Passover / Unleavened Bread Meal Ideas

Passover / Unleavened Bread Meal Ideas

Shalom! The first three High Holidays- Passover, Unleavened Bread, and First Fruits are almost here! The high holidays definitely revolve around feasting and gathering – gathering with the Lord and with each other. These three holidays in particular all involve the omission of leavening from our meals and the addition of unleavened bread for seven days. 

When our family first started celebrating, we didn’t know what to eat during this time. If you are unsure as well, I have created a list of different meal ideas for the Passover meal, as well as, Chol HaMoed / the weekdays or intermediate days of Unleavened Bread. 

How to Keep the Feast

During Passover, Unleavened Bread, and Firstfruits we eat matzah/ unleavened bread and we stay away from all leavened foods for eight days. When my family first started keeping this high holidays we weren’t sure what to eat. There are many traditions and opinions as to what is acceptable to eat and what to avoid. However, the Bible says to not eat leavened foods(foods with yeast, baking powder, or baking soda), and remove all the leavening from our homes before the festival. In addition to this, the Bible tells us to eat bitter herbs, to drink wine/ grape juice, and to eat matzah or unleavened bread every day of the feast of Unleavened Bread. 

We avoid all leavened foods and eat either store-bought Matzah or we make our own to eat for every day of the feast. We eat pasta, and rice, and beans, and have fun figuring out what delicious unleavened meals to eat during the week. The recipes I share in this blog post are all unleavened and delicious. The Feast of Unleavened Bread doesn’t mean we have to eat unpleasant foods that leave us wishing for the feast to end. But rather this is a time of celebration and remembrance and that can be expressed in the food as well. 

Meat

The staple of any great dinner, especially a feast, is meat. We are commanded to have roasted lamb for Passover. My family and I love to roast the lamb with dried thyme and rosemary and cook it until it is very tender for our Passover meal. During the rest of the feast, we love to have roasted beef or chicken with roasted veggies. 

Texas Smoked Brisket by House of Nash Eats

Slow Roasted Leg of Lamb by Recipe Tin Eats

Roasted Chicken and Gravy by The Cozy Cook

Matzah 

Matzah or unleavened bread is the one thing we are commanded to eat every day of the festival. The storebought kind is tasteless, so my sister makes her own for us! She makes either tortillas, crackers, or pitas chips for the whole family to eat during the festival. We love to eat the unleavened tortillas with ground lamb to make gyros or eat the crackers with hummus.

Homemade Flour Tortillas by Munaty Cooking

Rosemary Sea Salt Crackers by Fox and Briar

Unleavened Bread (Matzah) by Alyona’s Cooking 

Bitter Herbs

Bitter herbs are something we eat to remind us of the bitterness of slavery in Egypt. Last year we ate parsley, this year we are planning on having either dandelion leaves or radicchio.

Spruce Eats “What is Maror”

Wine/ Grape Juice

The grape juice reminds us of the blood of the lamb that was placed on the doorposts so that the angel of death would pass over our homes.

Homemade Grape Juice by The Kitchen McCabe

The Days of the Feast of Unleavened Bread meal ideas

So far we have covered the four Biblically required elements of the Passover meal- roasted lamb, bitter herbs, matzah, and wine/ grape juice. But what about Chol Hamoed- the days in-between the sabbath rest day of the feast of Unleavened bread? When my family first started keeping Passover, we were unsure what to eat during these days, meals that included matzah, excluded leavening, and were still delicious and filling. 

Here are some of my favorite suggestions!

Breakfast

Many breakfast foods include leavening in the ingredients, so you might need to make an adjustment in the breakfast department for this week. Yogurt with fresh fruit and granola over top is a favorite breakfast of mine. This is my family’s go-to recipe for granola, we love to eat it as cereal on Shabbat. Homemade granola bars are fun if you are on the go, and homemade crepes are delicious with cream cheese and strawberries or baked with cheese and smoked turkey. 

Healthy Granola by Cookie and Kate

Trail Mix Granola Bars by Downshiftology

Easy Crepes by I Heart Naptime

Grain bowls

If you look up recipes or instructions for Passover grains are usually avoided, however, the Bible doesn’t say we can’t have grains during this week. Grains are a great replacement for bread for lunch or dinner. I love grain bowls especially with farro – an ancient grain that is similar to barley, but you could also use quinoa or rice instead. They are a great way to use up leftover meat or they can be paired with roasted salmon or chicken. 

Mediterranean Hummus Bowl by Feel Good Foodie

Farro Bowl Vegetable Bowl by The Kitchn

Chicken Fajita Power Bowl by Skinny Ms

Pasta

Pasta is another food that many avoid during this time, but again most pasta does not have leavening in it, so it is fine to eat during the feast days. I’m not usually a pasta person, but if you can’t eat bread, pasta is amazing! Chicken alfredo pasta is delicious, especially with broccoli. Beef or veggie lasagna is delicious and of course, mac and cheese is a must-have!

Chicken Alfredo pasta by The Food Charlatan

Easy Lasagna by Taste of Lizzyt

Perfect Southern Mac and Cheese by Basil and Bubbly

Soups

In the springtime during these semi-warm days, spring soups are perfect to pair with matzah. Most black-eyed peas and split pea soups have ham, so maybe try using beef sausage or leave the meat out entirely! I love black-eyed peas and I hope to make it this Passover!

