Been on a "go-back-and-try-it-again" trip lately. Ah, well, bread is a constant progression, and trials and tests. Besides, sometimes you just got to eat a bagel. Keep reading if you agree.
Last weekend, I made three kinds of bagels, pre-ferment, yeasted, and sourdough, with all purpose and bread flour. Odd textural differences; chewyness and retarding in sourdough, whereas a more custardy and lighter crumb in a pre-ferment. The straight dough to processing can make for a different bagel, yeasty, sweet, but a shorter shelf life.
It's said that a bagel should have a high gluten flour, but I like a mix of bread and all purpose, less work on my jaw. And the New York and Montreal styles are still a squabble of terroir of public opinion on their own. My jury is still out. I like them both, but really, where do you get bagels in New York anymore?
