Can You Freeze Bagels? (2024)

Bagels are a tasty treat that’s cheaper by the dozen. But, you may not want to eat them all in one go. Can you freeze bagels? Yes! You absolutely can.

Whether you bulk buy a baker’s dozen or even make your own bagel dough and bake your own bagels, having a stash of frozen bagels in the freezer is a great play! Enjoy bagels for breakfast with flavored cream cheese, as one of the best breads for sandwiches, or the start of a fantastic bagel pizza.

I love to serve bagels. They seem to make everyone happy! For my son’s second wedding reception at home, I served a Budget Brunch Party Menu that included fresh bagels and homemade schmears. It was so tasty!

And since I didn’t want to run out during a celebration, I made sure to buy extra bagels. Thankfully, we didn’t need to worry about too many leftovers. I could just store them in the freezer for later.

Why Do This

You’ll save money. When you store bagels in the freezer the right way, not only are you preventing food waste, but you’re also saving money. You’ll see a cost benefit to bulk buying or bulk baking bagels and storing them in the freezer for later.

You’ll save time. Whether you stand in line at the local shop or bake your own, freezing bagels at home will save you time since you’ll have one whenever you want one.

Ingredients

All you need are bagels. These can be bagels from the store, from a bakery, or those you bake yourself.

Make sure your bagels are as fresh as possible, or plan to toast them or turn them into bagel chips if they’re a bit on the dry side to start with.

If you’re freezing homemade bagels, be sure to cool them completely to room temperature before proceeding.

Step-by-Step Instructions

If you’re going to use your bagels sliced after freezing, then you’re going to want to slice bagels prior to storing them in the freezer. It’s super dangerous trying to slice a frozen bagel, so don’t freeze your bagels whole if you can avoid it.

You can slice them with a bread knife or use a bagel guillotine. We’ve had ours for 12 years and it works super well. It’s great to use with kids and give them some independence!

Slice the bagels in half and store them in a freezer bag in the freezer. Remove as much air as possible. You can even suck it out with a straw!

This can be a plastic bag or a reusable silicone bag.

This method works great if you’re going to use them up in the next couple weeks.

If it’s going to be several weeks before you use the bagels, you can wrap each sliced bagel in plastic wrap and then place the wrapped bagels in the bag.

Thawing & Serving Instructions

To serve, remove however many bagels you want from the bag and allow them to thaw at room temperature. You can toast bagels from frozen if you like or wait until thawed completely.

Top with butter, jam, cream cheese, or your favorite bagel toppings. Alternatively, use the bagels in recipes such as making pizza, bagel boats, bread pudding, croutons, and bagel chips. Be sure to include them in a Bagel Box (DIY Adult Lunchables)!

FAQs

What else can you freeze?