Matzah

Matzah,matzo, ormaẓẓah(Hebrew:מַצָּה,romanized:maṣṣā,pl.:matzotorAshk.matzos) is anunleavenedflatbreadthat is part ofJewish cuisineand forms an integral element of thePassoverfestival, during whichchametz(leavenand five grains that, perJewish law, are self-leavening) is forbidden.
As theTorahrecounts, God commanded theIsraelites(modernly,JewsandSamaritans) to eat only unleavened bread during the seven-day Passover festival. Matzah can be either soft like apitaor crispy. The crispy variety is widely produced commercially because of its long shelf life. The soft matzah needs to be frozen if it is to last more than a day or so, and very limited commercial production is available, and only in the period leading up to Passover. Some versions of the crisper type are available all year.
Matzah meal and matzah cake meal is crispy matzah that has been ground very finely. The cake meal has a near flour-like consistency, useful in baking, while the standard matzah meal is somewhat coarser and used in cooking. Matzah meal is used to make matzah balls (kneidles/kneidlach), the principal ingredient ofkneydlach soup(oft-translated as "matzah ball soup"). Sephardic Jews typically cook with matzah itself rather than matzah meal.
Matzah that iskosherfor Passover is limited inAshkenazitradition to plain matzah made from flour and water. The flour may bewhole grainorrefined grain, but must be made from one offive grains:wheat,spelt,barley,rye, oroat. SomeSephardiccommunities allow matzah to be made witheggsorfruit juiceto be used throughout the holiday, while Ashkenazi Jews do not use such matzah on Passover, except in special circumstances (generally, the sick and elderly).
Matzahis mentioned in theTorahseveral times in relation toThe ExodusfromEgypt:
There are numerous explanations behind the symbolism of matzah:
At thePassover seder, simple matzah made of flour and water is mandatory for all. The flour must be ground from one of the five grains specified in Jewish law for Passover matzah: wheat, barley, spelt, rye or oat. Per Ashkenazic tradition, matzah made withwine,fruit juice,onion,garlic, etc., is not acceptable for use at any time during the Passover festival except by the elderly or unwell.
Non-Passover matzah may be made with onion, garlic, poppy seed, etc.  It can even be made fromrice,maize,buckwheatand other non-traditional flours that can never be used for Passover matzah.
Some manufacturers producegluten-freematzah-lookalike made frompotato starch,tapioca, and other non-traditional flour to market to those who cannot safely eatgluten, such as those withcoeliac disease. TheOrthodox Unionstates that these gluten-free products may be eaten on Passover, but that they do not fulfill the commandment (mitzvah) of eating matzah at the Seder, because matzah must be made from one of the five grains (wheat, barley, oat, spelt, and rye).
The only one of the five grains that does not contain gluten is oat, but the resulting matzah would be gluten-free only if there were no cross-contamination with gluten-containing grains. In recent years, matzah manufacturers have begun producing gluten-free oat matzah certified kosher for Passover.Additionally, some authorities have expressed doubt about whether oat is properly listed among the five grains, or whether it resulted from a historical mistranslation.Therefore, some have suggested baking matzah from a mixture of 90% rice flour and 10% wheat flour, for those who can handle eating the small amount of wheat in this mixture.For those who can eat no wheat, eating oat matzah at the Seder is still considered the best option.
Matzah dough is quickly mixed and rolled out without anautolysestep as used for leavened breads. Most forms are pricked with a fork or a similar tool to keep the finished product from puffing up, and the resulting flat piece of dough is cooked at high temperature until it develops dark spots, then set aside to cool and, if sufficiently thin, to harden to crispness.  Dough is considered to begin the leavening process 18 minutes from the time it gets wet; sooner if eggs, fruit juice, or milk is added to the dough. The entire process of making matzah takes only a few minutes in efficient modern matzah bakeries.
After baking, matzah may be ground into fine crumbs, known asmatzah meal.  Matzah meal can be used like flour during the week of Passover when flour can otherwise be used only to make matzah.
There are two major forms of matzah. Prior to the late 18th century, all matzah was soft and relatively thick, but thinner, crisper matzah later became popular in parts of Europe due to its longer shelf life. With the invention of the first matzah-making machine in France in 1839, cracker-like mass-produced matzah became the most common form in Europe and North America and is now ubiquitous in allAshkenazicand mostSephardiccommunities.YemeniteandIraqi Jewscontinue to use a form of soft matzah which looks like Greekpitaor like atortilla. Soft matzah is made only by hand, and generally withshmurahflour.
Flavored varieties of matzah are produced commercially, such aspoppy seed- oronion-flavored. Oat and spelt matzah with kosher certification are produced.  Oat matzah is generally suitable for those who cannot eat gluten.  Whole wheat, bran and organic matzah are also available.Chocolate-covered matzah is a favorite among children, although some consider it "enriched matzah" and will not eat it during the Passover holiday. A quite different flat confection of chocolate and nuts that resembles matzah is sometimes called "chocolate matzah".
Mass-produced matzah contains typically 111caloriesper 1-ounce/28g (USDA Nutrient Database), about the same asryecrispbread.
Shĕmura("guarded") matzah (Hebrew:מַצָּה שְׁמוּרָהmatsa shĕmura) is made from grain that has been under special supervision from the time it was harvested to ensure that nofermentationhas occurred, and that it is suitable for eating on the first night of Passover. (Shĕmurawheat may be formed into either handmade or machine-made matzah, while non-shĕmurawheat is only used for machine-made matzah. It is possible to hand-bake matzah inshĕmurastyle from non-shmurah flour—this is a matter of style, it is not actually in any wayshĕmura—but such matzah has rarely been produced since the introduction of machine-made matzah.)
