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44-561: Matzo is a spelling variant for matzah , Jewish unleavened bread. Matzo can also relate to: Matzah As the Torah recounts, God commanded the Israelites (modernly, Jews and Samaritans ) to eat only unleavened bread during the seven-day Passover festival. Matzah can be either soft like a pita or crispy. The crispy variety is widely produced commercially because of its long shelf life. The soft matzah needs to be frozen if it

88-463: A few minutes in efficient modern matzah bakeries. After baking, matzah may be ground into fine crumbs, known as matzah meal . Matzah meal can be used like flour during the week of Passover when flour can otherwise be used only to make matzah. There are two major forms of matzah. Prior to the late 18th century, all matzah was soft and relatively thick, but thinner, crisper matzah later became popular in parts of Europe due to its longer shelf life. With

132-439: A fork or a similar tool to keep the finished product from puffing up, and the resulting flat piece of dough is cooked at high temperature until it develops dark spots, then set aside to cool and, if sufficiently thin, to harden to crispness. Dough is considered to begin the leavening process 18 minutes from the time it gets wet; sooner if eggs, fruit juice, or milk is added to the dough. The entire process of making matzah takes only

176-587: A leavening reaction within flour if they themselves have had water added to them and otherwise the dough they produce is completely permissible for consumption during Passover, whether or not made according to the laws applying to matzot. As a result, Joseph ben Ephraim Karo , author of the Shulchan Aruch or "Code of Jewish Law" ( Orach Chayim 462:4 ) granted blanket permission for the use of any matzah made from non-water-based dough, including egg matzah, on Passover. Many egg matzah boxes no longer include

220-542: A metabolic shift to anaerobic glycolysis , in which glucose is converted to pyruvate as an inefficient means of generating adenosine triphosphate. Glycolysis has a lower ATP yield than oxidative phosphorylation and generates acidic byproducts that decrease the pH of the cell, which enables many of the enzymatic processes involved in autolysis. Limited synthesis of adenosine triphosphate impairs many cellular transport mechanisms that utilize ATP to drive energetically unfavorable processes that transport ions and molecules across

264-406: A single intracellular membrane that prevents unwarranted destruction of other intracellular components. Under normal conditions, the molecular machinery of the cell is further protected from lysosomal enzyme activity by regulation of cytosolic pH. The activity of lysosomal hydrolases is optimal at a moderately acidic pH of 5, which is significantly more acidic than the more basic average pH of 7.2 in

308-425: Is Mezonot ). Matzah may be used whole, broken, chopped ("matzah farfel "), or finely ground ("matzah meal"); to make numerous matzah-based cooked dishes. These include matzah balls , which are traditionally served in chicken soup; matzah brei , a dish of Ashkenazi origin made from matzah soaked in water, mixed with beaten egg, and fried; helzel , poultry neck skin stuffed with matzah meal; matzah pizza , in which

352-456: Is damaged by water retention and digestion by other catabolic enzymes. The release of catabolically active enzymes from their sub-cellular locations initiates an irreversible process that results in the complete reduction of deceased organisms. Autolysis produces an acidic, anaerobic, nutrient-rich environment that nurtures the activity of invasive and opportunistic microorganisms in a process known as putrefaction . Autolysis and putrefaction are

396-542: Is generally suitable for those who cannot eat gluten. Whole wheat, bran and organic matzah are also available. Chocolate -covered matzah is a favorite among children, although some consider it "enriched matzah" and will not eat it during the Passover holiday. A quite different flat confection of chocolate and nuts that resembles matzah is sometimes called "chocolate matzah". Mass-produced matzah contains typically 111 calories per 1-ounce/28g (USDA Nutrient Database), about

440-583: Is known as gebrochts . However, Jews who avoid eating gebrochts will eat cooked matzah dishes on the eighth day of Passover outside the Land of Israel, as the eighth day is of rabbinic and not Torah origin . Sephardim use matzah soaked in water or stock to make pies or lasagne , known as mina , méguena , mayena or Italian : scacchi . Communion wafers used by the Roman Catholic Church as well as in some Protestant traditions for

