27 of Our Favorite Passover Recipes to Serve at Your Seder (2024)

One of the oldest holidays, Passover is also among the most sacred for the Jewish community. Our Passover recipes include traditional and modern takes on Jewish holiday dishes like matzo ball soup, brisket, gelfite fish, and crisp salads that are suited to the traditional Passover meal, the seder.

The seder is centered on several symbolic foods. The bitter herb symbolizes the bitterness of slavery on the seder plate. Haroset, a mixture of apples or other fruit mixed with nuts and spices, is usually served as a condiment; it signifies both the hardships of enslavement and the sweetness of liberation. Matzo, an unleavened flatbread, replaces bread, since yeasted or fermented foods are not allowed during Passover.

01of 27

Halibut and Salmon Terrine with Aioli and Horseradish

27 of Our Favorite Passover Recipes to Serve at Your Seder (1)

This pretty pink terrine is a fresh way to start the seder meal. It's a make-ahead appetizer that's sure to become a tradition at your Passover table.

View Recipe

02of 27

Wine-Braised Brisket

27 of Our Favorite Passover Recipes to Serve at Your Seder (2)

A few classic ingredients—mustard, lemon, and dry white wine (not the usual red)—give brisket a lively spring flavor that's just right for Passover.

View Recipe

03of 27

Dandelion, Red Onion, and Walnut Salad

27 of Our Favorite Passover Recipes to Serve at Your Seder (3)

Pleasantly bitter dandelion greens are combined with sweet roasted red onion and garlicky toasted nuts in this colorful salad. A simple lemon vinaigrette finishes the dish.

View Recipe

04of 27

Salt-and-Pepper Matzo

27 of Our Favorite Passover Recipes to Serve at Your Seder (4)

For a five-minute passover side, brush matzo with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper as well as sumac and thyme. Simply bake until warmed through and serve.

View Recipe

05of 27

Herb-Coated Beef Tenderloin with Roasted-Garlic Aioli

27 of Our Favorite Passover Recipes to Serve at Your Seder (5)

Our herb-coated beef tenderloin is the easy and delicious Passover entrée your holiday table deserves. It's served with a make-ahead creamy garlic aioli that can't be beat.

View Recipe

06of 27

Potato-Carrot Pancakes

27 of Our Favorite Passover Recipes to Serve at Your Seder (6)

Matzo meal replaces flour in these Passover-friendly latkes.

View Recipe

08of 27

Salmon and Cod Gefilte Fish

27 of Our Favorite Passover Recipes to Serve at Your Seder (8)

Our modern take on the Passover classic that is gefilte fish transforms this often divisive dish into elegant quenelles. The egg-shaped bundles are made with salmon and cod rather than the traditional carp or pike.

View Recipe

09of 27

Chestnut Haroset

27 of Our Favorite Passover Recipes to Serve at Your Seder (9)

No Passover seder plate is complete without charoset. Our version of this crunchy, cinnamon-apple chutney puts a twist on tradition by subbing in chestnuts for the usual walnuts. The result is a rich, buttery flavor that balances savory and sweet, and pairs perfectly with matzoh. Save time by assembling it a day ahead—the acid in the wine will keep the cut fruit from browning—then relish every bite.

View Recipe

10of 27

Carrot-Beet Horseradish

27 of Our Favorite Passover Recipes to Serve at Your Seder (10)

Definitely the most colorful condiment around! This quick, two-ingredient accompaniment to gefilte fish can also be used with any dish that needs some zing.

View Recipe

11of 27

Haroset-Braised Short Ribs

27 of Our Favorite Passover Recipes to Serve at Your Seder (11)

You can braise these short ribs up to five days in advance. Cook the apples and carrots in the spiced Manischewitz braising liquid just before serving, then finish with toasted walnuts and fresh parsley.

