Matzo
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Matzo (also Matzoh, Matzah, Matza, Hebrew מַצָּה maṣṣā) is a Jewish food item made of plain flour and water, which is not allowed to ferment or rise before it is baked. The result is a flat, crunchy, cracker-like bread.
Matzo is the traditional substitute for bread during Passover because of the prohibitive commandment of eating chametz. Moreover, eating matzo the night of the seder fulfills the positive commandment of eating matzo at the Passover seder (some say {the Vilna Gaon} the positive commandment is applicable for the entire Passover week). Matzo has a dual role in the Passover festival. First, when the Children of Israel were leaving Ancient Egypt, they had no time to wait until their bread rose, so they baked it before it had a chance to rise, and the result was matzo (Exodus 12:39). Therefore it symbolizes redemption and freedom. Second, unleaven bread is considered poor man's bread (lechem oni), symbolizing slavery because such was the type of bread fed to slaves. Thus, it serves as a reminder to be humbled and remember what it is like to be a poor slave, sparking an appreciation of freedom and avoid the puffed ego symbolized by leavened bread. For Passover, the ingredients for matzo are limited to flour and water only, while other ingredients such as eggs or fruit juice may be added to matzo that is produced and consumed during the rest of the year.
After it has been baked, matzo may be ground into a more or less fine powder known as matzo meal, which can then be used to make matzo balls, gefilte fish, and many other dishes.
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[edit] Five grains
There are five grains that may not be used during Passover in any form except matzo and dry roasting.
- Wheat,
- Barley,
- Spelt,
- Rye, and
- Oats (according to Rashi) (or two-rowed barley according to Rambam's interpretation of Mishnah Kilayim 1:1; Yerushalmi Challah 1:1).
Wheat and spelt (biblical spelt is now more correctly identified as emmer wheat) are both in the genus Triticum and anything else in the genus is likewise forbidden. Oat-grain is practically gluten-free and belongs to a different tribe than wheat, spelt, rye and barley. Millet and teff are borderline; it takes a few days for them to rise.
Dough made from the five grains is considered to start rising 18 minutes from the time it gets wet; if not put in the oven before then it can no longer become true matzo.
Matzo can be ground to form coarse (matzo farfel), medium, or fine matzo meal, used in Jewish cooking and as a substitute for flour in Passover cooking.
[edit] Common varieties
There are two major forms of matzo, with several subcategories. In the United States, the most common form is the hard form of matzo, which is cracker-like in both appearance and taste, which is used in all Ashkenazic and most Sephardic communities. Many Mizrahi and Yemenite Jews traditionally made a form of soft matzo, Hispanic and Latin Sephardi jews are also accustomed to soft mazo. In those Mizrahi and Yemenite communities, matzo looks similar to pita while in others it can resemble a tortilla. However, it is made under proper supervision, just like the hard form of matzah. The soft form of Matzah is only made by hand, and generally with shmurah flour, as described below, like traditional "Shmurah Matzos".
Among Ashkenazi matzo, one can distinguish between what is called shmura matzo — a round matzo about a foot in diameter — which is made by hand, and machine-made matzo, which is usually square and much smaller. Shmura ("guarded") matzo (Hebrew מַצָּה שְׁמוּרָה maṣṣā šəmūrā) is made from grain that has been under special supervision from the time it was harvested to ensure that no fermentation has occurred. In addition, it is made with the intention of using it to fulfill the commandment of eating matzo on the first night of Passover.
(The same shmura wheat may be formed into either handmade or machine-made matzo, while non-shmura wheat is only fashioned into machine-made matzo. Moreover, although it is possible to bake shmura-style matzo from non-shmurah flour, such matzo is rarely produced today, although before the invention of machine-made matzah it was quite common.)
Besides their shape, handmade and machine-made matzo taste distinctively different. Handmade matzo is dense and chewy, while machine-made matzo is lighter and crispy. Shmurah matzo is generally available only around Passover and is more expensive than its more commonly commercial cousin.
Various commercial brands of matzo also come in flavored varieties, such as poppyseed- or onion-flavored. For those who cannot eat wheat, oat and spelt matzos with kosher certification are produced. It is also possible to find chocolate-covered matzo, although this confection is often classified as matzo ashirah and is not generally used during the Passover holiday. Some confectionery companies also sell chocolate matzo (not chocolate-covered matzo) during the Passover holiday. This is made from molded chocolate into which broken almonds have been mixed, to simulate the appearance of matzo. These are to matzo as a chocolate cigar is to a cigar. Matzo contains approximately 111 calories per 1-ounce/28g serving (USDA Nutrient Database). This compares with 109 calories for the same serving of rye crispbread. [1]
[edit] Supervision and Provisions
Many Haredi or ultra-orthodox Jews are extremely scrupulous about the supervision of their Matzah, as eating leavened products during Passover is liable to the biblical punishment of Kareth, thus many have the custom of baking their own Matzo, or at least participating in some stage of the baking process. Ultra-Orthodox Shmurah Matzah is typically expensive, generally between $10-$20 per pound, but sometimes costing up to $50 per pound for special varieties with particular stringencies.
Among many Hasidic Jews, only hand made shmurah matzah may be used, in accord with the opinion of Rabbi Chaim Halberstam of Sanz, who ruled that machine-made matzoth were chametz. According to that opinion, hand-made non-shmurah matzoth may be used on the eighth day of Passover outside of the Holy Land. However, today such matzoth are generally not made.
However the non-Hasidic Haredi community of Jerusalem follows the custom that machine-made matzoth may be used, with preference to the use of shmurah flour, in accordance with the ruling of Rabbi Yoseph Chaim Sonnenfeld, who actually ruled that machine-made matzoth may be preferable to hand made in some cases.
[edit] Matzo ashirah ("Egg Matzo")
In spite of the name, "egg matzos" are matzos made with any liquid other than water, usually fruit juice, often grape or apple juice. ("Egg matzo" made with actual eggs is a rarity.) The Hebrew term for egg matzo is מצה עשירה (matzo ashirah, literally, "rich matzo"). Egg matzo cannot be used to fulfill the requirement of eating matzo at the Passover Seder. This is because such matzo would be considered "rich", while the matzo eaten at the Seder is called לחם עוני ("poor man's bread") (Deut. 16:3) (Passover products list - see section on Matzo)
Although egg matzos may be stated to be kosher for Passover, the prevailing custom among Ashkenazic Jews is not eat them during this holiday, although they may be given to the elderly, infirm, or children, who cannot digest plain matzo.
[edit] Matzo during the year
Commercial matzo is often available during the year, both in flavored and plain forms. It is used in cooking (e.g. matzo ball soup made from matzo meal) or eaten as a snack. During the year, Ashkenazim treat matzo as bread, requiring washing before and full Birkat Hamazon afterwards. Sephardim normally treat it as a cracker and accord it the special status of bread only during Passover.
[edit] References
- Zohary, Michael (1982). Plants of the Bible. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-24926-0. Up-to-date reference to cereals in the Biblical world
[edit] Notes
[edit] External links
[edit] See also
- Kashrut (Kosher)
- Matzah balls
- Matzo brei
- Chametz
- Gebruchts
