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What is the deal with matzah?
Contributed by Esther Kustanowitz

  • TOP HAGGADAHS FOR 2023

There’s an old joke: A man is sitting in the park eating some matzah and offers it to the guy next to him, who is blind. The blind man takes a piece of matzah and his fingers glide over the bumps and perforations until, frustrated, he complains, “Who wrote this s—t?”


As a Braille document, matzah probably makes terrible reading. But for Jews around the world, matzah is part of the Passover seder, a space where families sit and read from their Haggadahs — a collection of texts that explore the holiday themes and guide its rituals. 


The ingredients are as basic as you can get — wheat flour and water — although online recipes will suggest adding salt, pepper and even olive oil. But how did it start? The Biblical story goes like this: A long time ago, in an Egypt far far away, the Jewish people were slaves to Pharaoh, but — after a series of plagues — were asked to leave rather quickly: They didn’t even have time to complete their bread-making process before they left. So they took the dough with them which, having not risen, and presumably baked in the desert sun, probably resembled tortillas, flatbread, or naan, or what happens when you “bake” those Trader Joe’s pizza doughs by rolling out a piece and putting it in a frying pan. (No judgments.)


The rise of Manischewitz

Over the years, Ashkenazi Jews (who hail from Eastern Europe) gravitated toward something more resembling a flat cracker. Then the industrial revolution came to Matzahland, with innovation by Cincinnati Rabbi Dov Behr Manischewitz — yes, the man behind the name — who, in 1888, invented a more efficient production method (machine!) and adopted a more effective shape (square!) and created the brand — and matzah — you know today. 


There’s also more artisanal “ shmurah  matzah,” formed in unruly circle-ish shapes and nestled in threes into giant boxes separated by parchment paper or bubble wrap to prevent breakage.  Shmurah  means “watched,” because it's watched by local authorities from the time the wheat is harvested and throughout the grinding process, to ensure that it doesn’t become wet and start to rise early. While the basic matzah costs around $2.50 - $5 a box, this pampered version can run from $30 - $60 a box. And there’s also soft matzah, a handmade version, with a soft and chewy texture more resembling a pita or a wrap.


Wait a minute: Did you say there’s soft matzah?

Yes! Many Middle Eastern and north African Jewish communities (Sephardic) eschew the uniformity of the flat cracker to make matzah according to their traditions. Take Aaron Asher, who is from a family of Egyptian Jews and ran an annual soft matzah bake at the Temple Beth Am in the Pico-Robertson neighborhood for several years. He told LAist that he grinds his own flour from wheat berries, and then combines it with water to work up a dough. Is there anything special about the water? Of course there is! It has to be water that’s rested for a day so that it cools down and doesn’t prompt premature rising. (Ahem.) Then Asher shapes and cooks the matzah on a  saj, which looks like an inverted wok; the matzahs must be finished — from mixing the ingredients to baked — within 18 minutes, as per Talmudic requirements.

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Soft matzah, baking.

(Courtesy Aaron Asher)

Sarah Livingston, a Jewish studies instructor at Ohio University specializing in global Jewish foodways, makes Ethiopian matzah every year at home for her family and with her students in the university’s test kitchen, calling it “an experiential learning about the incredible diversity of the Jewish experience.” Specifically, she uses a recipe for Yahfesca Kit’ta, a soft matzo from the Beta Israel (Ethiopian Jewish) community. (Here’s a sample recipe.) Making this matzah, Livingston said, her students experience a “sense of urgency” that echoes that of the Hebrews being told to leave Egypt.


[Excerpt from LAist article, April 20, 2024 - link below]


haggadah Section:
Source: https://laist.com/news/food/passovers-coming-soon-and-so-is-matzah-but-what-is-it-again-exactly

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