Haredi Judaismis scrupulous about the supervision of matzah and have the custom of baking their own or at least participating in some stage of the baking process. RabbiChaim HalberstamofSanzruled in the 19th century that machine-made matzah werechametz.According to that opinion, handmade non-shmurahmatzah may be used on the eighth day of Passover outside of the Holy Land. However the non-Hasidic Haredi community of Jerusalem follows the custom that machine-made matzah may be used, with preference to the use ofshĕmurahflour, in accordance with the ruling of RabbiYosef Chaim Sonnenfeld, who ruled that machine-made matzah may be preferable to hand made in some cases. The commentators to theShulhan `Aruchrecord that it is the custom of some of Diaspora Jewry to be scrupulous in givingHallahfrom the dough used for baking "Matzat Mitzvah" (the shĕmurah matzah eaten duringPassover) to aKohenchild to eat.
The requirement for eating Matzah at the Seder cannot be fulfilled with "[egg] matza."
"Egg (sometimesenriched) matzah" are matzot usually made with fruitjuice, oftengrapejuice orapplejuice, instead of water, but not necessarily with eggs themselves.  There is a custom among some Ashkenazi Jews not to eat them during Passover, except for the elderly, infirm, or children, who cannot digest plain matzah; these matzot are considered to be kosher for Passover if prepared otherwise properly. The issue of whether egg matzah is allowed for Passover comes down to whether there is a difference between the various liquids that can be used.  Water facilitates afermentationof grain flour specifically into what is defined as chametz, but the question is whether fruit juice, eggs, honey, oil or milk are also deemed to do so within the strict definitions of Jewish laws regarding chametz.
TheTalmud, Pesachim 35a, states that liquid food extracts do not cause flour to leaven the way that water does.  According to this view, flour mixed with other liquids would not need to be treated with the same care as flour mixed with water. TheTosafot(commentaries) explain that such liquids only produce a leavening reaction within flourifthey themselves have had water added to them and otherwise the dough they produce is completely permissible for consumption during Passover, whether or not made according to the laws applying to matzot.
As a result,Joseph ben Ephraim Karo, author of theShulchan Aruchor "Code of Jewish Law" (Orach Chayim 462:4) granted blanket permission for the use of any matzah made from non-water-based dough, including egg matzah, on Passover.Many egg matzah boxes no longer include the message, "Ashkenazi custom is that egg matzah is only allowed for children, elderly and the infirm during Passover." Even amongst those who consider that enriched matzot may not beeatenduring Passover, it is permissible toretainit in the home.
Chocolate-covered matzahwas sold in boxes as a standard product, alongside boxes of egg matzah.
The matzah itself is notHamotzi(meaning that it isMezonot).
Matzah may be used whole, broken, chopped ("matzahfarfel"), or finely ground ("matzah meal"); to make numerous matzah-based cooked dishes. These includematzah balls, which are traditionally served in chicken soup;matzah brei, a dish of Ashkenazi origin made from matzah soaked in water, mixed with beaten egg, and fried;helzel, poultry neck skin stuffed with matzah meal;matzah pizza, in which the piece of matzah takes the place ofpizzacrust and is topped with melted cheese and sauce;and kosher for Passover cakes and cookies, which are made with matzah meal or a finer variety called "cake meal" that gives them a denser texture than ordinary baked foods made with flour.HasidicJews do not cook with matzah, believing that mixing it with water may allow leavening;this stringency is known asgebrochts.However, Jews who avoid eatinggebrochtswill eat cooked matzah dishes on the eighth day of Passover outside the Land of Israel, as the eighth day is ofrabbinic and not Torah origin.
Sephardim use matzah soaked in water or stock to make pies orlasagne,known asmina,méguena,mayenaorItalian:scacchi.
Communion wafersused by theRoman Catholic Churchas well as in someProtestanttraditions for theEucharistare flat, unleavened bread. The main reason for the use of this bread is the belief that, because theLast Supperwas described in theSynoptic Gospelsas a Passover meal, the unleavened matzah bread was used by Jesus when he held it up and said "this is my body". AllByzantine Ritechurches use leavened bread for the Eucharist as this symbolizes the risen Christ.
SomeOriental OrthodoxandEastern CatholicChristians use leavened bread, as in the east there is the tradition, based upon thegospel of John, that leavened bread was on the table of the Last Supper. In theArmenian Apostolic Church, theEthiopian Orthodox Tewahedo ChurchandEritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church, unleavened bread calledqǝddus qurbaninGe'ez, the liturgical language of the Eritreans and Ethiopians, is used for communion.
Saint Thomas Christiansliving on theMalabar coastofKerala, India have the customary celebration ofPesahain their homes. On the evening before Good Friday,Pesaha breadis made at home. It is made with unleavened flour and they consume a sweet drink made up ofcoconut milkandjaggeryalong with this bread. On the Pesaha night, the bread is baked (steamed) immediately after rice flour is mixed with water and they pierce it many times with handle of the spoon to let out steam so that the bread will not rise (this custom is called "juthante kannu kuthal" in the Malayalam language meaning "piercing the bread according to the custom of Jews"). This bread is cut by the head of the family and shared among the family members.
At the end ofWorld War II, theNational Jewish Welfare Boardhad a matzah factory (according to theAmerican Jewish Historical Society, it was probably theManischewitzmatzah factory inNew Jersey) produce matzah in the form of a giant"V" for "Victory", for shipment to military bases overseas and in the U.S., forPassover sedersfor Jewish military personnel.Passover in 1945 began on 1 April, when the collapse of theAxisin Europe was clearly imminent;Nazi Germanysurrenderedfive weeks later.
Streit'sis the story of the last family-owned matzah bakery in America during their final year at their historic New York City factory.