NYC-Style Asiago Cheese Bagels

Combine bread flour (ideally high-gluten, 14%+ protein), instant yeast, and barley malt syrup in a stand mixer bowl.

Add water (room temperature) and mix on low (speed 2) with the dough hook until a shaggy mass forms, about 2 minutes.

Add fine sea salt and continue mixing on speed 2 for 6 minutes to 8 minutes. The dough should be very stiff and smooth — noticeably stiffer than bread dough. Hydration is intentionally low (~56%). If your mixer struggles, rest the dough 5 minutes, then continue. The dough is ready when it passes a windowpane test, though it'll be tight.

Cover the dough and let it rest at room temperature for about 60 minutes. It won't rise dramatically — you're looking for maybe 25–30% increase, not a full double.

Divide the dough into 6 equal pieces (about 135g each). To shape: roll each piece into a rope about 25cm long and roughly even thickness. Wrap the rope around your dominant hand's knuckles, overlapping the ends by about 4cm on your palm. Roll the overlap back and forth on the counter to seal. The hole should be about 5–6cm wide (it'll shrink).

Place shaped bagels on a parchment-lined sheet pan, spaced apart. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 12 hours to 24 hours. This cold ferment develops the flavor and chew that defines NYC bagels. To test if they're ready: drop one in a bowl of water — it should float within 10 seconds.

Place your pizza steel on a middle rack. Preheat your oven to 500°F (260°C). The steel needs at least 45 minutes to 60 minutes to fully saturate with heat — don't rush this.

Bring water to a rolling boil in a wide pot. Add barley malt syrup to the boiling water, stir to dissolve. Working in batches of 2–3, drop bagels in. Boil 45 seconds per side (90 seconds total) — flip once with a slotted spoon or spider. Longer boil = thicker, chewier crust. Drain on a wire rack briefly.

While the bagels are still wet from the boil, press the top of each bagel firmly into a plate of grated Asiago cheese (coarsely grated). The wet surface acts as glue. Be generous — press and twist slightly to get maximum cheese adhesion.

Transfer bagels cheese-side up onto parchment on the pizza steel. Bake at 500°F (260°C) for 12 minutes to 14 minutes, rotating the pan 180° at the halfway mark. The bagels are done when the Asiago is deeply golden-brown and the internal temp reads 200–210°F (93–99°C).

Transfer to a wire rack. Let them cool for at least 15 minutes to 20 minutes before cutting — the interior is still setting up.

Barley malt syrup is what NYC bagel shops use. It gives that distinctive dark, malty sweetness and deep crust color that nothing else quite replicates. Look for it at health food stores, baking suppliers, or online — Bob's Red Mill and Eden Foods both make it.

Can't find barley malt syrup? Substitute with a 2:1 blend of regular molasses and honey by weight. For the dough, use 13g molasses + 7g honey. For the boiling water, use 20g molasses + 10g honey. Regular molasses only — blackstrap is too bitter and will overpower the bagels. The result won't be identical (malt has a specific earthy sweetness) but it's a solid stand-in.

Flour matters a lot. You want high-gluten bread flour — 13–14%+ protein. King Arthur Bread Flour (12.7%) works in a pinch, but if you can get Sir Lancelot or a high-gluten flour from a restaurant supplier, do it.

Pizza steel technique: The steel's thermal mass gives you aggressive bottom heat. If your bagel bottoms brown too fast, slide a second sheet pan underneath as a heat shield for the last few minutes.

Asiago choice: Aged Asiago (d'allevo) gives sharper flavor and crispier cheese. Fresh Asiago (pressato) melts more smoothly but has milder flavor. A mix is nice — or just use whatever your store has.

Storage: Best eaten day-of. Freeze extras in zip-lock bags — slice first so you can toast from frozen. Freezes well for 2–3 months.