I can remember passing through the Hasidic neighborhood of Mea She’arim in Jerusalem as a teenager and first seeing the mahogany-brown wedges of Yerushalmi (Jerusalem) kugel. Curious, I bought a slice of the still-warm Shabbat delicacy, and was hooked. Unlike any noodle pudding I had tasted before, this one featured a sophisticated interplay of sweetness and peppery bite, with a subtle toasty flavor thrown in for good measure.
The taste is surprisingly easy to recreate at home; all you need is a sure hand and the confidence to make a quick caramel of oil and sugar. Just when you think you’ve got your sugar dark enough, cook it a minute longer — you’ll see and taste the difference in the results. If you burn the caramel, start over — the second time’s often the charm.
Although many American adaptations call for baking the kugel in a regular casserole dish, I prefer to bake mine in a soup pot or Dutch oven with less surface area, which creates a higher, denser end result.
Yerushalmi Kugel
Peppery and sweet, this noodle kugel ups the ante.
- Total Time: 2 hours 45 minutes
- Yield: Serves 10-12
Ingredients
- 1 cup sugar
- ½ cup canola oil
- 1 (16 oz) package thin egg noodles
- 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 1 ½ tsp kosher salt
- 6 eggs, beaten
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Cook noodles according to package directions; rinse and drain well.
- In a heavy skillet, combine oil and sugar over medium heat. Cook, stirring constantly, until sugar is very dark but not burnt, about 11-12 minutes. Remove from heat.
- In a large bowl, quickly combine drained noodles and caramelized sugar. Stir to incorporate. Let cool at least 10 minutes.
- Add eggs, salt, and pepper and stir to combine.
- Grease the bottom and sides of a 6-quart soup pot or Dutch oven and pour noodle mixture into pot. Do not cover pot. Bake for 2 hours, or until kugel is very dark brown and top is crusty.
- Prep Time: 45 minutes
- Cook Time: 2 hours
- Category: Side Dish
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Israeli
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