Bagels are such a delicious and versatile food for any time of day. Whether you’re putting together a flavoursome masterpiece for dinner, a stellar afternoon snack, or a tasty breakfast treat, bagels never disappoint.
There are so many options to choose from when making the perfect bagel. We’ve put together a yummy list of our top 16 Bagel Toppings for Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner below; so check them out and pick your favourite for a mouth-watering snack or scrumptious meal to enjoy.
Cream Cheese & Cucumber
This is a traditional topping and sure-fire winner for bagel lovers everywhere. Cream cheese is a delicious addition to either a soft bagel or a crispy toasted bagel.
Cream cheese can go with lots of different ingredients, such as strawberries and blueberries for a sweet treat, or garlic and onions for savoury palates. Our number one favourite cream cheese pairing is cucumber, which adds a light and simple crunch to a thick and creamy topping.
Change things up with our Slow Cooker Porridge Recipe
Mozzarella, Pesto & Tomato
For something a little posher and definitely tasty, team up your bagel with a dashing array of flavours – mozzarella (for a light cheesy taste), pesto (to add a little tang to your snack) and tomato (choose sun-dried for even more of a flavour hit). This bagel combo is a definite crowd-pleaser and is sure to delight your taste buds.
If talk of pesto, mozzarella and tomato makes you think of Italy, maybe you should check out our Best Italian Restaurants in Perth.
Peanut Butter & Bananas
The rich, nutty, and creamy texture of peanut butter and the softness of chopped banana are a match made in heaven. The sweetness from the banana perfectly combines with the salty peanut butter to reach the top tier level in the sweet and savoury bagel ranks.
And if peanut butter and bananas really do it for you and you’d like to change up your breakfast game, take a look here.
Smoked Salmon
Smoked salmon on a bagel is an exquisite snack. Not only is salmon great for your health, it’s an exceptionally tasty topping for a bagel.
To make your bagel even better, add a layer of thick cream cheese to the bottom and place the smoked salmon on top to create a beyond delicious pairing.
And then, of course, there’s the classic lox bagel. What’s the difference between a lox and a regular smoked salmon bagel? Well, generally, the lox salmon is cured, but not smoked. However, those rules have loosened over time and these days many people describe smoked salmon and cream cheese in a bagel as a lox.
Personally, we love salmon – smoked or unsmoked – in a bagel with cream cheese and capers.
The Chefman 2-Slice Digital Toaster has extra wide slots so you can toast bagels, crumpets and more.
Avocado & Egg
Avocados are so versatile. You can mash it or slice it for your bagel, and top it with a fried or poached egg for a culinary delight. The flavours go perfectly together, and a toasted bagel adds a delicious crunch to the soft texture of egg and avocado.
This is probably one of the best-tasting and healthiest breakfast foods out there.
Love a quick and easy meal? Check out Hello Fresh for simple dinner planning.
Bacon, Egg & Cheese
We already know that bacon, egg, and cheese are among the most legendary breakfast foods in existence. Crispy bacon combined with a rich and tasty egg and melted cheese on top works excellently inside a delicious bagel. You’re sure to enjoy your breakfast with this great bagel topping combo.
Bacon is a great addition to so many meals. See here for inspiration. And if you follow a gluten-free diet, don’t despair, click here.
Ham And Cheese
The classic ham and cheese sandwich also works amazingly inside a big chunky bagel. You can have classic ham and cheese sandwiched between the bagel halves, or melt the cheese on top for a tastier bagel experience.
Pizza Bagel
Almost everyone loves pizza, right? Think about the ingredients that go into making a perfect pizza, and try them out in a bagel. We suggest the following toppings for a fantastic pizza bagel: pepperoni, mozzarella cheese, extra mozzarella cheese, bell peppers, and onions.
You can swap and change the toppings to match your favourite pizzas. Whether you’re a ham and pineapple enthusiast or a BBQ chicken lover, get creative with your yummy pizza bagels.
Desperate for a decent pizza joint in Adelaide? We’ve got the article for you.
Burger Bagel
Just as everybody loves pizza, you can’t beat a perfectly-cooked burger. Yet again, the bagel’s versatility comes into play with burger bagels. Simply stuff your burger between the bagel halves with lashings of cheese, gherkins, burger sauce and any other burger-based fillings that come to mind.
Do you consider yourself a burger expert? Have you tried all of these burger spots in Sydney?