484-638: Is not acceptable for use at any time during the Passover festival except by the elderly or unwell. Non-Passover matzah may be made with onion, garlic, poppy seed, etc. It can even be made from rice , maize , buckwheat and other non-traditional flours that can never be used for Passover matzah. Some manufacturers produce gluten-free matzah-lookalike made from potato starch , tapioca , and other non-traditional flour to market to those who cannot safely eat gluten , such as those with coeliac disease . The Orthodox Union states that these gluten-free products may be eaten on Passover, but that they do not fulfill

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528-418: Is only used for machine-made matzah. It is possible to hand-bake matzah in shĕmura style from non-shmurah flour—this is a matter of style, it is not actually in any way shĕmura —but such matzah has rarely been produced since the introduction of machine-made matzah.) Haredi Judaism is scrupulous about the supervision of matzah and have the custom of baking their own or at least participating in some stage of

572-558: Is properly listed among the five grains, or whether it resulted from a historical mistranslation. Therefore, some have suggested baking matzah from a mixture of 90% rice flour and 10% wheat flour, for those who can handle eating the small amount of wheat in this mixture. For those who can eat no wheat, eating oat matzah at the Seder is still considered the best option. Matzah dough is quickly mixed and rolled out without an autolyse step as used for leavened breads. Most forms are pricked with

616-428: Is to last more than a day or so, and very limited commercial production is available, and only in the period leading up to Passover. Some versions of the crisper type are available all year. Matzah meal and matzah cake meal is crispy matzah that has been ground very finely. The cake meal has a near flour-like consistency, useful in baking, while the standard matzah meal is somewhat coarser and used in cooking. Matzah meal

660-402: Is used as a flavoring or flavor enhancer. For yeast extract , when this process is triggered by the addition of salt , it is known as plasmolysis. In bread baking, the term (or, more commonly, its French cognate autolyse ) is described as a period of rest following initial mixing of flour and water, before other ingredients (such as salt and yeast) are added to the dough. Doing so makes

704-612: Is used to make matzah balls (kneidles/kneidlach), the principal ingredient of matzah ball soup (kneidlach soup). Sephardic Jews typically cook with matzah itself rather than matzah meal. Matzah that is kosher for Passover is limited in Ashkenazi tradition to plain matzah made from flour and water. The flour may be whole grain or refined grain , but must be made from one of five grains : wheat , spelt , barley , rye , or oat . Some Sephardic communities allow matzah to be made with eggs and/or fruit juice to be used throughout

748-457: Is whether fruit juice, eggs, honey, oil or milk are also deemed to do so within the strict definitions of Jewish laws regarding chametz. The Talmud , Pesachim 35a , states that liquid food extracts do not cause flour to leaven the way that water does. According to this view, flour mixed with other liquids would not need to be treated with the same care as flour mixed with water. The Tosafot (commentaries) explain that such liquids only produce

792-713: The Eucharist are flat, unleavened bread. The main reason for the use of this bread is the belief that, because the Last Supper was described in the Synoptic Gospels as a Passover meal, the unleavened matzah bread was used by Jesus when he held it up and said "this is my body". All Byzantine Rite churches use leavened bread for the Eucharist as this symbolizes the risen Christ. Some Oriental Orthodox and Eastern Catholic Christians use leavened bread, as in

836-496: The Greek αὐτο- 'self' and λύσις 'splitting'. Autolysis is uncommon in living adult organisms and usually occurs in necrotic tissue as enzymes act on components of the cell that would not normally serve as substrates . These enzymes are released due to the cessation of active processes in the cell that provide substrates in healthy, living tissue; autolysis in itself is not an active process. In other words, though autolysis resembles

880-542: The Malabar coast of Kerala , India have the customary celebration of Pesaha in their homes. On the evening before Good Friday, Pesaha bread is made at home. It is made with unleavened flour and they consume a sweet drink made up of coconut milk and jaggery along with this bread. On the Pesaha night, the bread is baked (steamed) immediately after rice flour is mixed with water and they pierce it many times with handle of

924-399: The active process of digestion of nutrients by live cells, the dead cells are not actively digesting themselves as is often claimed, and as the synonym self-digestion suggests. Failure of respiration and subsequent failure of oxidative phosphorylation is the trigger of the autolytic process. The reduced availability and subsequent absence of high-energy molecules that are required to maintain

