Matzo
Matzo ( Hebrew מצה, matzá , "matzo"; Pluralמצות, matzót , " matzo " - also Yiddish מצה, mátze , "matzo"; Pluralמצות, mátzes , " matzo "), also called "unleavened bread", is a thin bread that is eaten by religious and traditional Jews during Passover . Matze is made from water and one of the five types of grain wheat , rye , barley , oats or spelled without raising agents .
In the German-speaking world, the spellings Mazze , Matzen or Mazzen are also used .
Religious tradition
Matze is eaten in memory of the biblical exodus of the Israelites from Egypt . According to the tradition in the Torah , the Israelites did not have time to leave the dough for the bread to sour.
Manufacturing
In order to be kosher for Passover according to Jewish dietary laws , the production of the matzo is subject to rabbinical supervision. Premature contact of the harvested grain or flour with water or an acidulant is avoided. The baking process, from mixing the flour with water to the finished baked matzo, may take a maximum of 18 minutes.
rite
Since during the Passover days not only no leavened bread, but also nothing else that could "go" (for example pasta, flour, with the Ashkenazim also legumes and rice) is eaten, cakes, casseroles and the like are made from matzo or matzo flour made from matzo. Orthodox Jews interpret the command to renounce “driven” bread so strictly that they do not use any dishes during the Passover festival that have ever come into contact with bread made with leavening agents. In many Orthodox households there are therefore two special Passover dishes (one milky, one meaty), more modest households make do by ritually cleaning all pots, plates and cutlery by boiling them for a long time.
The commandment to eat matzo only applies to the first Passover evening, the Seder (beginning of the 15th Nisan ; in the Jewish diaspora two days: 15th and 16th Nisan). For the rest of the week, the only thing that applies is that no chametz , i.e. nothing leavened, may be eaten. On the Seder evening, three special matzos - usually hand-baked and thicker than the usual ones - belong on the table: the top matzo symbolizes the Kohanim (temple priests), the middle one the Levites (the temple servants) and the bottom one, Israel, the people of the Israelites . Each of these three matzos is separated from the others by a cloth. Every Jew is commanded to eat a piece of it. Also important at the Seder is the procedure of hiding and "finding" the Afikoman , which is fun for the children participating in the Seder.
In addition to the common matzo there is also the Mazza schmura ("guarded matzah "). In the case of ordinary matzo, care is taken to ensure that it does not turn into leaven from the moment the grains are ground and the flour is processed further. The matzah schmura is watched over from the harvest. At every stage, from the harvest to the last phase in which it is baked, there is a risk of grain, flour or dough becoming leavened by excessive heat, humidity or kneading for too long.
Earlier Jewish generations baked special matzos for the Seder evening , and did it by hand on the afternoon of the same day. These matzos are the so-called mazzot mitzvah ("matzos of the commandment"); because they are intended for the observance of a commandment, that is, they are eaten on the Seder evening.
Matzo porridge
Matzo mush (מצה בריי, matzah porridge ,מצה מטוגנת, matzah metugenet ) is an Ashkenazi dish that is often eaten as breakfast during Passover.
The preparation and the ingredients can vary; A simple recipe for matzo porridge is to break the matzo into small pieces and place in milk or water until they are almost completely soaked, then add eggs and spices to the resulting mixture and bake in a pan with heated butter. The matzo porridge can be served with various sweet or salty sauces.
See also
Web links
- Karl William Weyde: Mazzen / Mazzotfest. In: Michaela Bauks, Klaus Koenen, Stefan Alkier (Eds.): The Scientific Biblical Lexicon on the Internet (WiBiLex), Stuttgart 2006 ff.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Special exhibition "Kosher & Co. An exhibition about food and religion": Mazze. Jewish Museum Berlin , August 30, 2018, accessed on September 24, 2018 .
- ↑ Ex 12 : 33-34 EU .