The Science of Re-Crisping Bagels

This isn't the first time I've talked about this bagel reheating method, and it probably won't be the last. I share it now because it's a perennial tip that works just as well for refreshing any bread that features a crisp crust and chewy center (baguettes benefit especially well).

If we were to make a chart of foods according to their room-temperature half-life (the rate at which they crawl–or sprint–asymptotically to their inevitable, inedible, death), honey and hard liquor would be on the extreme long end of the scale while ice cubes, risotto, and bagels would be on the short. (The can of McCormick’s ground cinnamon that has accompanied my mom through over four decades of moves occupies its own spot on space-time continuum that doesn’t seem to be governed by any known laws of physics).

Let me be more specific: good bagels are on that short end of that range. The specific quality that lands them there? The intrinsic textural contrast built into them then they come out of the oven, coupled with their density.

(If you want to know more of my thoughts on the qualities of a great bagel, you can find them here my here in my Good Bagel Manifesto.)

A great, fresh bagel should have a thin, shiny, blistered, crackly crust that surrounds a dense-yet-tender interior. And it’s precisely these qualities that get lost as a bagel ages. What was crisp becomes soft and what was dense-yet-tender becomes tough and chewy, and this happens at a rate faster than any other bread product I can think of.

Cakes and cupcakes? They stay tender for days. A soft white pullman loaf? You can make decent sandwiches for a week. Even a loaf of hearty sourdough or a baguette will improve as it cools and maintain its peak texture for a day or so.

But a bagel? As soon as it's cooled completely it starts a rapid and ever accelerating race towards an overly chewy fate.

There are a few ways to deal with this. One is to just suck it up (or more accurately, painfully chew it and wash it down with plenty of coffee). Another is to do what most bagel shops outside of New York–and even many in New York these days–do: slice the bagel in half and toast it like you would an English muffin. (I'm of the opinion that only the

But there is a better way! One which will restore it to near fresh-from-the-oven status: Toast it whole.

Or better yet, do what my friend Dan Pashman, inventor of pasta shapes, host of The Sporkful, author of Anything's Pastable, and certified bagel-loving Long Island Jew does: dip the bagel in water before toasting it. What does dipping in water accomplish?

In its liquid form, this moisture will keep the surface of the bagel cooler as the energy from the hot air in the oven goes towards evaporating that surface moisture (the same reason why sweating keeps our bodies cool). This gives the bagel time to start heating through without the exterior drying our or burning.

Then, as the moisture evaporates, the air in the oven becomes more humid. This, in turn, helps the bagel re-crisp rapidly, as moist air is much better at conducting heat than dry air (the same reason why humid days feel so much hotter than dry days).

The best tool for toasting a bagel whole is a countertop toaster oven, which will heat faster and hold moist air better than a conventional oven. This technique works in any toaster oven, but if you've got a fancy-pants steam-injected toaster like the BALMUDA The Toaster I use these days, all the better (checkout with code "Kenji_15" for 15% off of anything you get at BALMUDA until March 15th, 2025).