Lila Barron, Grace Norris, Henry Su, Graham Whitney; American University
Cite as: Barron, Lila, Grace Norris, Henry Su, Graham Whitney, and Marjan Alaghmand. 2025. “Bagels and Chemistry: Exploring the Power of Yeast”. Food-Fueled, 2, e00012. https://doi.org/10.57912/28908032.
Web address: https://edspace.american.edu/foodfueled/issues/volume-2/bagels-and-chemistry-exploring-the-power-of-yeast/
Please click here to download the piece as a PDF. The text is also listed below.
Introduction
Humans have made leavened bread for millennia, but the first true bagels were likely originated by 13th century Jewish communities in what is now known as Poland. At the time, antisemitic laws segregated Jews from Christians, creating insular Jewish enclaves throughout the region. It was in these neighborhoods where bakers invented a smaller version of the boiled, ring-shaped Polish bread known as obwarzanek. These became known as beygals in Yiddish and took on great cultural significance in the communities. They were given to new mothers to protect newborn children and became part of mourning rituals. During the 19th century, bagels came to the United States with European Jewish immigrants and would become a staple food in the following decades.
Our group chose to make a bagel to examine four things: how yeast works in baked goods, how gluten works in baked goods, why bagels are boiled, and why the Maillard Reaction occurs when baking bagels. We documented the process of making bagels and did additional research to investigate these topics.
Recipe
Nutrition Facts (1 bagel) (Nutritional Database)
- ¼ cup of water
- ½ teaspoon active dry yeast
- ½ teaspoon sugar
- ½ cup flour
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 1 large egg
- 2 tablespoons everything bagel seasoning
Instructions
- Warm water in the microwave for 15 sec. Add yeast and sugar.
- Mix. Wait for yeast to get foamy.
- Add flour and mix.
- Flour surface and knead dough for 10 min (until not sticky).
- Pour oil in a bowl, add dough in a ball.
- Cover and let rise for approx. 1 hour or until doubled in size.
- Shape into bagels and place on parchment paper.
- Boil each bagel for 1 min on each side in sugar water.
- Add egg wash and seasoning immediately after boiling.
- Bake at 425° F for 15-25 minutes.
- Enjoy!
Photo Gallery
Science Behind the Dish
How Yeast Works
Yeasts are single-celled organisms that break down simple sugars into carbon dioxide, ethanol, flavor molecules, and energy in a process called fermentation (Lawandi 2015). In a bagel, yeast is responsible for bread rise, fermentation, and developing gluten. Carbon dioxide, ethanol, and gluten are the three major components related to yeast that help bread rise. Yeast organisms expel carbon dioxide as they feed off sugars, causing the dough to rise (Lawandi 2015). Ethanol is formed during fermentation, and the evaporation of ethanol while the bagel is in the oven leaves room for gas bubbles, causing the bread to rise (Lawandi 2015). Yeast also helps to develop gluten. As the bagel dough rises, enzymes in the flour slowly break down the gluten proteins into smaller pieces, which can more easily assemble into a network and form gluten; this traps the gas bubbles that cause the bread to rise in the oven (Lawandi 2015).
Why Bagels are Boiled
Boiling bagels inactivates some of the yeast in the dough. This prevents the bagels from expanding further in the oven, and leads to a firmer product, and the signature shape of the bagel. According to NPR, “[bagels] are poached or boiled in a solution of water and malt barley for anywhere from 30 seconds to 3 minutes. This pre-gelatinizes the starch in the dough, locking the liquid inside of it and expanding the interior. As the video puts it, it’s like flash-frying a steak before grilling it to seal in the juices. The boiling also thickens the crust and it is essential to produce a ‘chewier’ bagel” (Godoy 2015).
How Gluten Works
Gluten is a protein found in wheat flour. It plays a crucial role in a bagel’s texture. When flour is mixed with water, and then kneaded, the gluten proteins form strands. The process of kneading combines two proteins naturally found in wheat and some other grains. These proteins, known as glutenin and gliadin, combine with water to form gluten, a strong and stretchy protein fiber whose long strands create the “framework” of dough. Gluten makes the dough more elastic to give it a light, chewy texture. It also helps the dough rise, to create an airy center to contrast the crusty outside.
Why the Maillard Reaction Occurs
In 1912, French chemist Louis-Camille Maillard discovered how sugars reacting with amino acids can link together to form proteins. When heated to temperatures above 120ºC, this reaction gives food a brown color, a crispy texture, and a roasted taste. In the case of bagels, the sugars in the dough react with the proteins in the egg wash to get a browning reaction in the oven. The reaction can be enhanced by coating the bagels with lye wash instead of egg wash because lye is extremely basic (Extance 2018).
Conclusion
Our exploration of bagel-making provided valuable insights into the science behind the dish. Through the process, we observed the role of yeast in fermentation and bread rise, the structural importance of gluten in creating a chewy texture, and the impact of boiling on the bagel’s signature density and crust. Finally, we saw how the Maillard reaction transforms the dough during baking, giving bagels their appealing golden-brown color and rich flavor.
References
Blakemore, Erin. “The Unusual History of the Beloved Bagel.” National Geographic, May 3, 2023. https://www.nationalgeographic.com/history/article/bagel-history-jewish-american-culture-symbol.
“Calories in Everything Bagel.” Nutritionix, accessed November 15, 2024.https://www.nutritionix.com/food/everything-bagel.
Extance, Andy. 2018. “The marvellous Maillard reaction.” Chemistry World, November 19, 2018. https://www.chemistryworld.com/features/the-marvellous-maillard-reaction/3009723.article.
Godoy, Maria. 2015. “Chew On This: The Science of Great NYC Bagels (It’s Not the Water).” NPR, May 21, 2015. https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2015/05/21/405190434/chew-on-this-the-science-of-great-nyc-bagels-its-not-the-water.
Lawandi, Janice. 2015. “The Science Behind Yeast and How It Makes Bread Rise.” The Kitchn, December 15, 2015. https://www.thekitchn.com/the-science-behind-yeast-and-how-it-makes-bread-rise-226483.
“The Science Behind the Perfect Bagel Texture.” Bagel Works Restaurant & Deli, September 11, 2024. https://www.bagelworks.com/blog/the-science-behind-the-perfect-bagel-texture.
“Why and How to Boil Bagels – A Bagel Guide.” Food Crumbles, February 7, 2022. https://foodcrumbles.com/science-making-bagels-boiling.