Undoubtedly a stupid thought...

[ffutures]

I've eaten a lot of bagels over the years.

All of them have been cut in half with some sort of filling added - cottage cheese, meat, pickle, etc.

And all of them have been made in the same toroidal shape. Which has a hole in the middle, which lets bits of the filling fall out fairly easily.

Is it possible to make them without the hole? I presume that there's a traditional element, e.g. everyone expects them to be that shape, but is there any more practical reason, e.g. the flavour is different if there's no hole / the way that they're made only works for that shape? Has anyone ever tried to sell bagels that are a solid oblate spherical shape, like other rolls?

No particular reason for asking, apart from eating a cottage cheese bagel for supper, but now that I've thought of this I really want to know the answer...

Comments

[gonzo21.livejournal.com]

I believe its to do with the cooking process. The hole allows them to cook evenly throughout, whereas if it was solid, you'd get a raw bit in the middle, or burnt outsides.

[sharikkamur.livejournal.com]

That's what I've heard too. I don't believe that there would be too much of a problem to cook them as batons rather than toroids.

[karohemd.livejournal.com]

but as batons (with the same cross section as the toroid) they would be even more useless.

[ffutures.livejournal.com]

I thought it might be something like that - thanks!

[gonzo21.livejournal.com]

Perhaps the dough wouldn't rise properly if they were batons rather than toroids?

[raygungothic.livejournal.com]

I wonder if they could be made biconcave like red blood cells?

[ffutures.livejournal.com]

I was wondering that, but if the dough rises at all they'd bulk out in the middle.

[vincentursus.livejournal.com]

That's kind of like asking "Is it possible to make peanut butter without peanuts?"

The term 'bagel' implies the toroidal shape.

[ffutures.livejournal.com]

Fair enough.

[honorh.livejournal.com]

I've had "bagel logs" before--basically, bagels that haven't been bent into the round shape. Can't say there was anything special about 'em.

[ffutures.livejournal.com]

Any difference in the taste?

[karohemd.livejournal.com]

Exactly the reason why I don't like bagels and the ones I've had (usually at some hotel for breakfast) weren't particularly nice and taste mass produced.

If they werent' a toroid shape, they wouldn't be bagels, just a type of roll.

Wikipedia says the hole is there to ensure more even baking (and I guess that makes sense because bagels are more dense than other breads) and for ease of transport/storage (threaded on wooden pegs).

[ffutures.livejournal.com]

OK, I suppose that sort of makes sense.

[aisb23.livejournal.com]

Speaking as the scion of generations of Jewish bakers, to even suggest otherwise is heresy! :)

[ffutures.livejournal.com]

Fair enough.

[aisb23.livejournal.com]

That said, there is a traditional Jewish roll similar to what you have in mind. It's called a bialy. It's round rather than toroid, however the center in pushed in and flattened. It's often got chopped onions in the center.

[ffutures.livejournal.com]

Never had them, I'll have to look out for them.

[pauldrye.livejournal.com]

The only thing that's unusual about the baking of bagels is the initial boiling of them in water. So far as I know, the hole in the middle has nothing to do with that so, short answer, no there's no practical reason.

[ffutures.livejournal.com]

Small difference of opinion with other comments - not to worry, it really isn't important, I just wondered.

[curiouswombat.livejournal.com]

I would say that it is not the hole that makes them bagels, but the boiling of the dough before the cooking.

After all - if it was the hole that defined bagel-ness then ring doughnuts would be bagels... The hole seems to be to ensure even baking - so if you took the dough, boiled it, and then baked it in a different shape it would be a different shaped bagel.

But then I am not a Jewish baker, so what would I know?

Apart from the fact that soda bread is much nicer if you want a change from ordinary bread rolls...

[ffutures.livejournal.com]

It's probably that - not mad keen on soda bread, but you can't get it freshly baked around here so I suspect it's better than I think.

[fjm.livejournal.com]

Where I grew up there was something called a bulke which tasted similar but was a roll. It was never as good as a bagel tho.

But a really good, chewy, proper bagel (not one of those inflated pillows) should be eaten either with nothing but butter, or with smoked salmon and cream cheese, none of which fall out.

Chopped liver goes on matzo, not bagels :-)

[ffutures.livejournal.com]

Matzos are too flakey for my liking. Long time since I've eaten kosher chopped liver, if I recall correctly I wasn't a big fan, it seemed a bit bland compared to other pates.

[fjm.livejournal.com]

Not being made properly then! Next time I see you, I will make sure there is chopped liver.

[heliograph.livejournal.com]

You can have donuts without holes (beignets), but because you boil bagels first, you need the hole to get even cooking throughout.

Bruegger's has attempted what you're thinking of: a lower-profile hole-less bagel for sandwiches. They're more re-shaped bagel-suggesting bread than actual bagels. They do not have the crispy shell that a good bagel should.

In my many years, including in my grandfather's Jewish bakery, I have never seen bagels put on pegs or strung together. Bins, boxes, and bags, just like other bakery products. Don't believe anything you read on Wikipedia.