Vegans avoid consuming any animal-based products, such as meat, eggs, dairy, and any additives or condiments that have any animal-based ingredients in them.
However, sometimes it can be hard to gauge whether a product is vegan or not, as some products have certain ingredients we may not recognize right away.
Bagels are a popular baked good, and they come in a variety of flavors. This article will discuss whether these are vegan and where you can find the best plant-based ones!
What Is A Bagel?
A bagel is a doughnut-shaped bread that can be either sweet or savory. They can be plain, or they are available with a variety of toppings, such as cheese, poppy seeds, sesame seeds, and certain glazes.
Regular bagels are perfectly vegan, as they only contain flour, yeast, salt, water, sweetener, and oil.
What About Non-Vegan Bagels?
As mentioned, regular, plain bagels are vegan, as they contain no animal-based ingredients. However, some bagels have certain added ingredients that make them unsuitable for those on the vegan diet.
Some may have honey added to them, in place of sugar. Some vegans do choose to eat honey as no animals have died to produce it, but others would rather avoid it.
Eggs are sometimes added to bagels for extra flavor in the dough. They are also sometimes brushed on top of the bagels for extra glaze and shine. This makes these bagels unsuitable for vegans.
While regular bagels are made with water, some recipes use milk in their place, for extra added flavor. Unless the milk is plant-based, then these bagels are not vegan-friendly.
Aside from the above, there are many fillings that are not considered vegan, such as cream or hard cheeses, deli meats, fish, or sauces such as mayonnaise and hollandaise sauce.
How To Make Sure Your Bagels Are Vegan
There are a variety of ways to ensure that the bagels you are purchasing are completely vegan.
Read The Label
If you’ve chosen to buy your bagels from a grocery store, then check the label carefully for any ingredients that may not be completely vegan-friendly.
These ingredients are usually honey, honey powder, milk, milk powder, L-cysteine, eggs, casein, lactose, and whey.
Vegan Certification
Not all vegan products will have a vegan certification, as this is not mandatory by law. However, there are many independent companies that will certify products, so you’ll notice a stamp or sticker on products that they’ve certified.
However, as mentioned earlier, not all products will have been certified, so it is a good idea to look closely at the ingredients regardless.
Create Your Own
Another option is to make your own vegan bagels at home! This is the perfect activity for those Sunday afternoons (when you want to forget about Monday looming in!).
As mentioned, the essential ingredients are completely vegan, all you need is flour, yeast, water, sweetener, and some oil and salt.
You can add any other flavors you like, such as garlic, spices, seeds, and nuts! When it comes to fillings, you can experiment with all kinds, such as meat substitutes, tofu, hummus, roasted vegetables, and some fruits if you’re looking for a sweet treat.
Vegan-Friendly Bagels
Sometimes, you’re having one of those days when you just want to grab a bagel and go, rather than make, or prepare one yourself. Therefore, below are some of the take-out options for vegan bagels.
This bagel chain restaurant serves several different bagels that are completely vegan, so you’ll have many options to choose from!
They also started selling Vegan Daiya plain cream cheese in certain stores, so you don’t need to miss out on delicious cheese spread if you’ve switched to the vegan diet.
The popular chain, Dunkin’ Donuts also offers a range of vegan bagels that are delicious. These are the options, garlic, onion, plain, poppy seed, salt, sesame, everything, and cinnamon raisin.
Final Thoughts
In summary, vegans can indeed eat bagels, as most of them are made with ingredients that don’t contain animal-based ingredients.
However, they should always check the labels thoroughly before purchasing them, as some brands so contain milk, eggs, and other animal products that others do not.
If in doubt, making your own bagels is pretty straightforward, as there are minimal ingredients involved.
There are also several delicious vegan options at several take-out chains, such as Dunkin’ Donuts, Panera Bread, and Einstein Bros Bagels, to name a few!
We hope this article has provided you with sufficient information on whether vegans can eat bagels.
Hi, I’m Eve Mason and I’ve been a vegan since almost five years now.I can honestly say that veganism has changed my life for the better.The past few years I’ve been on a quest to find affordable vegan friendly food.Fortunately, meat-free alternatives have now become available in most supermarkets, which has made my life a lot easier.
I love cooking at home, but for those who don’t like cooking at all, there are more and more restaurants that offer vegan options as well nowadays.
I hope you enjoy my website and have fun preparing your own homemade vegan meals.
