Turkish Bagel

• • Flour: To make a traditional simit, it’s important to use a high-protein flour of at-least 12% protein (look out for flour labeled ‘strong flour,’ and the % will be listed on the label) – it provides that classic ‘bagel-like’ flavor and texture. If you’re unable to find any (which is probably more likely with the current global situation), then you can use plain white flour – which is what I did for this recipe. You could also use a combination of white and wholewheat flour
  • Yeast: You can use fresh, dry, or instant yeast (I used dried). If you use active dry yeast, there’s no need to activate the yeast (yay for time-saving!).
  • Grape Molasses: You could alternatively use malt syrup, pekmez (available in some Turkish grocery stores). I’ve even once tried it with honey – it wasn’t the same flavor profile, but it worked. I haven’t tried it with other molasses (like pomegranate molasses or fig molasses) – as they’re not as sweet, you may want to add a little extra sugar to the dough or syrup to the molasses mixture.

Other Notes:

• You can use a combination of wholewheat flour and white flour to prepare these simits too. I haven’t tried with 100% whole wheat yet as I imagine it being too dense.
• For extra sesame flavor, lightly toast the seeds in a dry pan until golden brown and aromatic before adding to the simit dough.
• Feel free to adapt the thickness of your homemade simit based on if you want them for sandwiches.
• There is a ‘poaching’ method too, where the water and sugar/molasses mixture is heated, and the twisted simit is poached for a minute. However, that’s more like American bagels, so I usually use this method of simply dipping the bagels in the sweet molasses mixture.