Kraków obwarzanki: twisted bread rings, boiled in honey water, with poppy, sesame and salt
An obwarzanek is neither a bagel nor a pretzel: two ropes of dough twisted into a spiral, closed into a ring, dropped for half a minute into boiling water with honey (that is what the name means: scalded) and only then baked. The boiling water sets the crust, which is why it is glossy and chewy while the inside stays dense. Eight rings, like from a cart on the Main Square.
Your own work in that: 55 min.
- Kneading 15 min
- Rising 45 min
- Twisting 30 min
- Boiling 10 min
- Baking 15 min
Step by step
0 / 7 doneKnead a firm dough
Dissolve the yeast in the lukewarm water with the honey. Pour into the flour and salt, add the oil and knead 10 minutes, until smooth and springy. It is noticeably firmer than a roll dough: little water is what gives an obwarzanek its dense, chewy inside.
Ingredients: 500 g strong bread flour · 260 ml water · 12 g fresh yeast · 1 tbsp honey · 1½ tsp salt · 1 tbsp oil
TipIf the dough sticks to your hands, add no more than a spoon of flour. A stiff dough is harder to knead, but it is what makes an obwarzanek rather than a bread roll.
Firm, smooth, springyA short rise
Cover the dough and leave 45 minutes. It should grow by half, not double: an obwarzanek is not meant to be fluffy.
Roll the ropes
Divide the dough into 8 pieces of about 100 g. Halve each and roll with your palms on the counter into two ropes 50 cm long. If the dough springs back, leave it 2 minutes and return.
Two 50 cm ropes per ringTwist and close into a ring
Lay two ropes side by side, twist them together into a spiral like a cord, and close into a ring about 12 cm across. Seal the ends firmly by overlapping them; unsealed ends come apart in the water. Rest on a floured cloth 15 minutes.
TipTwist the ropes in opposite directions, one hand towards you, the other away: the spiral will be tight and won't unwind in the boil.
A spiral of two ropes, a 12 cm ringBoil in honey water
Heat the oven to 220 °C. Bring the water and honey to the boil in a wide pot. Drop in 2–3 rings at a time and boil 30 seconds a side. Lift out with a slotted spoon onto a cloth for a moment, then onto a lined tray.
Ingredients: 3000 ml water · 2 tbsp honey · 2 tbsp poppy seeds · 2 tbsp sesame seeds · 1 tsp coarse salt
TipThe honey in the water caramelises on the crust and gives shine and colour. Thirty seconds, not a minute: boiled longer they turn rubbery and wrinkled.
Half a minute a side in honey waterTop at once
Sprinkle the wet rings immediately: some with poppy seeds, some with sesame, some with coarse salt. The topping only sticks to a wet crust; after a minute it slides off.
Poppy, sesame, salt, onto the wet crustBake hot
Bake 15 minutes at 220 °C, until golden brown and glossy. Eat warm: an obwarzanek lives a few hours, and by evening it is hard, like every one on the Main Square.
A quarter hour at 220 °C, golden and glossy
Before you start
With cheese
Sprinkle grated hard cheese instead of poppy seeds just before baking. A newer variation, now also sold from the Kraków carts.
Stale rings
Sprinkle with water and give them 4 minutes at 200 °C. Or slice, fry in butter and serve with soup like croutons.
The spiral unwound
Ropes twisted too loosely or ends sealed too weakly. Twist tighter, overlap the ends and press, and give them 15 minutes before the water so they 'catch'.
