Noodle Kugel

When Fairlight de Michele was growing up, her Grandma Erna’s noodle kugel graced most holiday tables. But unlike the adults at those family gatherings, Fairlight never loved the dish. Thirty years later, Fairlight, who lives in Oakland, California, wanted to reacquaint herself with that kugel, which she described as “a dish of comfort.” Her grandmother was born in Poland and survived Auschwitz during World War II. After the war, she moved to the United States, bringing her lokshen (noodle) kugel with her. When Fairlight discovered that family members no longer had the recipe—her cousin lost it at some point—she experimented with a few versions she found online, but they didn’t work. They were too dry, the noodles weren’t right or the kugel was overbaked. So she asked Milk Street to replicate the kugel of her childhood. Our research revealed that kugels are made with three basic ingredients: eggs, fat and starch. Beyond that, there are countless versions of this pudding-like casserole, which has deep roots in Eastern Europe. Fairlight gave us some clues about the flavor profile. She recalled that Erna’s kugel was “not exactly sweet, not exactly savory, somewhere in the middle.” Erna’s also included cinnamon and golden raisins, so we added those along with a dash of nutmeg. We found that three types of dairy—cream cheese, cottage cheese and sour cream—along with a little butter, delivered the richness and creaminess that Fairlight described as being like “a noodle bread pudding.” Keep in mind the noodles will continue to cook as the kugel bakes, so boil them until just shy of al dente rather than completely tender.