427/st-louis-sliced-bagel-reactions/|url-status=live}} The St. Louis style bagels are sliced vertically multiple times, instead of the traditional single horizontal slice. The slices range from {{cvt|3 to 6|mm}} thick.{{Cite web|url=https://americanhistory.si.edu/collections/search/object/nmah_1317263|title=Bread-slicing Machine|website=National Museum of American History|language=en|access-date=2019-03-30|archive-date=2019-03-30|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190330201253/https://americanhistory.si.edu/collections/search/object/nmah_1317263|url-status=live}} This style of bagel was popularized by the St. Louis Bread Company, now known as Panera Bread. Generally, the bagels are sliced into eight pieces using a bread slicer, which produces characteristically precise cuts (the bagel is not torn or crushed while slicing). This particular method of preparation increases the surface area available for spreads (e.g., cream cheese, butter). However, it decreases the portability of the bagel and prevents formation of sandwiches.{{Cite web|url=https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/juliareinstein/bread-sliced-bagels-panera-st-louis-missouri-outrage|title=Apparently People Slice Bagels Like Bread In St. Louis And Honestly? WTF|website=BuzzFeed News|date=27 March 2019 |language=en|access-date=2019-03-30|archive-date=2019-03-30|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190330073716/https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/juliareinstein/bread-sliced-bagels-panera-st-louis-missouri-outrage|url-status=live}}

=Other bagel styles=

Other bagel styles can be found elsewhere; Chicago-style bagels are baked with steam. American chef John Mitzewich has a recipe for what he calls San Francisco-style bagels which yields bagels flatter than New York-style bagels, characterized by a rough-textured crust. The traditional London bagel (or beigel as it is sometimes spelled) is chewier and has a denser texture.

In Austria, {{lang|de|beigl}} (often also spelled {{lang|de|beigerl}} or {{lang|de|beugerl}} in its diminutive form) are a traditional Lenten food. The rings are made from a yeasted dough, rolled out very thin and briefly boiled in salted water before topped with salt and caraway seeds and then baked. Depending on the region, they are sometimes baked to a very hard consistency, making them relatively brittle. Connected with it is the tradition of {{lang|de|Beiglreißen}} ({{lit|ripping/tearing the {{lang|de|beigl}}}}) at Easter where two people pull on opposite ends of a {{lang|de|beigl}} until it breaks into two pieces. Tearing off the larger piece is meant to bring good luck.{{cite web |title=FASTENBEUGEL |date=6 March 2020 |url=https://kornelia-urkorn.at/allgemein/fastenbeugel/ |access-date=2020-11-09 |archive-date=2020-11-18 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201118050227/https://kornelia-urkorn.at/allgemein/fastenbeugel/ |url-status=live }} In Vienna, Eastern Lower Austria and Burgenland, {{lang|de|beugerl}} has taken on the meaning of certain types of kipferl.{{cite web |title=Beugel |url=https://www.geschichtewiki.wien.gv.at/Beugel |access-date=2020-11-09 |archive-date=2020-11-17 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201117043302/https://www.geschichtewiki.wien.gv.at/Beugel |url-status=live }}

Non-traditional doughs and types

While normally and traditionally made of yeasted wheat, in the late 20th century variations on the bagel flourished. Non-traditional versions that change the dough recipe include pumpernickel, rye, sourdough, bran, whole wheat, and multigrain. Other variations change the flavor of the dough, often using blueberry, salt, onion, garlic, egg, cinnamon, raisin, chocolate chip, cheese, or some combination of the above. Green bagels are sometimes created for St. Patrick's Day.{{Cite web|last=Updyke|first=Andrea|date=2020-03-03|title=Green Bagels for St. Patrick's Day|url=https://justisafourletterword.com/green-bagels-st-patricks-day/|access-date=2021-02-23|website=justisafourletterword.com|language=en|archive-date=2021-02-23|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210223114656/https://justisafourletterword.com/green-bagels-st-patricks-day/|url-status=live}}

A flat bagel, known as a 'flagel', can be found in a few locations in and around New York City, Long Island, and Toronto. According to a review attributed to New York's Village Voice food critic Robert Seitsema, the flagel was first created by Brooklyn's 'Tasty Bagels' deli in the early 1990s.{{cite web |last=Browne |first=Alaina |url=http://newyork.seriouseats.com/2008/09/flat-bagels-flagels-davids-gramercy-nyc.html |title=Flagel = Flat Bagel (review) |website=seriouseats.com |access-date=April 24, 2009 |archive-date=May 4, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090504224304/http://newyork.seriouseats.com/2008/09/flat-bagels-flagels-davids-gramercy-nyc.html |url-status=live }}

Large scale commercial sales

= United States supermarket sales =

File:Bagel-Plain-Alt.jpg

According to the American Institute of Baking (AIB), 2008 supermarket sales (52-week period ending January 27, 2009) of the top eight leading commercial fresh (not frozen) bagel brands in the United States:

