Yesterday I tried making bagels again, which I haven't tried in some
years. Previous batches have used water baths with baking soda, malt
extract, and something else that escapes me at the moment. They never
turned out right. This time the bath was 1 teaspoon of food-grade lye
(sodium hydroxide) per quart of water, in a stainless steel pot.
Boiled 'em for 30 seconds on each side before baking.

Qualified success.... I need to be more careful at getting the big
bubbles out of the dough when punching down. Those bubbles absorbed
more than their share of the solution, and they ended up gummy in
spots. I also need to use more gluten or more flour or both. Added 1
teaspoon gluten per cup of bread flour, but I think the dough needs to
be even stiffer.

To shape: do not roll out into a long strip and join the ends. They
don't join very well. Instead, poke a hole through the center, then
swing the dough round and round your finger as though it was a hula
hoop. The hole will get larger very quickly.

The wife and I split the dough between us. She broiled her share for
a minute or so before baking. She was supposed to broil them on both
sides but couldn't get the dough off the baking sheet so they only
broiled on one side. The broiling kept the bagels from falling quite
as much and gave a better texture, so we'll do that next time too.

And the flavor!! It's been so long since I had a real bagel, I'd
forgotten what they taste like! Excellent!!!
--
Best -- Terry