The Best Way to Slice a Bagel, According to Ina Garten

Bagels

Surprisingly, there is a significant amount of controversy surrounding the "correct" way to slice a bagel. There’s the simple two-step method, in which you lay the bagel flat and slice it parallel to the cutting surface using a serrated knife, or you put it on the side and cut all the way down. There’s also the scoop method, where after slicing the bagel in half, you use your fingers to pull out some of the interior of the bagel either for fewer carbs or more room for toppings.

And now Ina Garten, of all people, has weighed in with a third bagel-slicing option, which has a lot of people talking online. Here's what you need to know about how the Barefoot Contessa likes to make her bagels.

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How Ina Garten Slices Her Bagels

The Food Network recently shared an old clip from an episode of The Barefoot Contessa, in which Garten is making a couple of bagel sandwiches. The caption reads: “Can you believe how Ina cuts her bagels?!” And you know what? We kinda can't!

Garten begins the video explaining to viewers that she prefers to cut her bagels into thirds, and then proceeds to make two horizontal cuts through a bagel, creating 3 equally sized bagel rounds. Okay...

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Why Ina Garten Slices Her Bagels in Thirds

“Instead of having a big thick bagel, I like to cut it in thirds,” Ina explains. “So instead you have a nice little sandwich,” she says before concluding, “I think it tastes better.”

At a glance, it seems as though Garten is preparing some sort of triple-decker bagel sandwich, which commenters immediately hopped on, of course.

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“Big Mac bagel,” replied one quick-witted viewer. Another chimed in to explicitly express their disdain for Garten's method, wishing anyone “straight to jail with that third piece.”

But after watching the video a few times and sitting with a bit, we see what Ina's up to. By making two slices in each bagel she turns two bagels into three thin sandwiches, which gives you a more equal filling-to-bagel ratio and also helps you stretch your grocery budget. Is it unconventional? Sure, but we're willing to give it a try the next time we make a bagel sandwich because Ina's never steered us wrong before.

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