View Recipe

12of 27

Potato Kugel Gratin

27 of Our Favorite Passover Recipes to Serve at Your Seder (12)

This riff on kugel, a traditional Ashkenazi dish, swaps the usual egg noodles for russet potatoes. The casserole gets its glorious golden-brown crust from matzo meal (and a few minutes of broiling).

View Recipe

13of 27

Test Kitchen's Favorite Matzo Ball Soup

27 of Our Favorite Passover Recipes to Serve at Your Seder (13)

A classic, our favorite matzo ball soup uses an enriched homemade broth that simmers for hours, producing a rich base. Each portion stars one big, fluffy dumpling.

View Recipe

Bibb Lettuce Salad with Horseradish Dressing

27 of Our Favorite Passover Recipes to Serve at Your Seder (14)

The bite of horseradish is unmistakable in this salad, but it's mellowed by tender, subtly sweet Bibb lettuce leaves, hard-boiled eggs, and even a little honey.

View Recipe

15of 27

Salmon Rillettes

27 of Our Favorite Passover Recipes to Serve at Your Seder (15)

Here's a simple recipe for an appetizer that's just right for Passover. Plus it's a dish that can be made ahead. Store-bought smoked salmon is combined with sautéed onions, fresh dill, mayo, mustard, and lemon juice and zest in in the food processor. The result is a delicious spread for matzo.

View Recipe

16of 27

Meyer Lemon Brisket with Pomegranate Gremolata

27 of Our Favorite Passover Recipes to Serve at Your Seder (16)

Brisket is the mainstay of a Passover meal. Kick it up with a lemon twist—Meyer lemons have a sweeter, less acidic taste than the regular variety. And the pomegranate gremolata adds punch and color to the seder table.

View Recipe

17of 27

Potato, Parsnip, and Herb-Oil Puree

27 of Our Favorite Passover Recipes to Serve at Your Seder (17)

Potassium-rich parsnips lend an earthy sweetness to this potato mash. The herb-and-cinnamon-infused oil gives an additional burst of flavor.

View Recipe

18of 27

Herb Relish (Schug) and Matzo

27 of Our Favorite Passover Recipes to Serve at Your Seder (18)

Although the bitter herb at the seder table—meant to symbolize the bitterness of slavery—is often horseradish or romaine lettuce, in the Sephardic (or Mediterranean) Jewish tradition, it can also be an assertive green, one with bite. That's why we've included a herb relish made with parsley and cilantro, as well as a salad composed of escarole, radicchio, and frisée, served with matzo.

View Recipe

19of 27

Haroset-Stuffed Hens with Gravy and Sweet Potatoes

27 of Our Favorite Passover Recipes to Serve at Your Seder (19)

A mixture of apples or other fruit, nuts, and spices, haroset signifies both the hardships of slavery (its texture evokes the bricks and mortar used by the Israelites) and the sweetness of liberation. While it's commonly served as a condiment (much like chutney), here we use it to flavor the stuffing tucked into the Cornish hens.

View Recipe

20of 27

Arugula Salad with Radishes and Caper Vinaigrette

27 of Our Favorite Passover Recipes to Serve at Your Seder (20)

Arugula and radishes symbolize the traditional bitter element on a seder plate in this simple salad. The elegant dish gets an extra-green glow from celery and parsley leaves and a tangy punch from a lemon-caper vinaigrette.

View Recipe

21of 27

Matzo Spinach Lasagna

27 of Our Favorite Passover Recipes to Serve at Your Seder (21)

Matzo stands in for the noodles in this unleavened lasagna. Parmesan, lemon zest, and nutmeg perk up the ricotta filling while fresh lemon juice peps up the frozen spinach. The resulting layered dish is irresistible.

View Recipe

22of 27

Matzo Latkes

27 of Our Favorite Passover Recipes to Serve at Your Seder (22)

Though latkes are typically a Hanukkah treat, they also make a perfect accompaniment to the seder meal. This recipe uses egg matzo and is served with smoked salmon and homemade horseradish cream.