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968-482: The baking process. Rabbi Haim Halberstam of Sanz ruled in the 19th century that machine-made matzah were chametz . According to that opinion, handmade non- shmurah matzah may be used on the eighth day of Passover outside of the Holy Land. However the non-Hasidic Haredi community of Jerusalem follows the custom that machine-made matzah may be used, with preference to the use of shĕmurah flour, in accordance with

1012-409: The breakdown of lipids, particularly long-chain fatty acids. In the absence of an active electron transport chain and associated cellular processes, there is no metabolic partner for the reducing equivalents in the breakdown of lipids. In terms of autolysis, peroxisomes provide catabolic potential for fatty acids and reactive oxygen species, which are released into the cytosol as the peroxisomal membrane

1056-420: The cell damages membrane-bound intracellular structures including the lysosome and peroxisome . Lysosomes are membrane-bound organelles that typically contain a broad spectrum of enzymes capable of hydrolytic deconstruction of polysaccharides , proteins , nucleic acids , lipids , phosphoric acyl esters, and sulfates. This process requires compartmentalization and segregation of enzymes and substrates via

1100-483: The cellular membrane. For example, the membrane potential of the cell is maintained by the sodium-potassium ATPase pump. Failure of the pump results in loss of membrane potential as sodium ions accumulate within the cell and potassium ions are lost through ion channels. Loss of membrane potential encourages movement of calcium ions into the cell, followed by movement of water into the cell, as driven by osmotic pressure. Water retention, ionic changes, and acidification of

1144-529: The commandment ( mitzvah ) of eating matzah at the Seder, because matzah must be made from one of the five grains (wheat, barley, oat, spelt, and rye). The only one of the five grains that does not contain gluten is oat, but the resulting matzah would be gluten-free only if there were no cross-contamination with gluten-containing grains. In recent years, matzah manufacturers have begun producing gluten-free oat matzah certified kosher for Passover. Additionally, some authorities have expressed doubt about whether oat

1188-443: The dough easier to shape and improves structure. The term was coined by French baking professor Raymond Calvel , who recommended the procedure as a means of reducing kneading time, thereby improving the flavor and color of bread. Calvel argues that long kneading times subject dough to atmospheric oxygen, which bleaches the naturally occurring carotenoids in bread flour, robbing the flour of its natural creamy color and flavor. In

1232-742: The east there is the tradition, based upon the gospel of John , that leavened bread was on the table of the Last Supper. In the Armenian Apostolic Church , the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church and Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church , unleavened bread called qǝddus qurban in Ge'ez , the liturgical language of the Eritreans and Ethiopians, is used for communion. Saint Thomas Christians living on

1276-411: The elderly, infirm, or children, who cannot digest plain matzah; these matzot are considered to be kosher for Passover if prepared otherwise properly. The issue of whether egg matzah is allowed for Passover comes down to whether there is a difference between the various liquids that can be used. Water facilitates a fermentation of grain flour specifically into what is defined as chametz, but the question

1320-494: The evening of the twenty-first day, you are to eat matzo . You are not to eat any chametz with it; for seven days you are to eat with it matzo , the bread of affliction; for you came out of the land of Egypt in haste. Thus you will remember the day you left the land of Egypt as long as you live. For six days you are to eat matzo ; on the seventh day there is to be a festive assembly for Hashem your God; do not do any kind of work. There are numerous explanations behind

1364-407: The holiday, while Ashkenazi Jews do not use such matzah on Passover, except in special circumstances (generally, the sick and elderly). Matzah is mentioned in the Torah several times in relation to The Exodus from Egypt : That night, they are to eat the meat, roasted in the fire; they are to eat it with matzo and maror . From the evening of the fourteenth day of the first month until

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1408-484: The integrity of the cell and maintain homeostasis causes significant changes in the biochemical operation of the cell. Molecular oxygen serves as the terminal electron acceptor in the series of biochemical reactions known as oxidative phosphorylation that are ultimately responsible for the synthesis of adenosine triphosphate , the main source of energy for otherwise thermodynamically unfavorable cellular processes. Failure of delivery of molecular oxygen to cells results in

1452-704: The invention of the first matzah-making machine in France in 1839, cracker-like mass-produced matzah became the most common form in Europe and North America and is now ubiquitous in all Ashkenazic and most Sephardic communities. Yemenite and Iraqi Jews continue to use a form of soft matzah which looks like Greek pita or like a tortilla . Soft matzah is made only by hand, and generally with shmurah flour. Flavored varieties of matzah are produced commercially, such as poppy seed - or onion -flavored. Oat and spelt matzah with kosher certification are produced. Oat matzah

