10 Tips For The Absolute Best Noodle Kugel

Noodle kugel is among the most beloved Jewish holiday dishes. It can range from sweet to savory, often falling somewhere in the middle. And if you love pasta, casseroles, or just carbs in general, it's hard to beat the joy of slicing into that first corner piece of noodle kugel. Whether you grew up with the dish or are interested in making it for the very first time, it will make for a flavorful addition to your holiday table (or, really, your table at any time of the year).

We've collected some of the best tips for ensuring you're making the best possible noodle kugel you can cook. By taking just a few extra steps, you can ensure your kugel will be the talk of the table. From sweet, dessert-like kugels to savory side dishes you can pair with a chunk of protein, your noodle kugel is going to taste better than ever.

One of the simplest ways to upgrade your noodle kugel is to incorporate brown butter into the recipe. You may think this seems like a meaningless swap — after all, what difference can butter really make? But when you taste a piece of kugel made with brown butter, you'll understand what all the hype is about. Brown butter gives the dish an added richness, nuttiness, and complexity that's hard to capture any other way.

Luckily, making brown butter for your kugel recipe is very simple, even if you're not necessarily a prolific home cook. You'll just put your butter in a pan, heating it evenly on low. Soon, your butter will melt — but don't stop there. Keep letting it cook, stirring constantly, for about five minutes or until it takes on a beautiful golden brown color. Then, stir it into your casserole before putting it all in the oven, and you'll have an upgraded kugel without putting in a ton of extra work.

Check out different noodle kugel recipes online, and you'll probably notice that many of them call for sweet ingredients while others call for savory ones. That means the flavor profile of one noodle kugel can differ drastically from the next. But if you can't choose whether you want to capture those sweet or savory flavors, we have a solution for you: Try making a savory-sweet noodle kugel with both pumpkin spice and bacon.

Sure, it may not be the most traditional kugel out there, but it's one that marries the saltiness of bacon with the sweetness of baking spices and brown sugar. Bacon, with its signature fattiness, elevates the dish into the most decadent version of itself, but the brown sugar balances things out, ensuring that the salty notes are tempered by some sweetness. Add in the pumpkin spice mix, and you'll have a cold-weather casserole that's sure to please sweet and savory kugel lovers alike.

Every noodle kugel recipe is different, but you may notice some common themes between different recipes. One of those themes is a creamy element, and another is an acidic element. Creamy ingredients can add body and texture to the dish, while acidic ingredients give your dish that pop of mouthwatering flavor that makes a casserole seriously shine. And in many recipes, sour cream represents both of those elements. Its bright flavor and creamy texture join forces to make for the perfect addition to a top-notch noodle kugel.

But you don't have to use sour cream every time you make a noodle kugel. If you're interested in switching things up, you may want to employ labneh instead. Like sour cream, labneh boasts an acidic brightness that can make a sweet or savory kugel shine. And since it's so thick and rich, it can give your casserole more body and heft, making it feel more satisfying and filling. Give labneh a try the next time you make kugel.

Sometimes, the holidays call for savory kugel, especially when you want to enjoy it as a side dish next to your salad and main course. But other times, noodle kugel should take on a different role, functioning as a dessert or a sweet breakfast. When you're craving a kugel that fits into the latter category, you might want to try adding creative, sweet ingredients to the mix for a more interesting, flavorful finished product. Some of our favorite ingredients for a sweeter kugel include raisins and cinnamon.

Cinnamon isn't sweet on its own, but it's often used in conjunction with other sweet ingredients. It works especially well with noodle kugel, which isn't particularly flavorful without spices. Here, the strong flavor of cinnamon can really shine without overpowering the slightly chewy texture of the egg noodles. Raisins provide both sweetness and an additional chewy element, which can really bring the whole dish together. Consider adding additional baking spices for a more decadent flavor, or try different varieties of dried fruits for a less traditional take on the classic.

Sometimes, cooking tips involve adding some special ingredient you'd never think of on your own or trying out a new technique specific to the recipe you're making. Other times, though, they're reminders to take the steps you should be taking in the kitchen that you may otherwise forget. One very important step you shouldn't miss when you're making noodle kugel is also an incredibly simple one: salting the pasta water.