Instant Pot Black Eyed Peas by Flour on My Face

Split Pea Soup by Two Peas and Their Pod

Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup by Averie Cooks

Desserts

I love to eat a cookie as a mid-day or night-time treat. Of course, I can’t have them during Passover so I had to get creative in terms of desserts. Fun dessert ideas are ice cream, fruit galettes – a free-form tart, or a fruit pie- my favorites are cherry and apple. 

Dutch Apple Pie by The Diary of a Real Housewife

Cherry Pie by Mels Kitchen Cafe

Blueberry Crumble Pie by Saving Dessert

That’s it, those were my meal ideas for Passover and the days of Unleavened Bread. I hope you gained some ideas for your holiday season. Let me know which meal was your favorite! Have a wonderful Passover. Shalom!

Read More

What is Passover?

Scripture Reading for Passover

Scripture Reading for First Fruits

Scripture Reading for Shavuot

6 thoughts on “Passover / Unleavened Bread Meal Ideas”

  • Most High blessings my sister. I found your site as I was searching for Passover meal ideas. First of all, I’d like to thank you for putting together this wonderful site as a point of reference and understanding.

    As I scrolled down and saw you post on why you no longer believe in Jesus Christ, I felt the urge to reach out to you one way or the other to share further with you.

    Your view is a common solution that can be reached by many if we follow the Eurocentric version of Christianity.

    This is a polluted, corrupted and false gospel preached in the churches, to which we are trying to wake up all who will listen.

    First of all, the first and true Christians in its original form came out of Africa, and all kept the feasts of the Most High. After the death of Christ, they never stopped overserving the feasts. They were all Hebrews and kept the laws and customs of the Most High given through Moses.

    They never deviated from it. What they taught was that forgiveness of sins was now through Christ, who represented the sacrificial lamb, which he was, and that through him (the Lamb), man could be redeemed from his fall in the garden, his sins, and can be returned back to the Father.

    Just for some understanding, There is God the Father and God the Son. They are two separate beings and work together. The Son does the work of the Father, and this is why he is seated at the right hand of the father. When you study the scriptures, you suddenly start to realise it flips between the Son and the Father speaking.

    Jesus was given the job to redeem mankind back to the Father, and surprisingly is the one the Israelites dealt with in the Old Testament (Covenant).

    Isa 48:12 – Hearken unto me, O Jacob and Israel, my called; I am he; I am the first, I also am the last.
    Tools

    Isa 48:13 – Mine hand also hath laid the foundation of the earth, and my right hand hath spanned the heavens: when I call unto them, they stand up together.

    Unchecked Copy BoxIsa 48:14 – All ye, assemble yourselves, and hear; which among them hath declared these things? The LORD hath loved him: he will do his pleasure on Babylon, and his arm shall be on the Chaldeans.
    Tools

    Isa 48:15 – I, even I, have spoken; yea, I have called him: I have brought him, and he shall make his way prosperous.
    Tools

    Isa 48:16 – Come ye near unto me, hear ye this; I have not spoken in secret from the beginning; from the time that it was, there am I: and now the Lord GOD, and his Spirit, hath sent me.

    We are all in this journey together. I came out of modern Christianity just as the pandemic hit and the Most High through His Son has shown me so much. I am
    now a disciple of the true Christ who looks like you and me, black and beautiful, preaching the gospel (message) of the Kingdom of the Father.

    I would love the opportunity to share with you further of what Christ represented and the role he played in redeeming man back to the Father (Most High God Almighty).

    Pleas let me know if there is indeed any opportunity for this and I thank the Most High for his continued love, mercy and grace.

    • Shalom Daniel! I’m glad the post was helpful for you!

      I follow the Hebrew Bible and not the NT. The Hebrew Bible says that there isn’t any one beside God. He doesn’t have a son and we don’t need any one else to “stand in the gap” to redeem us back to the father. All we have to do is pray and repent and God will forgive us of our sins, we don’t need anyone else(Deuteronomy 32:39; Isaiah 23:12; Isaiah 43:11; 45:15; 22 – 24; Hosea 13:4). Yahweh himself is our savior, redeemer, and deliverer and there isn’t any one beside Him, next to Him, or with Him (Deuteronomy 4:35; 32; 39; Isaiah 37: 16; 43: 10-11; 44:6; 45:5-6; 14-21; 46:9). All we need to do is follow the commandments of God with our whole heart (Deuteronomy 4:6; 6:4) for in it is our salvation(Deuteronomy 6:25). Shalom!

  • I am a Hebrew also. Just coming into Yehovah great plan promise and understanding.
    I am so grateful to finally understanding all His works
    Thank you for the information.
    I have been attending Shabbot and this will be my first passover with friends 🙂

    • Shalom sister! Yes, I’m soooo glad God allowed us to understand His word on a deeper level!

      That’s awesome! I forward to celebrating Shabbat every week and Passover is my favorite High Holiday. I hope you had a wonderful Passover celebration! 🙂

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