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Kugalis

A Lithuanian potato casserole with bacon, onion, eggs, condensed milk, and salt.

From the Recipes Wiki (Fandom) · 6 ingredients
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Why it works: Onion and potato are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 3% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 9,023 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓

Kugalis

Oven350°F
Time1 hour

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare the filling

  1. Cut bacon up fine and cook in a large skillet.

  2. Chop onion and cook in the same skillet, moving bacon to one side.

  3. Cook onion until yellow, do not brown.

  4. Set aside.

Make the potato mixture

  1. Shred potatoes in a food processor.

  2. Drain off liquid as you shred 2 or 3 potatoes and immediately soak the drained potatoes in condensed milk.

  3. Beat the eggs and stir into the potato mixture.

  4. Add salt.

  5. Add bacon, onion, together with drippings.

  6. Stir well.

Bake and serve

  1. Pour mixture into a large casserole dish.

  2. Bake for 1 hour at 350°F.

  3. After 1 hour, remove from oven.

  4. Serve with sour cream.

  5. Leftovers may be sliced and fried in butter.

  6. To make less, cut recipe in half.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

475Calories
23 gProtein
17 gFat
60 gCarbs
What these numbers assume: 6 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Potato1 medium (173g) baked161
Milk1 cup (244ml) whole149
Egg1 large egg (50g)78
Onion1 medium (110g)44
Bacon1 slice cooked (8g)43
Salt1 tsp (6g)0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Onion + potatotop 3% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together9,023 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

  2. Potato + eggtop 29% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together4,978 recipes

    Shared aroma: (e)-2-octenal (fatty, green).

  3. Potato + condensed milktop 31% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together25 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).

  4. Onion + eggtop 34% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together23,333 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).

  5. Onion + condensed milktop 37% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together22 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).

Onion and egg barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 23,333 recipes: they work on texture and structure more than aroma.

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Potatoes
Form the bulk of the casserole, giving it a starchy, tender body when baked.
Eggs
Bind the shredded potato mixture so it holds together when baked and set.
Condensed milk
Adds richness and sweetness and keeps the shredded potatoes moist.
Bacon
Adds fat and smoky, savory flavor, with drippings carried into the casserole.
Onion
Adds savory aroma and sweetness when cooked gently until yellow.

The step that matters

Soak shredded potatoes in condensed milk right after shredding. Raw shredded potato oxidizes and darkens quickly and loses starch-water, so soaking it immediately in milk protects its color and keeps the texture moist rather than dry or grey after baking.

Swap the onion

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (potato, condensed milk, egg):

  1. Chivefits better
  2. Capsicumfits about as well
  3. Asparagusfits about as well
  4. Onionthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against potato, condensed milk, egg. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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