This may seem like an unnecessary extra step because you're draining the water after you cook your noodles anyway, right? Wrong. In reality, salting your pasta water seasons the pasta itself, leaving you with a more flavorful bite before you even add any sauces or seasonings. This is important for any type of pasta, including the egg noodles for your noodle kugel. You'll probably want to salt your egg noodles whether you're making a sweet or savory kugel dish, but it's especially important if you want to capture more of a savory flavor profile.

There are a myriad of different ways you can add sweetness to your noodle kugel. Some people simply use sugar, while others may choose other sweet ingredients, like applesauce, for example, in their kugel recipes. If you fall into the latter camp, you probably keep a jar of apple sauce on hand when you're preparing to make a kugel for the holidays. In reality, though, you may be better off making your own applesauce from scratch.

Why? Well, first of all, you'll be able to control exactly how you want that apple sauce to taste. If you like a sweeter sauce, then add in plenty of sugar. On the other hand, if you're mostly using it for texture, you can keep the added sugar to a minimum. Plus, when you choose to use homemade applesauce, you know you're getting the freshest kugel possible. Does it require some extra work? Sure. But if you really want to dig into some especially delicious noodle kugel, it may just be worth that extra effort.

There's nothing worse than working hard to cook one of your favorite holiday dishes only to realize that you didn't mix the ingredients well enough. Now, there are chunks of different elements creating weird, unwanted pockets of concentrated flavor and texture in your noodle kugel. Next time, you could just make sure you stir or whisk for longer to ensure all those ingredients get mixed together thoroughly. But if you want to make that task easier on yourself — and avoid the possibility of missing any of those chunky pieces — you may want to use a food processor to combine the wet ingredients.

The ingredients you put in the food processor really depend on what kind of noodle kugel you're making. You may want to combine yogurt, sour cream, and/or cottage cheese, or maybe you're adding in some pureed pumpkin for an unexpected twist. Either way, this method will ensure that all of those wet ingredients come together in one creamy, coherent mixture to make for easier mixing once everything is in the casserole dish together.

We love a sweet noodle kugel from time to time, but when we're serving it as a side dish, we really want to highlight those salty, savory flavors instead of sweet ones. That's why we're such big fans of savory noodle kugel — especially when it's made with cheese. There are countless different types of cheese you could include in your noodle kugel recipe, but the best might just be Gruyere. Gruyere generally has a salty flavor and creamy texture once it's been melted, which makes it an ideal addition to this pasta-based dish. If you want to keep things simple and uncomplicated, opt for a young Gruyere, which is pretty innocuous and easy to eat. But if you're trying to build a more complex, umami flavor profile, go for aged Gruyere instead. It'll have your noodle kugel bursting with an earthy, nutty flavor.

Of course, you shouldn't stop at the Gruyere. You'll also want to incorporate other savory ingredients that can cut through the richness of the cheese. Sharp, fresh ingredients, like chives, can make for a simple but satisfying addition to your savory kugel.

Let's face it: Noodle kugel can be on the heavy, rich side without much acidity or spice. That's fine if you like that flavor profile, but if you're looking for something a bit more interesting, you may want to add a hot sauce like Tabasco to the mix. Tabasco, with its bright acidity and relatively mild spice, makes for a delicious addition to an otherwise standard noodle kugel recipe. That acidity can counteract some of the richness from the creamier ingredients in the mix, resulting in a more balanced casserole. Plus, that extra bit of heat can take a bland pan of noodle kugel and turn it into something all of your guests are vying for at the table.

Of course, you'll want to make sure you add the right amount of Tabasco if you choose to go down this route. For a spicier, more acidic, savory kugel, you can really load up on the hot sauce. For those who prefer a lighter, more mellow flavor, though, just a few drops can make a big difference in the final product.

Onions aren't necessarily a standard addition to noodle kugel, but if you prefer your kugel savory instead of sweet, you may consider adding them to the mix. They can offer a sharp, bold flavor to your casserole if you use them on the rawer end of the spectrum, but if you're looking for more of a sweetly savory flavor, then you can't go wrong with caramelized onions for your noodle kugel. Caramelized onions offer a distinct sweetness and complexity to any dish they're in, and kugel is no exception.

The thing to remember about caramelized onions is the fact that they can take a long time to cook. Therefore, you'll want to get them cooking on the stove well before you put your kugel together. Keep cooking them on low heat until they take on a walnut brown color, then add them to the casserole. You'll never go back to onion-less noodle kugel again.