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Kuchelain is a Jewish family dinner tradition in some parts of the United States.

During the rise of the tourism and hospitality industry of the Sullivan County, New York Catskill mountain region, there was a large influx of Jewish summer vacationers. Discrimination and antisemitism prevented them from staying at the already established resorts. Many struggling farmers began converting their farmhouses into large boarding houses. Their summer guests were often given kitchen privileges so that the Jewish mothers could prepare meals for their entire families. This popular type of arrangement became known as the "kuchelain," from the Yiddish, "cook alone," although the women were rarely alone in the communal kitchen, which was generally bustling as the center of activity. There were many opportunities to share recipes, gossip and compare the quality of latkes and lightness of matzoh balls.