Crispy Potato Kugel Recipe (2024)

Make this delicious crispy potato kugel recipe that has that gorgeous golden crust on the outside but is creamy inside! When you’re done, try a vegetable kugel recipe for Passover – or year round! This post contains affiliate links.

I’m an absolute potato kugel-holic and have fixed and tweaked my recipe over the years to make it just right.

So what does just right mean?

How to make a deliciously crispy potato kugel recipe

The trick to a perfect potato kugel is to get that crispy fried-tasting crust, with a perfect creamy inside.

The crispy outside

The trick to the crust is both the high cooking temperatures and the oil in the recipe (I don’t skimp – though lately I do use healthier oils). Bake it in a glass dish to get a crust all around. I don’t find that aluminum pans form the same kind of crust on the sides. To serve immediately, I usually use oven-to-tableware and to freeze or serve later, I use disposable pans.

Of course, the crispy potato kugel recipe is best – and crispiest – fresh out of the oven. When I do make it in advance, I always bake a little extra – whether it’s a loaf pan or a 1lb single serving pan – to eat fresh!

The creamy inside

Another key feature of the best potato kugel recipes is a creamy, smooth inside. Yum!

I have two tricks for this:

1. Use Yukon Gold (yellow potatoes!) More on that soon, but those have the best, smoothest, creamiest texture.
2. Add a zucchini. Not only does this make it less carb-heavy and improve the weight of the kugel, it actually really improves the texture. And it even improves the flavor!

Which food processor should you use for this potato kugel recipe?

Here’s where all the hand-graters will chime in: I just grate it by hand!

That is totally fine! And it might actually get you the best texture. For those of us who gotta use the machine, here’s my advice.
A cheap food processor will work for making this crispy potato kugel recipe. What you are missing on a cheap one is a finer shredding blade. The standard one is a larger shred and what I use.

Some people use the S blade. I can’t stand the texture on that. Trust me, I’ve tried. So I don’t use it. However, a finer shred would possibly get you a better texture.

The biggest issue with cheap food processors is that they often miss pieces. My old one that I used for years didn’t have that issue. But then it broke… I was annoyed that it had pretty much doubled in price since I originally purchased it.

So I replaced it with this one. This one does the job, but it misses pieces.

Both of these options require you to fill the food processor twice when making this crispy potato kugel recipe.

For my next one, I plan to get a good quality one, rather than going as cheap as possible. I hope to buy a much larger capacity one with a finer shredding blade. I haven’t tried it but this one looks about right based on reviews, capacity, and accessories.

If you’re using a cheap food processor to make potato kugel make sure you don’t push to hard and fast with the pusher tool. You’ll have more large/missed pieces that way. Try to let it feed itself, and only push when it gets stuck.

Why should you use yellow potatoes in potato kugel?

There are a few reasons I use yellow (Yukon Gold) potatoes.

First of all, since the price of potatoes has gone up, it’s comparatively priced when I purchase the 10 lb bags from Costco.

Second, you don’t need to peel them! What a game changer! I just scrub them in my sink with a vegetable scrub brush and soap – yes, the same soap that I use for my dishes. Just wash it off well. Not only does this save time, but it makes less mess, allows you to do it earlier and not worry about it sitting, and it adds nutrition! Potato skins have vitamins B, C, iron, calcium, potassium, about 2 grams of fiber per oz, and other nutrients.

They also don’t brown as quickly.

The texture, as I mentioned is improved with the creamier texture of yellow potatoes.

Can you freeze potato kugel?

The short answer: yes! Since a large batch is too much for my family, I usually split the batch into two or three to freeze.

How to freeze potato kugel

You can par bake it and then freeze, but I usually bake fully. I just try not to get the crust to be too thick – I wait until it’s just golden.

Freeze in the pan, covered tightly with foil. Place it in a labeled Ziploc bag (it’s even better if you double bag it!) The cool thing is that the pans will stack nicely, allowing you to fit a lot into less freezer space.

How to defrost a crispy potato kugel

Most instructions that you’ll find for defrosting potato kugel will be overnight-style with a soft, mushy top. That’s one way to do it – and it usually involved adding some hot water, covering your kugel, and going low-and-slow in the oven.

I try to re-crisp it as much as possible. It’ll never REALLY be the same, but this method works best to try to recreate the fresh variation.

Remove it from the freezer and add hot water on top. I do a splash enough to cover the kugel and fall off the sides – not too much. Bake uncovered at 350 until heated through. You can also spray the top with oil and give it a few minutes on high (425) to recrunchify it but it’s a bit of a to-do for a not-quite-there result.

