Laura's Creamy Vegan Noodle Kugel Recipe • Jewish Food Hero (2024)

FAQs

Why is kugel a Jewish food? ›

And then I read in The Jewish Kitchen: Recipes and Stories from Around the World of a Hasidic rabbi, Pinchas of Koretz (in Galicia), who claimed that lokshen kugel itself symbolizes Jewish unity, since the noodles are all tangled together and are really inseparable, just like the unified Jewish people.

A combination of noodles, eggs, cream cheese and more, kugel is a hallmark holiday food and has been passed down from my grandmother, to my father and then to my mother. Thanksgiving and Rosh Hashanah simply are not the holidays without homemade kugel.

Kugel is traditionally served as a side dish alongside something meaty like brisket or roast chicken. In this case it would normally be served warm, but it can also be refrigerated and eaten cold the next day. Sweeter versions can also be eaten hot or cold, and taste great with fresh cream or vanilla ice cream.

Noodle (aka lokshen or frimsel) kugel has been around since the 1500s when Jews traveling from Italy to the France-Germany region brought noodles with them. But, around 200 years later, the Tatars (a Turkish-speaking people from West-Central Russia) brought noodles from Asia to Slovakia in Eastern Europe.

Kugel (Yiddish: קוגל kugl, pronounced [ˈkʊɡl̩]) is a baked casserole, most commonly made from lokshen (לאָקשן קוגל lokshen kugel) or potato. It is a traditional Ashkenazi Jewish dish, often served on Shabbos and Jewish holidays. American Jews also serve it for Thanksgiving dinner.

Jewish. Among religiously observant Jews, gefilte fish has become a traditional Shabbat food to avoid borer, which is one of the 39 activities prohibited on Shabbat outlined in the Shulchan Aruch.

There are many kinds that you can make kosher for passover. As long as they do not contain flour, or other chametz. You can make potato kugel, other vegetable kugels, apple kugel and matzah kugel that are ok for Passover.

Make Sure to Cool Your Kugel

Once it's baked, a kugel needs to cool, otherwise it will fall apart when slicing. Give it at least an hour to cool and set up, then slice and serve it warm or at room temperature.

The best side dishes to serve with kugel are Jewish brisket, cholent, shakshuka, Caesar salad, chicken soup, gefilte fish, zucchini fritters, applesauce, cucumber salad, pickled beets, tzatziki sauce, potato latkes, roast vegetables, matzo ball soup, coleslaw.

Potato kugel keeps well in the refrigerator for four to five days, as long as it's covered. You can eat a cold slice right out of the fridge, or reheat it in a 350 F oven, uncovered so the top can crisp, until hot. Kugel will also freeze well.

When should I eat noodle Kugel? ›

Noodle kugel is one of those hearty casseroles you'll want to dive into any time of day. One of many styles of kugel, a baked pudding or casserole in the Ashkenazi Jewish tradition, sweet noodle kugel is typically the one seen most often on the table during weekly Shabbat or holidays like Rosh Hashanah or Shavuot.

Wrap the kugel very well in storage wrap and aluminum foil. It can be frozen for up to two months.

Noodle kugel (לאָקשן קוגל lokshen kugel, pronounced [ˈkʊɡl̩]), also known as lokshen kugel or kigel, is an Ashkenazi Jewish casserole that is traditionally served as a side dish and popular variety of kugel made with lokshen noodles and either a variety of dairy or pareve ingredients, often served on Shabbat and Jewish ...

Rice kugels were invented in the 16th century thanks to Ottoman influences, and the popular Polish potato kugel showed up in the nineteenth century. Since the kugel was born out of need for a warm dish on Shabbat, when cooking is forbidden, it was prepared overnight in a communal oven.

The kugel was born in Eastern Europe as a leftover bread pastry with fat and eggs and only eight centuries ago evolved into the lokshen (noodle) kugel we know today. Rice kugels were invented in the 16th century thanks to Ottoman influences, and the popular Polish potato kugel showed up in the nineteenth century.

Thus, we have two remembrances of the manna during the Shabbat meal. One is the two loaves of challah that correspond to the double portion of manna we received on Fridays during our sojourn in the desert, and the other is the kugel, which corresponds to the manna we will eat after Moshiach comes.

Some also say that the tangled pasta of the noodle kugel specifically has been said to be a symbol of Jewish unity – from the Ashkenazi to the Mizrahi.