1496-461: The last family-owned matzah bakery in America during their final year at their historic New York City factory. Autolysis (biology)#Use In biology , autolysis , more commonly known as self-digestion , refers to the destruction of a cell through the action of its own enzymes . It may also refer to the digestion of an enzyme by another molecule of the same enzyme. The term derives from

1540-471: The main processes responsible for the decomposition of remains. In the healing of wounds, autolytic debridement can be a helpful process, where the body breaks down and liquifies dead tissue so that it can be washed or carried away. Modern wound dressings that help keep the wound moist can assist in this process. In the food industry, autolysis involves killing yeast and encouraging breakdown of its cells by various enzymes. The resulting autolyzed yeast

1584-410: The message, "Ashkenazi custom is that egg matzah is only allowed for children, elderly and the infirm during Passover." Even amongst those who consider that enriched matzot may not be eaten during Passover, it is permissible to retain it in the home. Chocolate-covered matzah was sold in boxes as a standard product, alongside boxes of egg matzah. The matzah itself is not Hamotzi (meaning that it

1628-400: The piece of matzah takes the place of pizza crust and is topped with melted cheese and sauce; and kosher for Passover cakes and cookies, which are made with matzah meal or a finer variety called "cake meal" that gives them a denser texture than ordinary baked foods made with flour. Hasidic Jews do not cook with matzah, believing that mixing it with water may allow leavening; this stringency

1672-516: The requirement for eating Matzah at the Seder cannot be fulfilled "with [egg] matza." Egg matzah at the seder is not a problem in Sephardic tradition, if it is customary in the community. "Egg (sometimes enriched ) matzah" are matzot usually made with fruit juice , often grape juice or apple juice, instead of water, but not necessarily with eggs themselves. There is a custom among some Ashkenazi Jews not to eat them during Passover, except for

1716-459: The ruling of Rabbi Yosef Haim Sonnenfeld , who ruled that machine-made matzah may be preferable to hand made in some cases. The commentators to the Shulhan `Aruch record that it is the custom of some of Diaspora Jewry to be scrupulous in giving Hallah from the dough used for baking "Matzat Mitzvah" (the shĕmurah matzah eaten during Passover ) to a Kohen child to eat. In Ashkenazi tradition,

1760-413: The same as rye crispbread. Shĕmura ("guarded") matzah ( Hebrew : מַצָּה שְׁמוּרָה matsa shĕmura ) is made from grain that has been under special supervision from the time it was harvested to ensure that no fermentation has occurred, and that it is suitable for eating on the first night of Passover. ( Shĕmura wheat may be formed into either handmade or machine-made matzah, while non- shĕmura wheat

1804-654: The spoon to let out steam so that the bread will not rise (this custom is called "juthante kannu kuthal" in the Malayalam language meaning "piercing the bread according to the custom of Jews"). This bread is cut by the head of the family and shared among the family members. At the end of World War II , the National Jewish Welfare Board had a matzah factory (according to the American Jewish Historical Society , it

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1848-444: The surrounding cytosol. However, the accumulation of products of glycolysis decreases the pH of the cell, reducing this protective effect. Furthermore, lysosomal membranes damaged by water retention in the cell will release lysosomal enzymes into the cytosol. These enzymes are likely to be active due to the decreased cytosolic pH and are thus free to utilize cellular components as substrates. Peroxisomes typically are responsible for

1892-513: The symbolism of matzah: At the Passover seder , simple matzah made of flour and water is mandatory. Sephardic tradition additionally permits the inclusion of eggs in the recipe. The flour must be ground from one of the five grains specified in Jewish law for Passover matzah: wheat, barley, spelt, rye or oat. Per Ashkenazic tradition, matzah made with wine , fruit juice , onion , garlic , etc.,

1936-578: Was probably the Manischewitz matzah factory in New Jersey ) produce matzah in the form of a giant "V" for "Victory" , for shipment to military bases overseas and in the U.S., for Passover seders for Jewish military personnel. Passover in 1945 began on 1 April, when the collapse of the Axis in Europe was clearly imminent; Nazi Germany surrendered five weeks later . Streit's is the story of

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