Post Punk Kitchen Forum

Has anyone come across anything that acts as an egg wash? In other words, something that I can brush on pastries or home-made bagels to create that brown and sheen?

I don't do much baking, but I believe I heard of ground flax w/ water being used as an egg wash before.

bagels will sheen on their own, due to boiling then baking (at least mine did the one time I made them!).

I've seen soy milk suggested for a wash on other things. Sometimes I put on water with a couple of drops of soy sauce on things like sausage rolls. It's not so shiny, but it tamps down the flour and looks appetising enough.

I've used soy milk in place of a wash to make things stick to other things - like sesame seeds on a roll. I'm not sure that it added a glossy sheen though.

i have a rye bread recipe that calls for a boiled cornstarch-and-water solution to be brushed on.

Thanks for the tips! I'll give them a shot!

Dropscone is right about the bagels--I usually just boil them in water with a bit of baking soda and once they bake up, they have that sheen to them.

yeah, a baking soda & water mixture brushed on before baking should give you that sheen. some types of pretzels use lye, but baking soda is much easier to get, not to mention safer to use.

I believe coffee can be used.

Baking soda and water has always worked for me to get things browned, though not necessarily shiny

I've used corn starch mixed with water before and it works pretty well!

i use coffee. with bread i just brush right before they go into the oven, and then about 15 mins into baking. it comes out shiny and delicious.

I use a combination of soymilk, earth balance and baking soda.