  • totaled to US$430,185,378 based on 142,669,901 package unit sales.Baking Management (2008) [https://web.archive.org/web/20140307171744/https://www.aibonline.org/resources/statistics/2008bagels.htm AIB website data: Bagels 2008], from Baking Management, p. 10, March 2009, Statistics from Information Resources, retrieved 2009-03-23 from American Institute of Baking website: Bagels 2008 updated to March 10, 2009;
  • the top eight leading brand names for the above were (by order of sales): Thomas', Sara Lee, private label brands, Pepperidge Farm, Thomas Mini Squares, Lender's Bagels (Pinnacle Foods), Weight Watchers and The Alternative Bagel (Western Bagel).

Further, AIB-provided statistics for the 52-week period ending May 18, 2008, for refrigerated/frozen supermarket bagel sales for the top 10 brand names totaled US$50,737,860, based on 36,719,977 unit package sales.Baking Management (2008) [https://web.archive.org/web/20140307171744/https://www.aibonline.org/resources/statistics/2008bagels.htm AIB website data: Bagels 2008], from Redbook, July 2008, p. 20, Statistics from Information Resources. retrieved 2009-03-23 from ''American Institute of Baking website: Bagels 2008 updated to March 10, 2009

The AIB reported US$626.9 million fresh bagel US supermarket sales (excluding Wal-Mart) for the 52 weeks ending 11 April 2012.[https://www.aibonline.org/ AIB International], [https://web.archive.org/web/20140307171733/https://www.aibonline.org/resources/statistics/2012bagels.htm Bagels 2012]. Data obtained from SymphonyIRI Group from scanner data from Supermarkets, Drugstores, and Mass Merchandisers (does not includeWal-Mart). Fresh/frozen supermarket sales (excluding Wal-Mart) for the 52 weeks ending 13 May 2012 was US$592.7 million. The average price for a bag of fresh bagels was $3.27; for frozen it was $1.23.{{Citation needed|date=February 2021}}

Similar breads

File:Bublik in Kiev with Sesame.JPG

Many cultures developed similar breads and preparations, such as bubliki in Russia, Ukraine and Belarus, and obwarzanek (in particular obwarzanek krakowski) in Poland. Somewhat similar in appearance to bagels, these breads are usually topped with sesame and poppy seeds. The ingredients in these breads and bagels somewhat differ, as these breads are made with a different dough using butter,{{cite web | author = Victoria Drey | title = Bubliki: The star of a Russian-style bagel brunch | url = https://www.rbth.com/russian-kitchen/330120-bubliki-russian-style-bagel | publisher = Russian Beyond | date = 19 March 2019 | access-date = 3 March 2020 | archive-date = 3 March 2020 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200303082239/https://www.rbth.com/russian-kitchen/330120-bubliki-russian-style-bagel | url-status = live }} and sometimes also with milk.{{cite web |title=Bublik |url=https://thebreadguru.com/bublik-recipe/ |website=The Bread Guru |date=6 July 2016 |access-date=11 October 2019 |archive-date=11 October 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191011020405/https://thebreadguru.com/bublik-recipe/ |url-status=live }}

In Italy, taralli and {{ill|friselle|it|Frisella|vertical-align=sup}} are breads similar to bagels.

In Turkey, a salty and fattier form is called açma. The ring-shaped simit is sometimes marketed today as a Turkish bagel. Archival sources show that the simit has been produced in Istanbul since 1525.Sahillioğlu, Halil. "Osmanlılarda Narh Müessesesi ve 1525 Yılı Sonunda İstanbul’da Fiyatlar". Belgelerle Türk Tarihi 2 [The Narh Institution in the Ottoman Empire and the Prices in Istanbul in Late 1525. Documents in Turkish History 2] (Kasım 1967): 56 Based on Üsküdar court records (Şer’iyye Sicili) dated 1593,Ünsal, Artun. Susamlı Halkanın Tılsımı.[The Secret of the Ring with Sesames] İstanbul: YKY, 2010: 45 the weight and price of simit was standardized for the first time. Noted 17th-century traveler Evliya Çelebi wrote that there were 70 simit bakeries in Istanbul during the 1630s.Evliya Çelebi Seyahatnâmesi Kitap I. [The Seyahatname Book I] (Robert Dankoff, Seyit Ali Kahraman, Yücel Dağlı). İstanbul: YKY, 2006: 231

Jean Brindesi's early 19th-century oil paintings about Istanbul daily life show simit sellers on the streets.Jean Brindesi, Illustrations de Elbicei atika. Musée des anciens costumes turcs d'Istanbul, Paris: Lemercier, [1855] Warwick Goble made an illustration of the simit sellers of Istanbul in 1906.{{cite book|first=Alexander|last=Van Millingen|title=Constantinople|location=London|publisher=Black|date=1906|url=https://www.gutenberg.org/files/39620/39620-h/39620-h.htm|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201003094244/https://www.gutenberg.org/files/39620/39620-h/39620-h.htm|archive-date=3 October 2020|via=Project Gutenberg}} Simit is very similar to the twisted sesame-sprinkled bagels pictured being sold in early 20th century Poland. Simit are also sold on the street in baskets or carts, as bagels were then.{{Citation needed|date=February 2021}}

