SourTube: Easy Chewy Sourdough Everything Bagels (feat. Archer Dough Co)

📺 SourTube pick: This is a curated video — we didn't make it, we just love it and think you will too. All credit belongs to the creator below. Watch it, learn from it, then go show them some love.

Today's pick: Sourdough everything bagels - the easy way!

Creator: Sarah Archer of Archer Dough Co.
Watch on YouTube: Sourdough everything bagels - the easy way!
More from Sarah: archerdoughco.com for her approachable sourdough and cozy homemade recipes

If the embed doesn't load, watch it directly on YouTube here.

Why we picked this one

Bagels are one of those bakes that sound intimidating until someone walks you through them once — and then you wonder why you waited so long. The boiling step feels dramatic, the shaping looks like a magic trick, and somewhere along the way most people quietly give up and buy a bag of store bagels instead.

Sarah from Archer Dough Co. demolishes all of that in about ten minutes. Her whole philosophy is "sourdough doesn't have to be complicated," and this everything bagel tutorial is the living proof: a short, simple ingredient list, both gram AND cup measurements (a genuine gift for anyone who doesn't want to do math before breakfast), and an approachable process that assumes you're a real human with a real kitchen. No commercial yeast, no fuss, just chewy golden bagels.

The detail that sold us? She meets beginners exactly where they are. The tone is encouraging without being patronizing, the steps are calm and clear, and the final result — crusty everything-seasoned bagels begging to be toasted with cream cheese — is the kind of payoff that turns a nervous first-timer into someone who bakes bagels on the regular.

What you'll learn

• The whole bagel roadmap, start to finish: mixing, shaping, boiling, and baking — plus the make-ahead and overnight-proof tips that let you wake up to nearly-ready bagels.
• Starter-friendly technique: how an active sourdough starter does all the heavy lifting here, so your bagels come out chewy inside and golden outside with no commercial yeast needed.
• Topping freedom: why the boil-and-top method works for everything from classic sesame to full everything seasoning — and how to get those toppings to actually stick.

Our two cents to go with it

Two beginner things worth knowing before you hit play:

1. Active starter is non-negotiable here. Bagels are a lean, low-hydration dough, and there isn't much room to hide a sluggish starter. Feed yours and use it at its peak — if it's not doubling nicely after a feed, give it another round or two before you mix your dough. Patience now means chew later.

2. Don't fear the boil — fear skipping it. That quick bath in sweetened water is what gives bagels their glossy, chewy crust and stops them from baking up like weirdly-shaped bread rolls. It's genuinely a minute per side. The scariest part is tipping them into the water, and after the first one you'll be annoyed you ever worried.

If watching this gets you itching to bake but your starter is still sluggish and sour-smelling and stressing you out — that's literally why we dehydrate ours and ship it ready to wake up in a few days. No drama, just bagels. Squirrelly Girl Starter is here when you need it. 🐿️

Loved this video? Go tell Sarah — like and subscribe on YouTube so she keeps making them.

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