Why some people eat matzo year-round

[Rachel Lindy]

Hey folks,

 

I'm a food writer doing a piece for Vogue's food section about why people might choose to eat matzo outside the context of Passover. A number of non-Jews and non-practicing Jews love eating matzo as a snack due to the crunch, the ability to use it as a blank canvas for different toppings, and the (relatively) healthy nature of it, as well as a host of other reasons.

 

I'd love to hear from the eGullet community about this topic: do you, or someone you know, eat matzo as a regular food outside of Passover? Why, and what do you like about it? Matzo ball soup is kind of a separate subject, so I'm more interested in people who eat it on its own or with toppings.

 

-Rachel 

[Smithy]

What an interesting question! Truth to tell, I've never tried it so I can't comment (yet). I'll have to try some and see what I've been missing. 

[KennethT]

4 minutes ago, Smithy said:

What an interesting question! Truth to tell, I've never tried it so I can't comment (yet). I'll have to try some and see what I've been missing. 

Try eating some cardboard packaging material.  That's close enough.

[Alex]

I wouldn't call it even relatively healthy. 

[gfweb]

Matzoh is used  in many churches for communion. 

 

Is matzoh "healthy"?  Sure, but so is bread.

 

Its OK with cheeses and dips, but not as good as a cracker or toasted baguette slices.

[gfweb]

I'm thinking that if you deep fired matzoh it might be better...like fried saltines

[cdh]

low salt crackers?

[weinoo]

2 hours ago, KennethT said:

Try eating some cardboard packaging material.  That's close enough.

I like it after the box has been open a day or two, when they get nice and stale (though often, they're stale right out of the box).

 

5 hours ago, Rachel Lindy said:

do you, or someone you know, eat matzo as a regular food outside of Passover?

So, in answer to this question: NO! You'd have to be meshugge to eat that stuff year round.

[KennethT]

1 hour ago, gfweb said:

I'm thinking that if you deep fired matzoh it might be better...like fried saltines

My cousin makes a fried matzoh every year for Passover that is fried in cottonseed oil then salted.  It's 1000x better than plain, but still barely edible.

[KennethT]

1 hour ago, Alex said:

I wouldn't call it even relatively healthy. 

Technically, I don't know what's unhealthy about plain matzah - it's just flour, water and salt, baked within 14 minutes (that's from memory, don't quote me) of mixing.  Plus, the cardboard-like texture ensures that you don't eat too much of it!

[weinoo]

Here's my blog post from 15 years ago, re: Streit's Original Matzo Factory...https://tastytravails.blogspot.com/2009/02/streitsfresh-baked-matzos-since-1925.html

 

Quote

Now, I don't know how many people have tried matzos, or like matzos. Or even put up with matzos. I mean, like don't you eat them because you have to, on Passover? There are all sorts of flavors of matzos now, not like when I was a kid, when you had two choices: plain or egg. These were plain. Not everything, not salt, not sun-dried tomato, not friggin' blueberry, nothing - plain.

A hot from the oven matzo stays hot for about one minute on a chilly night. And it's good for about one minute - I mean, without butter, cream cheese, salt, etc. it's basically a bad cracker. The bread of affliction. Enjoyed and then discarded. Perfect for a minute, and only in NY, kids.

 

[NancyH]

I enjoy Matzo Brei, which is a Jewish version of French Toast, all year round. Matzo sheets are broken into pieces, soaked in hot water to soften them, then mixed with egg (which soaks into the matzo similarly to bread soaking up eggs for French toast), and fried in fat. I prefer it with salt and pepper rather than sweet flavors (sometimes with some fried kosher salami mixed in), but some folks add raisins, cinnamon, sugar, you name it. The key for me was always onion flavored Nyafat, a fake food made from hydrogenated oils that no longer exists. It was popular because it gave Matzoh Brei a great flavor and texture, and it was parve, meaning it could be eaten with meat or dairy. Chicken or duck fat also works (or any fat really, though it's not exactly the same). But I would never add dairy (butter, milk) if I was using meat derived fat or adding salami to my Matzo Brei. 

[weinoo]

52 minutes ago, NancyH said:

I enjoy Matzo Brei

 

My guess is that matzo brei is also a "separate category," according to the OP. Which, of course, makes no sense.

[TdeV]

DH's favourite breadcrumbs are matzo meal and favourite way to use them is with latkes. We don't otherwise eat matzo.

[JeanneCake]

I was going to chime in about matzo brei, and ask if that counts.

 

And then I was going to mention the chocolate covered matzo but it's pretty much the same as using saltines the rest of the year so  not sure that counts either.

[Duvel]

I could see it as a tasty snack, if fried in lard, sprinkled with MSG and salt and dipped in molten cheese …

[haresfur]

I grew up eating it year round. I mean not eating a lot of it but we had it in the house and my memory is shaving off thin slices of cold butter to eat with it. I wasn't brought up Jewish, we just ate a lot of Jewish food. I mean why else would they sell matzo that isn't kosher for Passover? It's really just big square Carr's Table Water Biscuits.

[Senior Sea Kayaker]

I have tried it and if you separate it from its cultural significance it really is no different than hard bread, hard tack, pilot bread, ship's biscuit or other forms of what are though of as survival rations. Maybe not enjoyable to eat but meant to keep you alive.

 

 

[TicTac]

Unless this is some belated April Fools joke, I fail to see how Vogue identified a market that would be interested in reading about a .000000000000000000000001% of the population who might choose to eat that (as some have so aptly described) cardboard wannabe cracker throughout the year.

 

If anyone was in such an unfortunate circumstance whereby they had no choice but to sustain life from matzah....I would hope they have cases of Restoralax handy!

[weinoo]

Even the pigeons here won't eat the matzo that's discarded.

[Rachel Lindy]

9 hours ago, haresfur said:

I grew up eating it year round. I mean not eating a lot of it but we had it in the house and my memory is shaving off thin slices of cold butter to eat with it. I wasn't brought up Jewish, we just ate a lot of Jewish food. I mean why else would they sell matzo that isn't kosher for Passover? It's really just big square Carr's Table Water Biscuits.

Hi haresfur - that's fascinating! Would you be willing to have a quick (5-10 min max) phone chat about this?

[rotuts]

this showed up in college , next to a toaster where you might toast ordinary american sliced bread.

 

Seasonally .  no explanation .

 

and the food was quite decent in those days , and you could go back for seconds  etc

 

I tried it as vehicle for about 1/2 "  of butter or more , evenly distributed over a piece 

 

it worked well enough for that  .  as @haresfur has suggessted , similar a Carr cracker .

 

but there was no other cracker option for the butter.

 

you could eat the butter ( those single pat thing-is ) neat of course.

 

the box stayed there for days and days , hardly touched .

 

this suggests it was was never removed to any dorm room 

 

for a 10 PM  ' pick me up '

 

Q.E.D.

 

as @weinoo  has suggested :

 

Vogue ? really ?  you can document that ?

Edited April 4 by rotuts (log)

[Katie Meadow]

I like the cardboard once a year. After all, you wouldn't want to eat charoset and horseradish on a rice cracker, would you? Our friend who hosts the seder always sends us home with xtra matzoh and I make matzoh brei which I do like. Best if it uses egg and onion matzoh, though.