Kugel, an Ashkenazi dish, seems to be ever-present at Jewish holidays and events. It can be sweet or savory, dairy or pareve, and of course have its individual tweaks, but kugel, at it’s heart, is just a baked casserole composed of a starch (typically noodles or potato), eggs, and a fat.

Pronounced either kuh-gull or koo-gull, this Yiddish name is the German word for “sphere,” and reflects kugel’s humble and very German origins. German Jews started adding a dough of …

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Kugel, an Ashkenazi dish, seems to be ever-present at Jewish holidays and events. It can be sweet or savory, dairy or pareve, and of course have its individual tweaks, but kugel, at it’s heart, is just a baked casserole composed of a starch (typically noodles or potato), eggs, and a fat.

Pronounced either kuh-gull or koo-gull, this Yiddish name is the German word for “sphere,” and reflects kugel’s humble and very German origins. German Jews started adding a dough of mostly flour and water to the center of cholent and other long-cooking stews, and then later emulated their non-Jewish neighbors who steamed such bread dumplings in a round clay pot called a kugeltopf that was placed inside of the larger pot on top of the stew.

Today, kugels are typically baked alone in square or rectangular pans, and then cut into individual portions. The noodle version is frequently called a “noodle pudding,” which, again, is a reference to its steamed predecessors. Adding eggs, milk, and cheese creates a custard around the noodles and produces a deliciously decadent dish, albeit an immediate elevation in your cholesterol (and possibly confused frightened faces amongst non-Jews: sugary creamy noodles? for dinner?!). This sweet version may also have raisins, apple, or pineapple, depending on how one feels about hot fruit (another contentious point for some, Jews and non-Jews alike).
http://www.myjewishlearning.com/the-nosher/what-is-kugel/

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