The crispy potato kugel recipe

You can print this at the end of the post, but just in case something happens to the recipe card (it’s an external plugin) I like to pop the recipe here too.

Ingredients

• 5 lb bag (12-15 medium-ish) Yukon Gold (or other yellow) potatoes, peel on and scrubbed clean if possible
• 1 med zucchini – peel on if possible
• 1 lg onion
• 1 T salt
• A few grinds ( or1 t) black pepper
• 8 eggs
• 2/3 cup neutral oil – vegetable, Canola, or light olive oil for a healthier option

Equipment

• Vegetable scrub brush OR
• Good potato peeler
• Paring knife
• Food processor with shredding blade
• Large mixing bowl
• Large, strong mixing spoon or spatula

Instructions

1. Peel or scrub your potatoes and zucchini and peel your onion.
2. Cut them to fit through the processor chute and run them through. Add them to a large bowl.
3. Preheat oven to 425 F (I do it at this stage – the timing seems right).
4. Pour off water that drained off naturally – I don’t squeeze or strain. I just remove what came off on its own and is easy to pour out.
5. Add your seasoning, eggs, and oil. Mix well using a large, strong spoon or spatula, or your hands (rings removed).
6. Add to pans. This can make a little more than a 9×13 pan, or a mix of smaller pan sizes. A lot depends on size of your zucchini and onion. This batch made 2x 2.25 lb rectangle pans and one 8×8 square pan.
7. Bake for an hour-2 hours depending on kugel size, depth, oven. I recommend checking after an hour to see where you’re holding, and then adding 15 min- half hour increments as needed. The top should be golden brown.

Got a favorite crispy potato kugel recipe? Got variations to add? Comment below!

Yield: 18-20 Servings

Best Potato Kugel Recipe

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour 30 minutes

Total Time: 2 hours

This delicious kugel is the best potato kugel recipe I have yet to taste! While not exactly wholesome, it's got a bit of a healthier twist that only improves the flavor and texture. It's gluten free and Kosher for Passover with no grain fillers added.

Ingredients

• 5 lb bag (12-15 medium-ish) Yukon Gold (or other yellow) potatoes, peel on and scrubbed clean if possible
• 1 med zucchini - peel on if possible
• 1 lg onion
• 1 T salt
• A few grinds ( or1 t) black pepper
• 8 eggs
• 2/3 cup neutral oil - vegetable, Canola, or light olive oil for a healthier option

Equipment

• Vegetable scrub brush OR
• Good potato peeler
• Paring knife
• Food processor with shredding blade
• Large mixing bowl
• Large, strong mixing spoon or spatula

Instructions

1. Peel or scrub your potatoes and zucchini and peel your onion.
2. Cut them to fit through the processor chute and run them through. Add them to a large bowl.
3. Preheat oven to 425 F (I do it at this stage - the timing seems right).
4. Pour off water that drained off naturally - I don't squeeze or strain. I just remove what came off on its own and is easy to pour out.
5. Add your seasoning, eggs, and oil. Mix well using a large, strong spoon or spatula, or your hands (rings removed).
6. Add to pans. This can make a little more than a 9x13 pan, or a mix of smaller pan sizes. A lot depends on size of your zucchini and onion. This batch made 2x 2.25 lb rectangle pans and one 8x8 square pan.
7. Bake for an hour-2 hours depending on kugel size, depth, oven. I recommend checking after an hour to see where you're holding, and then adding 15 min- half hour increments as needed. The top should be golden brown.

Notes

Freezing and Defrosting:

Freeze in the pan, covered tightly with foil. Place it in a labeled Ziploc bag (it's even better if you double bag it!)

Remove it from the freezer and add hot water on top. I do a splash enough to cover the kugel and fall off the sides - not too much. Bake uncovered at 350 until heated through.

You can also spray the top with oil and give it a few minutes on high (425) to crisp it up.

Slightly healthier options:

Potatoes - Yellow potatoes give a good texture and allow you to use the peels, which are packed with vitamins, fiber, and nutrients. You can use peeled potatoes and Idaho potatoes as well.

Zucchini - While you can totally omit this, it really helps to improve the texture, and gives it a slightly healthier spin.

Oil - For years, I made it with Canola or vegetable oil. Recently I've been more careful with my cholesterol and started using light olive oil. I can't tell the difference...

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