Turkey & Swiss Cheese Bagel
For a lighter and healthier lunch, turkey and Swiss cheese paired together are classic bagel toppings that certainly won’t disappoint. To make this delicious snack even healthier, choose lean turkey slices and low-fat cheese.
The chewy bagel, fresh turkey, and yummy Swiss come together perfectly in this healthy-choice bagel. Adding some mustard or light mayo adds some more flavour to the package.
With 3 outlets in Melbourne, Mile End Bagels are worth a visit if you’re in the area.
Tuna Salad
Another healthy bagel option to add to the list of best bagel toppings is tuna salad. Tuna salad is pretty delicious on its own, with tasty tuna chunks, light, and crisp salad, and creamy mayonnaise dressing working together in perfect harmony.
Putting two delicious bagel halves around your tuna salad adds some fantastic flavour to your tuna salad.
Top Tip: To change things up a bit, ditch the tomato, cucumber & lettuce and add layer of Swiss cheese. Then pop is either under the grill, or in a sandwich press. Viola! You now have a Tuna Melt Bagel.
One of the most popular toasted sandwich makers on the market is the Panini Press by Cuisinart. Not only can you toast up all kinds of sandwiches in this beauty, you can also grill everything from burgers to chicken breasts.
Egg Salad
More healthy bagel toppings. Egg salad is an excellent topping choice. Simply cook some hard boiled eggs and either slice or mash them, add some mayonnaise dressing and some crunchy lettuce to the mix and bam! You have a perfect bagel for lunch or breakfast.
This is also a great use of Leftover Egg Yolks. For more egg yolk recipes, see here.
Tandoori Chicken & Mango
This is a slightly more complex bagel topping, as to make it from scratch you’ll need to follow a tandoori chicken recipe. You can buy tandoori chicken ready-made at supermarkets, which may be best if you’re short on time.
However, putting the extra effort into making this fresh will reward you with a delicious flavour concoction – savoury tandoori and sweet mango are the perfect bagel topping combination for all bagel enthusiasts.
Indian cuisine is one of my favourites. Here are some of the Best Indian Restaurants in Melbourne.
Nutella & Strawberries
Don’t play safe with your bagel toppings. Good sweet and see how you like it.
If you’ve not combined Nutella and strawberries before – you’ve not lived. Even better, slam a thick layer of the sweet hazelnut and chocolate paste onto a crunchy toasted bagel half, slice some fresh strawberries to garnish, and make your way to bagel heaven.
Now this one is for all you dessert-for-breakfast fans out there.
For more recipes that are chocaholic-friendly, see here.
Jam Or Marmalade
Classic jam and marmalade. We know its a great match for toast – but what about bagels? Whether you use strawberry or grape jam, or a thick layer of sweet, sticky orange marmalade, your bagel is sure to be incredibly tasty.
To make things even better, combine peanut butter and jam together to make a mouth-watering PB&J bagel.
For the Best Bagels in Melbourne, see here.
Pastrami
Pastrami is another classic bagel topping – it’s salty and smoky taste goes perfectly with a mustard dressing. Often it comes with sauerkraut and cheese – making it a Reuben. Have it for breakfast, lunch, or dinner; either way you’ll have a fantastic bagel experience.
One of the best versions if this king of bagels that we’ve tried recently was at Lawson’s Bagels in Hawthorn (review here.) And admire our glorious photo of our luscious bagel below!
Meatball Bagel
Ok. So we don’t have a recipe for this one. However, we had t the most amazing bagel this week and it was stuffed with homemade meatballs, bechamel sauce, a chunky tomato sauce and fresh basil leaves.
Yes. It was incredibly difficult to eat without wearing half of it. But did we care? Absolutely not! It was a revelation.
Thanks to Bissel B. bagels in Melbourne for introducing us to our new favourite bagel topping.
Final thoughts
Bagels are a fantastic choice of meal or snack. They’re highly versatile in terms of toppings, can be made quickly if you’re short on time, and can be packed easily into a lunchbox to take to work or school.
The variety of delicious toppings you can use on a bagel means you can choose lots of healthy options too, and there are so many choices that you’re bound to find bagel toppings to suit all tastes. Whatever toppings you decide, your bagel is sure to be delicious and satisfying.
This is why I decided to set up my blog, Eatability, to share the best food and drink spots in Australia with as many people as possible. Hi, my name is Dylan Cole, and I moved to Australia five years ago from England, UK.
Through this blog, I will be sharing and recommending some of my favorite places you need to visit, such as where to find the best pizza in Adelaide, and the best bakery in Brisbane. Whatever food you are fancying, I have got you covered!
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