Kugel: Experience Many Varieties at Hanukkah Nosh-Down

By Tamara Palmer Thu., Nov. 29 2012 at 1:00 PM

Categories: Cooking Competitions, Events, Palmer

Flickr/worldtotable

Noodle kugel.

1st Annual Kugel Nosh-Down

Where: Congregation Sha'ar Zahav, 290 Dolores (at 16th St.), 861-6932
When: Sun., Dec. 9, 3-5 p.m.
Cost: $25 ($15 for children under 13); purchase in advance via Brown Paper Tickets

The rundown: A festive celebration of the first night of Hanukkah includes a menorah lighting ceremony as well as an opportunity to sample different takes on kugel to crown a kugel king or queen. (Well, not formal royalty, just the best of the bunch.)

What will keep this event interesting is the idea that there are seemingly infinite takes on kugel. People can seem to agree that kugel is a baked casserole dish, but it can be made with noodles or potatoes and take on a savory or a sweet bent, which allows for a wide lane of interpretation. At Miller's East Coast Deli, for example, kugel is made with noodles, eggs, cream, raisins, apricots, and apples, while Wise Sons Deli flirts with noodle and potato varieties alike.

But kugel is not a dish to be found in city limits in abundant form, whatever the form may be, making this competition a novel consideration for the holidays. Proceeds benefit the Beit Sefer Phyllis Mintzer, the Congregation's K-8 Shabbat and Hebrew school.

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