 Middle
High German varveln, through Yiddish farfl)
are small pellet-shaped noodles, made of
either flour mixed with egg or matzo.
Farfel is most prevalent in Jewish cuisine,
where it is a seasonal item used in Passover
dishes. In this form, farfel simply consists
of matzo broken up by any means into small
pieces, and used as a bread substitute in
various recipes, from kugel to mushroom pie
to latkes. It is particularly prevalent in
oven-baked dishes. Farfel also refers to an
egg noodle dough which may be cut or grated
for use in soups, or served as a side dish.
Among Hassidic Jews, farfel is served as a
side dish on the night of the Sabbath, in
accordance with a custom instituted by the
Baal Shem Tov, the founder of Hasidism.
In both cases, farfel is carefully soaked in
water in preparation; while moistening is
necessary to soften the dough, allowing too
much water to soak in will leave the mixture
irreparably soggy.
Farfel is not related to the
similar-sounding
falafel and
farafella or farafelle pasta bows.
also see:
Farfel Recipes
Trivia
Two television dogs have gone by the name of
Farfel:
-
The hound dog puppet used as Nestlè's
mascot in its 1950s and 1960s commercials-
famous for drawling "CHAW-W-W-CLIT!"-
obtained its name directly from the food
item.
-
In Episode 21 of Seinfeld, "The Dog,"
Jerry was forced to take care of a dog
named Farfel after its owner suffered an
attack of Bell's Palsy on an airplane.
-
Farfel also provided the name of the
titular cat in Norman Geller's children's
book "Farfel the Cat That Left Egypt."
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