Description
A bagel is a round bread roll with a hole in the middle, a thin crust and an evenly aerated crumb. Bagels are often topped with seeds baked on the outer crust, commonly poppy seeds or sesame seeds. Common ingredients used to make bagel are wheat flour, yeast, sugar, oil and salt. The dough is prepared and then shaped using the hands into a round ring form and then baked like bread. Typically, bagels have a chewy texture and a slightly crisp outer layer, accomplished by handling the bread dough in a special manner before it is cooked, preventing the dough from rising too much and giving the bagel a bread-like texture. Bagels can also be made at home, although it does take some work.

How to select
While buying bagel from the market, check for the freshness of the bagels by seeing if they are soft and a little moist.

Culinary Uses
• The bagels are typically sliced in half and toasted for eating, and an assortment of toppings and spreads can be piled on both sides of the bagel, or just on one half, so that the top can be put back on to make a bagel sandwich.
• Common toppings include cream cheese, hummus, butter, tomatoes, onions, capers and avocado, though generally not all at once.

How to store
• Try and use the bagels on the same day they are bought or made, as they tend to lose their moisture quickly.
• Store bagels for a prolonged period of time by cutting them in half, putting them into a large zippered plastic bag (depending on how many bagels you have) and freezing them.

Health benefits
• Bagels made with multi-grain or whole wheat flour are high in fibre and other nutrients as compared to white bread since it is not processed like white bread.
• The fibre present in bagel buns can help reduce the risk of some chronic diseases like constipation etc.
• It also helps keep the blood sugar at lower levels, thus helping one to manage diabetes better
• They can also add healthy vitamins, minerals and fats to the body.