The Uyghurs of Xinjiang, China enjoy girdeh nan (from Persian, meaning round bread), a type of nan, the local bread.Allen, Thomas B. (March 1996). "Xinjiang". National Geographic Magazine, pp. 36–37

Another bagel-like type of bread is the traditional German Dortmunder Salzkuchen from the 19th century.{{cite web|url=https://www.wr.de/wr-info/warum-es-salzkuchen-nur-in-dortmund-gibt-id2664850.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210602213217/https://www.wr.de/wr-info/warum-es-salzkuchen-nur-in-dortmund-gibt-id2664850.html |archive-date=2 June 2021|title=Warum es Salzkuchen nur in Dortmund gibt|lang=de|trans-title=Why salt cakes are only available in Dortmund|first=Michael|last=Schmitz|date=2 March 2010|access-date=30 May 2021|website=Westfälische Rundschau}}

Ka'ak al-Quds (better known in English as the Jerusalem bagel) is an oblong ring bread, usually topped with sesame seeds, with its origins in Jerusalem. Unlike the bagel, it is not boiled prior to baking.{{cite web |last1=Haber |first1=Joel |title=Respectfully Responding to Reem Kassis (Re: Bagels) |url=http://www.tasteofjew.com/responding-to-reem-kassis-bagels/ |website=The Taste of Jewish Culture |date=13 April 2021 |access-date=30 December 2021 |archive-date=30 December 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211230015926/http://www.tasteofjew.com/responding-to-reem-kassis-bagels/ |url-status=live }}

Cultural references

"Bagel" is also a Yeshivish term for sleeping 12 hours straight—e.g., "I slept a bagel last night." There are various opinions as to the origins of this term. It may be a reference to the fact that bagel dough has to "rest" for at least 12 hours between mixing and baking{{Rp|4–5}} or simply to the fact that the hour hand on a clock traces a bagel shape over the course of 12 hours.{{Citation needed|date=February 2021}}

In tennis, a "bagel" refers to a player winning a set 6–0; winning a match 6–0, 6–0, 6–0 is called a "triple bagel".{{cite book|last1=Collins|first1=Bud|last2=Hollander|first2=Zander|title=Bud Collins' Modern Encyclopedia of Tennis|date=1994|publisher=Visible Ink Press|isbn=978-0-8103-9443-8|pages=[https://archive.org/details/budcollinsmodern00coll/page/484 484–85]|edition=2, illustrated|ref=collins|url=https://archive.org/details/budcollinsmodern00coll/page/484}}

"Bublichki{{-"}} or "Bagelach{{-"}} is a title of a famous Russian and Yiddish song written in Odesa in the 1920s. The Barry Sisters together with the Ziggy Elman Orchestra made it popular in the US in 1939. Today it belongs to the repertoire of klezmer, jazz and pop musicians.{{Citation needed|date=February 2021}}

The term "bageling" refers to when a Jew uses a Jewish word or phrase in a conversation, or in the vicinity of a stranger who is also clearly Jewish, in order to inform them that they are also Jewish.{{cite web |title=Bageling |url=https://jel.jewish-languages.org/words/36#:~:text=Definitions,another%20person%20as%20a%20Jew. |website=Jewish English Lexicon |access-date=July 27, 2020 |archive-date=July 28, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200728010857/https://jel.jewish-languages.org/words/36#:~:text=Definitions,another%20person%20as%20a%20Jew. |url-status=live }}

The bagel is a major plot device in the 2022 science-fiction film Everything Everywhere All at Once.{{cite web |last1=El-Mahmoud |first1=Sarah |title=Everything Everywhere All At Once Ending: The Point Behind The Multiverse, The Everything Bagel, And Michelle Yeoh's Trippy Film |url=https://www.cinemablend.com/movies/everything-everywhere-all-at-once-ending-the-point-behind-the-multiverse-the-everything-bagel-and-michelle-yeohs-trippy-film |website=Cinema Blend |access-date=11 April 2022 |date=8 April 2022 |archive-date=11 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220411141456/https://www.cinemablend.com/movies/everything-everywhere-all-at-once-ending-the-point-behind-the-multiverse-the-everything-bagel-and-michelle-yeohs-trippy-film |url-status=live }}

See also

References

{{Reflist}}

{{Jewish bread}}

{{Ring and knot-shaped breads}}

{{Street food}}

{{Authority control}}

Category:Jewish baked goods

Category:Polish cuisine

Category:Seeded breads

Category:Snack foods

Category:Street food