No Yolk Savory Noodle Kugel

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This savory kugel is made with brown butter, caraway seed, honey, sour cream, and 'no yolk' egg noodles for some SERIOUS pantry comfort 101.

Prep Time1

Cook Time35

Total Time1 35

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: Jewish

Servings: servings as a side dish

Author: Jenny DeRemer

Cost: $0.49 per serving

Equipment

8-inch round or elongated casserole dish
Sauté pan
small saucepan
pastry brush
aluminum foil

Ingredients

1 large garlic bulb
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion rough chopped
7 tablespoons unsalted butter divided
½ teaspoon Kosher salt or to taste
½ teaspoon black pepper or to taste
½ teaspoon nutmeg freshly ground; or to taste
½ to 1 full teaspoon caraway seeds whole or crushed; I tend to go heavy on the caraway because I love the combination caraway with brown butter, crushing half the seeds and leaving the other half whole
2 cups dry no yolk egg noodles
1 tablespoon raw honey
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
¼ cup sour cream full fat
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar preferably with Mother
½ teaspoon sweet or hot Hungarian paprika or a combination of both

Instructions

roast and cool the garlic

1 hour before you plan to begin the kugel, preheat your oven to 375°F. Use a sharp kitchen knife to carefully chop the head of garlic in half. Place the bottom of the head in the middle of a double layer of aluminum foil. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons of olive oil, replace the top of the head, and wrap the garlic in the foil tightly. Place on an oven-safe baking sheet and roast center position for 35 minutes. Turn off the heat but do not remove from the oven for 15 minutes more. Once removed, carefully unwrap the garlic and separate the halves to allow them to cool. Squeeze the bulbs into a small bowl and set aside.

assemble the kugel

In a small saucepan, brown 6 tablespoons of the butter. As always, take your time with this step; it can be lengthy, but it MAKES OR BREAKS the recipe. If you have never browned butter, refer to my notes in the post above 'How to Properly Brown Butter.'
Once the butter is perfectly golden and smells nutty, remove it from the heat. Use a tablespoon measuring spoon to immediately reserve 3 tablespoons of the brown butter to a small bowl, 2 tablespoons set aside in a separate small bowl with the paprika(s), and the remaining tablespoon brushed over the bottom and sides of small round casserole dish. ProTip: I waste nothing, and that especially goes for brown butter. Use a rubber spatula to scrape whatever butter remains in the saucepan into the small bowl containing the 3 tablespoons. The flavor is so intense that to leave any behind is to lose out on the finished dish.
Add equal parts olive oil and salt (about a teaspoon-ish each) to a large pot and fill it with enough water to cook the pasta submerged. Bring to a boil and cook the noodles according to package directions. Drain and empty into a large mixing bowl and set aside. If you have turned your oven off from when you roasted the garlic, once again preheat to 375°F.
Place the remaining tablespoon of butter in a sauté pan over medium heat. Add the onion and gently sauté until translucent, about 5 to 8 minutes. As the onions begin to break down, add Kosher salt, black pepper, freshly ground nutmeg, and the caraway seed. Reduce the heat if the onions appear to be browning, as you merely want them translucent to lightly golden at most. Remove the sauté pan from the heat. Add into the onion mixture, the 3 tablespoons of reserved brown butter and stir well.
To the bowl with the cooked egg noodles, add the onion mixture along with some honey, roasted garlic cloves, Dijon, cider vinegar, and sour cream. Stir well to combine before scraping into the prepared baking dish.
Whisk the reserved 2 tablespoons of brown butter with sweet, hot, or a combination of both paprikas and drizzle back and forth atop the kugel. I also like to sprinkle a bit of additional paprika at this point, however it is not required.
Bake the kugel in center position for 35 to 45 minutes. I begin testing at 35 and find I rarely go beyond this to prevent the kugel from drying out.

Notes

Please Note that table salt and iodized salt are NOT substitutions for Kosher salt. Do not use table salt or iodized salt in any of the recipes you find on Not Entirely Average UNLESS specified otherwise.

“Mother” in Apple Cider Vinegar refers to the cloud of yeast and bacteria you might see in the bottom of the bottle. Mother is a probiotic. Its presence in the bottle (which requires shaking before use) ensures the vinegar you are consuming has not been pasteurized (thereby erasing any and all of its good properties). Cider vinegar with Mother is a natural and very beneficial ingredient whenever you can use it. I buy Bragg's brand apple cider vinegar exclusively.

Refrigerate Leftovers in an airtight container up to 3 days. To Reheat gently sauté in a pan atop the stove or microwave on medium power in 1-minute increments.

Nutrition