Yerushalmi kugel gets its name from the city where it is most popular, Jerusalem. You cannot walk in the Machaneh Yehuda Shuk (market) on a Thursday or Friday without seeing humongous pots of this sweet and peppery noodle kugel and there is nothing quite like it.
Yerushalmi Kugel
Servings
8 Servings
Ingredients
- 12 ounce package extra-fine noodles
- ⅔ cup sugar + 3 tablespoons sugar
- ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 5 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 2 teaspoons black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven 350.
- Cook noodles according to package directions.
- Return the pot to a burner and pour ⅔ cup sugar in pot and top with oil, without mixing.
- Cook on medium-high heat until it reaches an amber brown color and is bubbly. (Use a candy thermometer and wait until temperature reaches 320F)
- Working very quickly, pour noodles back into the pot with sugar and oil. Mixing vigorously, add eggs, additional 3 tablespoons sugar, salt, and pepper.
- Bake kugel mixture for 30 minutes or transfer into aluminum pot, 9×13 baking pan or bundt pan and bake.
- Invert, slice and serve with Israeli pickles.
Thanks!
The originators of this recipe made a heimishe (home-style) Yerushalmi Kugel and didn’t use fancy-dancy olive oil but vegetable oil. Canola is great as it’s a light oil. This kugel would be served at a Shabbat Kiddush and especially with cholent (meat stew that was left on the blech (a sheet of tin covering the burner with a low flame that was left on for all of Shabbat)
By the time you are adding the eggs it shouldn’t be quite so hot and you should mix as you are adding as well so there is no time for them to cook too early.
Thank you for the great recipe!
https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/e268fe9f9869008c6c099f34f943f6d12ee9c6117c2dee271b57ccb6601eac54.jpg
shouldn’t i wait before I add the eggs until the noodle/sugar/oil mix has cooled down a bit (in order not to cook the eggs)?
TIA!
I wish I knew. Now you are making me want to find out!
Who has the best Yerushalmi kugel in Machane Yehuda
Do you think this would turn out as well using Kosher for Passover noodles?
It seems as though you had the right idea but had some technical troubles. The pan you used might be an old favorite, but a nonstick pan is dark in color and you cannot see the color of the sugar changing as it darkens while cooking. The scratches also do not help as everything sticks and may not be food safe.
The noodles need to be warm and not in a mass, so the timing should be a bit better.
Once you master the timing and use a different pan….you GOT THIS!
I made this delicious Kugel, but mine didn’t rise. Did I do something wrong? It flopped out when I inverted it. I think the caramelizing of the sugar is much harder than it looks. Should it be only a stainless steel pot? Mine was an old nonstick pot with scratches in the bottom. I also didn’t have a candy thermometer handy and used an instant read. The first batch burnt fast. I threw that away and made another. Also, while all of that was happening, the noodles got quite solid and it was difficult to get them to open up. Any advice would be great. I am a very experienced cook and not much fazes me, but this one threw me for a loop. I would attempt to do this long in advance of a big party to have time to practice it and get it right. The flavors are good though!
Yes, you can fully cook it and freeze it.
Jamie, I always wanted to make this… can it be frozen? If so, assembled or fully cooked. Tysm.
not for this recipe! the sugar needs to caramelize and reach 350F. I am not sure substitutes should be brought to that temperature or will taste good at that high of a temperature.
Thank you
Can I use a sugar substitute?
There is no butter in this recipe, but if you would like to use vegetable oil in place of olive oil, it should be fine, we just love the healthfulness of olive oil.
Sorry i omitted it is for the Jerusalem Kugel! See below
Can i substitute veg. oil for the butter in this recipe, if so how much.
Thanks