Help PKL- Jalapeño Potato Kugel???

amother

Thu, Feb 02 2023, 12:09 am

Wow! I'm happy for you that you got it right on the first try!
You always use so much oil? I use 3/4 of a cup for 5 lbs (or 9x13.) Or was that a typo?

Unfortunately, my potatoes didn't arrive in my order tonight. (I THOUGHT it was in my order, but then I checked again and it wasn't.) So basicallyy I got everything except for the one thing I really needed. So I couldnt try it out today but plan to fo it first thing tomorrow.

amother

Lime

Thu, Feb 02 2023, 12:18 am

amother OP wrote:

I do in a 9X13
11 potatoes ( 6 with kugel blade, 5 with stringy blade)
10 eggs
1 1/12 cups oil
2 cups water
1 1/2 TBS salt
black pepper
so I did for 5X7 1 cup and a little more.
Oil makes the kugel yummy!!!

Good luck on yours tomorrow!!

amother

Thu, Feb 02 2023, 1:03 pm

Ok, my kugels are in the oven!
Based on what I read here and elsewhere, basically there are two methods. One which uses raw jalapeño and one which uses cooked jalapeño. Both methods have added garlic.

So I did two recipes.
I used my regular recipe both times as a base.
In one, I added raw jalapeño and garlic cubes, processed it with the eggs, and then added this mixture to the grated potatoes.
To the second, I added diced jalapenos with minced garlic cubes, which were sauteed in olive oil. I added this to the batter at the end.

I made several small kugels of each type and labeled them. This way I can have several taste testers.

I hope all this effort results in something good!

amother

Thu, Feb 02 2023, 1:43 pm

Ok, here are my preliminary results:

I tried them both.
I don't think the taste is all that different, just there is a strong garlicky flavor. If I didn't know there was jalapeño, I don't think I would have been able to guess.
I put in 4 jalapeños per kugel (5 lbs of potatoes). I took the seeds out, but didn't remove all the veins, just some. And I put in about 10 garlic cubes.
Of the two, I liked the one with the sauteed jalapeños better.

But I think I prefer my regular potato kugel. It was good, I definitely enjoyed it. But I don't love the strong garlicky flavor. My husband didn't go for it either.

I think I was expecting something more spicy, as in hot, but instead it was more savory.

I will see what the peanut gallery has to say when I distribute the samples.

scruffy

Thu, Feb 02 2023, 1:45 pm

amother OP wrote:

You might have had more bland jalapenos.

amother

Thu, Feb 02 2023, 1:47 pm

scruffy wrote:

You might have had more bland jalapenos.

Yes could be.
I did taste 2 of them. One was very bland and the other tasted a bit more hot. But then I didn’t taste the rest.

amother

Thu, Feb 02 2023, 1:50 pm

amother Jean wrote:

To get the heat of the jalapenos, you need to leave at least some of the seeds in.

Could be. I actually read somewhere that the heat is in the veins , not in the seeds.
Maybe when I do it again, I'll leave it all in, like amother Lime did.

amother

Bellflower

Thu, Feb 02 2023, 3:05 pm

Why does there have to be so much garlic when you use jalapeños?
I don’t know how to make potato kugel with jalapeños so I’m not a good candidate to comment but I would have just added more salt and pepper and some hot peppers… is it really meant to be so garlicky?

amother

Thu, Feb 02 2023, 3:17 pm

amother Bellflower wrote:

Good question.
I wouldn't have thought of this on my own. But literally every person who gave their thoughts (and the recipes online) said to add garlic. I figured it's to balance the jalapeño.

The customer will be coming soon to pick up one regular kugel. (He ordered one for today and 3 for tomorrow.) I'll give him the 2 jalapeno samples and I guess he will let me know if this is what he had in mind.

My daughter liked it, but she also said she likes the regular version better.

amother

Thu, Feb 02 2023, 10:34 pm

Ok, here are some more results.

I gave both versions to my neighbors/friends. All the tasters preferred the sauteed jalapeños version over the raw one.

I still haven't heard back from the customer.

Interestingly, no one was able to guess what the secret ingredient was. They guess maybe zucchini or onion... Scratching Head

amother

Pear

Fri, Feb 03 2023, 12:09 am

I admire your dedication to the potato kugel process!

Besides for being hot, jalapeno has a very good taste. It's a flavor just like other peppers or vegetable in addition to being hot.

I think either leave some seeds for heat. Or maybe take out the seeds and add cayenne pepper to bring the heat. Maybe using that you have more control over how spicy it is.

amother

Rose

Fri, Feb 03 2023, 12:12 am

amother Pear wrote:

That's a totally different taste. If the person wants jalapeno, I don't think cayenne pepper is going to cut it.

Lol, my dh would be so proud of me. I used to hate spicy foods and I became a pro with all the nuances of hot n spicy.

amother

Pear

Fri, Feb 03 2023, 12:23 am

amother Rose wrote:

I would do both. Put in jalapeno without seeds to get the flavor, but not so much heat and add cayenne to give it a kick...

amother

Fri, Feb 03 2023, 6:27 am

I asked the customer for feedback on the taster jalapeño kugels.
He wrote " They were both very good but I couldn't feel the jalapeño ".

I asked if there was one he preferred over the next
He wrote: I couldn't tell the difference
They are all very special for shabbos, thank you 🙏

I'm making another jalapeño kugel today. Gonna leave the seeds in, like amother Lime said.

amother

Fri, Feb 03 2023, 6:30 am

amother Lime wrote:

I left my seeds in. It was spicy and perfect.

Did your kugel have a strong garlic flavor? I felt like my mouth was suffused with garlic afterwards.

Even after brushing my teeth very well, I felt the taste of garlic in my mouth all night. Covid-19

Shopmiami49

Fri, Feb 03 2023, 7:43 am

I made this last night. I made a 9x13 and used 2 whole jalapeño peppers and 10 cloves of garlic. Half of it was blended raw with the onions and eggs and half was diced and sautéed. We didn't love the difference in taste to the kugel and we also didn't find it very spicy...a little more on the bland side. Couldn't taste the garlic at all.

amother

Fri, Feb 03 2023, 7:51 am

Shopmiami49 wrote:

Thanks for the feedback.
Question:.did you leave in the veins and seeds from the jalapeños?

It seems that 2 jalapeños are not enough. I used 4 per kugel (without seeds and most of the veins removed) and you could barely taste the jalapeño.

I'm surprised you couldn't taste the garlic. My 10 cloves felt very overpowering. I don't mind a subtle garlic flavor, but not too strong.

But I'm not done yet. Gonna try again today.

amother

Bellflower

Fri, Feb 03 2023, 8:09 am

amother OP wrote:

That doesn’t sound right…if you are trying again put in much less garlic and a bit more jalapeño. I would also add more salt and pepper because then no matter what happens it won’t be bland.