Potato Kugel

Do you have to squeeze excess water out of potatoes and onions like when making latkes?

As I always do, I made this recipe exactly per instructed (I always find it hilarious that people make all manners of substitutions for recipes and then complain when the result is a horrible product!) Here, I found that the salt was way too much -- you could cut the amount in half with no problem. In addition, the baking powder is unnecessary. It doesn't make the kugel airier or rise more than the eggs alone do.

My mother would make the potato kugel in muffin tins so everyone could have plenty of crispy outside. I don't think the baked it for two hours, but, unfortunately, can no longer ask her for cooking times. She also used rendered chicken fat rather than oil, which added a definitely distinctive and delicious flavor.

Can I make this recipe a day in advance?

Do square pans have more corners than rectangular pans?

I made this kugel this past weekend and it was wonderful. The recipe is very similar to making latkes, except that there's no need to squeeze excess water out of the potatoes. Although it looks really runny when filling your dish for baking, it comes out creamy in the center and crispy on top. I did alternate grating potatoes and onions in the cuisinart, the onions help prevent discoloration of the potatoes.

Cooked in muffin tins for 1.25 hours and they were perfect! The few that were left reheated beautifully at 350 later on. A winner!

Put aside all your ideas about what your grandmother's kugel. This is an excellent recipe as written and an elegant side dish to a roast or a stew. I pretty much followed the recipe (I did cover it with tin foil for the last 30 minutes and wouldn't have mentioned it if it weren't for the previous comment).. I grated the potatoes and onion in my Cuisinart, which I don't do for latkes, but it worked perfectly here, no extra squeezing or draining was necessary. Delicous.

My mother used the same mixture for potato kugel and potato latkes. She never used flour, but rather used some dry breadcrumbs, often from stale challah. Flour made it gluey. For the kugel, she would heat vegetable oil in a large pyrex pan in the oven and pour the mixture into it when it was hot. (Like people do when making Yorkshire pudding, but with less oil.) She used two rectangular pans but we all fought over the crunchy corners, so she began making kugel in square pans - more corners.

In the grated versus shredded debate, I'm firmly in the grated camp. My family came from a part of Galicia, and when making both latkes and kugel the potatoes are grated, which also requires the removal of most of the liquid (and starch) from the potato mush. My grandmother also used sour salt (citric acid crystals) instead of lemon juice or vinegar in all recipes. Also, instead of flour, we use matzoh meal to thicken the batter up a bit. The grating and matzoh result in a nicer texture.

I like the recipe because it very closely resembles the latke recipe I use, except the flour substitutes for matzo meal. This is far easier than standing at the stove making latkes. The recipe is SO easy and I cooked it for 1-1/2 hours rather than 2 as the writer suggests. It keeps well in the fridge and travels to work for lunches nicely. Last night I ate it topped with creme fraiche and smoked salmon as a main course.

You grate the potatoes, and immediately place in a bowl of cold water mixed with a tablespoon of lemon juice or vinegar.

Once all the potatoes are grated, drain, and press out remaining liquid in a tea towel.

No gray!

I used potato starch instead of flour and chicken fat instead of vegetable oil

If you alternate grating the potatoes and the onions the potatoes don't brown. I don't know why it irks but it does.

My technique for both latkes and kugel is to use medium Cuisinart grating disk on potatoes and onions, alternating them. Then return the mixture in batches to the processor bowl and pulse a few times with the cutting blade. This results in a perfect texture. Then drain off the excess water, add the eggs, matzo meal, s&p.