One of my favorite foods to eat on Pesach (Passover) is matza brei (that’s bri with a long i as in sky or apple pie). Here is the basic, basic recipe:
Ingredients
- 1 piece of square matza (can be regular, whole wheat or any other kind)
- 1 egg
- 1 or two pats of butter
Equipment
- 1 bowl
- 1 fork
- 1 frying pan
Take the egg. Crack it into the bowl. Stir. Crack matza into pieces, large or small matza pieces (your choice). Let matza soak (this is sort of like French toast, except unleavened). Put a pat of butter in the frying pan. Heat butter until it bubbles. Add egg-matza mixture. Cook a minute, stir, flip and cook the other side. Use the other pat of butter if necessary. When the egg is cooked but not too much, slide the matza brei unto a plate. Enjoy. Eat with a glass of orange juice, a cup of tea or coffee or plain water if you like.
Variations of Matza Brei
As my friend Larry reminded me when I posted my matza brei photo with short recipe on Google+, there are multiple varieties to this egg-y treat. I decided a fun addition to this post would be to list as many variations as I could think here; feel free to add your own in the comments.
- Plain– plain is more or less as I posted it. Good if you are in a rush or you really do prefer plain. I like plain.
- Salty – salty would be adding salt and maybe pepper, too.
- Savory – I looked up savory, and it seemed to be defined by adding rosemary or thyme. I will include in this options like parsley, dill, scallions, onions, mushrooms and garlic. Of course, you might combine savory with salty as in herbs with salt and pepper.
- Sweet – sugar is a common way to make sweet. You could do cinnamon sugar or add raisins. You could eat the cooked matza brei with jam (I would go for this one, as I like the sweet fruit kind).
- Spicy – I’m adding another section to include cumin, coriander, turmeric, salsa, hot pepper or other spicy treats.
Note: not all observant Jews eat matza brei on Pesach. Some Jews do not eat grebrokhts, that is, matza dipped in a wet substance. My family tradition is to eat plenty of matza brei.
What do you prefer: plain, salty, savory or sweet? Or spicy or something else all together? Creamy? How would you prepare this dish?
I had not heard of this but I would like it plain or sewer with fruit I think…
That is sweet… My iPad changes my words sometimes
Yes, I know about writing comments on the iPad. As my son pointed out, you can turn off auto-correct.
Of course, “sewer” could also be funny, and we could make a joke out of it … more bathroom humor.
If you ever come to visit, I would be happy to make you matza brei with a fruit salad on the side.
I like it, and have made it, savory. I use dill and basil. Mushrooms are good, also.
Funny, it doesn’t seem traditional to have it with dill (who had dill in Eastern Europe), but it certainly sounds tasty.
I know re tradition on the dill, but it is delicious with it.
It’s my own take on it, but I am sure others have done the same.
send me this in an email for kcc
Here’s the link to my matza brei post: me-ander: Passover Cooking, Do You Matzah Brei?
Sent.
How fun. I do love recipes like and all their versatility. I will be giving this one a try for sure.
If you lived nearby, Susan, I would give you some of my leftover matza for the experiment. I really do find matza brie tasty, but if I ate it all the time, it probably wouldn’t be a treat.
Thanks for commenting. Hope your move is going well.
I would love that. It would be so fun.
The consolidation/move is coming along. there are now just the last vestiges of stuff that needs to organized. I am so ready for this to be done.
We like it salty and with lots of fried onions. (That is, that’s how I grew up eating it. Nowadays, since my husband’s family doesn’t eat gebrochts, we don’t have matzah brei on Pesach.)
Sounds good – that’s how I like scrambled eggs (onions and salt, pepper, too). Too bad about no gebrochts, but that’s the way it goes!
I grew up with matzoh brie made as a scramble, not as a pancake. And it was served with cinnamon sugar. My husband holds from matzoh brie made as a very thick (2″ thick) kugel like pancake, served with jam. I make it both ways now.
I *think* mine is a scramble – it certainly doesn’t resemble a pancake. Is that like scrambled eggs in pieces instead of attached?
I’m not a sweets fan, but I could handle a little jam.
Leora — My late husband loved matzoh brie. I always knew it was the holidays when I saw the boxes of matzoh’s on the kitchen counter. He would whip up pans of it (scrambled, not a cake). You bring back lovely memories. I love matzoh’s any time of the year, smeared with butter. Yum!
I can understand the good memories! Matzah brie was probably one of the first foods I learned to cook as a child.
My hubby has made me the fried Matzah. It is really good. I should ask him to try this too. Have a happy weekend!