The Turkish Passover Recipes Shared by Five Generations of Women (2024)

FAQs

What foods are forbidden during Passover? ›

During Passover, Ashkenazi Jews traditionally stay away from not only leavened foods like bread, namely barley, oats, rye, spelt, and wheat, but also legumes, rice, seeds, and corn. The ban has been in place since the 13th century, but it's always been controversial.

The actual Seder meal is also quite variable. Traditions among Ashkenazi Jews generally include gefilte fish (poached fish dumplings), matzo ball soup, brisket or roast chicken, potato kugel (somewhat like a casserole) and tzimmes, a stew of carrots and prunes, sometimes including potatoes or sweet potatoes.

This is the seder plate, and each food is symbolic for an aspect of Passover: A roasted shank bone represents the Pescah sacrifice, an egg represents spring and the circle of life, bitter herbs represent the bitterness of slavery, haroset (an applesauce-like mixture with wine, nuts, apples, etc.)

The seder, held on the first one or two nights of the holiday, consists of a festive meal, the retelling of the Exodus story, and several other rituals and traditions, like finding the afikomen (a piece of matzah hidden during the ceremony), singing songs like "Dayenu," and opening the door symbolically for the prophet ...

This group of foods—which includes rice, beans, corn and peanuts—was originally banned because the items were often mixed with wheat, which Jews refrain from eating during Passover except in the form of an unleavened flatbread called matzah, David Holzel reports for the Times of Israel.

Despite the misconception, many Sephardim have the tradition to refrain from rice, perhaps because of its storage near wheat. Other Sephardim or Mizrachim gladly eat rice, but won't eat chickpeas, hummus, whose name is so similar to hametz.

Pesach Dieters, Take Note: You Can Have Your Potato—and Eat It, Too! - Kosher for Passover.

During Passover, Jews are forbidden to eat leavened foods, and instead eat matzo, an unleavened flatbread similar to the unleavened bread eaten during the flight from Egypt.

Many seder plates include an orange, which is attributed to Susannah Heschel, professor of Jewish studies at Dartmouth College. Heschel included an orange in recognition of gay and lesbian Jews, and others who are marginalized in the Jewish community.

Passover is a time for spiritual reflection, so it's important to dress modestly and avoid anything too revealing. This means avoiding low-cut tops, short skirts, and tight clothing. Instead, opt for more modest pieces that cover your arms and legs.

What are 3 examples of traditional Passover foods? ›

You don't have to give up potatoes to balance your meals—just add something to them! Pesach is the perfect time to experiment with potato-combination dishes. How about a baked potato topped with other veggies, like broccoli or spinach, and a bit of cheese?

For centuries since, Jews fulfill the biblical commandment to remember and retell the story of the Exodus with a special ceremony, the Seder. Symbolic foods, including eggs, are part of the story.

The pasta we eat year round is made from wheat flour and is not baked under those conditions. For this reason we do not eat it on Passover. Likewise we do not eat pasta, and other products, made from barley, rye, oats, spelt or their derivatives. But, there is pasta available that may be eaten on Passover.

Even with all we've outlined above, there is no need for feelings of kosher deprivation. The world's favorite confection, chocolate, is readily available to kosher consumers as dairy (OU-D), parve (OU) and even for Passover (OU-P).