View Recipe

23of 27

Braised Brisket with Carrots, Garlic, and Parsnips

27 of Our Favorite Passover Recipes to Serve at Your Seder (23)

Garlic pulls double duty in this brisket recipe—it's minced for the braising liquid and roasted whole to serve alongside the meat. A bevy of vegetables—parsnips, baby carrots, and red pearl onions—round out the platter.

View Recipe

24of 27

Wilted Dandelion Greens with Toasted Matzo Crumbles

27 of Our Favorite Passover Recipes to Serve at Your Seder (24)

Another recipe inspired by the "bitter herb" on the traditional seder plate, this salad calls for dandelion greens which are at their best in early spring. Sweet golden raisins, toasted matzo crumbles, and a warm mustard vinaigrette complete the dish.

View Recipe

25of 27

Zucchini-Parmesan Pancakes

27 of Our Favorite Passover Recipes to Serve at Your Seder (25)

Matzo meal helps bind these zucchini and potato cakes together. Parmesan, parsley, and dill (plus a touch of lemon juice and garlic) give them fresh flavor.

View Recipe

26of 27

Matzo-Ball Soup with Leeks

27 of Our Favorite Passover Recipes to Serve at Your Seder (26)

Seltzer and baking powder keep the matzo balls nice and fluffy while schmaltz (chicken fat for the uninitiated) adds richness to this take on the Passover classic.

View Recipe

27of 27

Tzimmes

27 of Our Favorite Passover Recipes to Serve at Your Seder (27)

This delicious stew—appropriately named tzimmes (Yiddish slang for "a big fuss")—is a Passover tradition. Our version gets its dulcet flavor from sweet potatoes, dried apricots, and prunes.

View Recipe

27 of Our Favorite Passover Recipes to Serve at Your Seder (2024)

FAQs

What is the typical Passover Seder menu? ›

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.

What are the 4 cups of Seder meal? ›

The first is for Kiddush (קידוש), the second is for 'Maggid' (מגיד), the third is for Birkat Hamazon (ברכת המזון) and the fourth is for Hallel (הלל). The Four Cups represent the four expressions of deliverance promised by God Exodus 6:6–7: "I will bring out," "I will deliver," "I will redeem," and "I will take."

What are the 5 forbidden foods on Passover? ›

The tradition goes back to the 13th century, when custom dictated a prohibition against wheat, barley, oats, rice, rye and spelt, Rabbi Amy Levin said on NPR in 2016.

What did Jesus eat on Passover? ›

If the Last Supper was a Passover dinner, held by Jews then as now to commemorate the exodus from Egypt, the meal would have likely included lamb. Scripture provides us with another clue: unleavened bread and wine were also on the menu.

What not to eat 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.

What meat to eat at Passover? ›

The menu may differ depending on family tradition, but some popular choices include brisket, roasted chicken, gefilte fish and potato kugel. For dessert, many opt for a flourless chocolate cake, macaroons made with coconut, or something made with matzo (like a Matzo Truffle Tart or Berry Matzo Crumble).

How to Seder for dummies? ›

The seder then proceeds through its 15 steps:
  1. Kadesh (sanctification of the day) ...
  2. Urchatz (handwashing with no blessing) ...
  3. Karpas (eating the green vegetable) ...
  4. Yachatz (breaking the matzah) ...
  5. Maggid (telling the story) ...
  6. Rachtzah (handwashing with a blessing) ...
  7. Motzi (blessing before eating matzah) ...
  8. Matzah (eating the matzah)
Mar 26, 2016

What is the last food eaten at the Passover seder? ›

If you are talking about the Seder, the very ritualized meal done on the first night of Passover (or the first two nights, outside of Israel), then the requirement is that the dinner part of the proceedings, and the piece of matzah eaten right after the dinner, must be completed before “chatzot,” which normally is ...

What are the four questions of the Passover meal? ›

Ma Nishtana (Hebrew: מה נשתנה) It is a section at the beginning of the Passover Haggadah known as the The Four Kushiyot, The Four Questions or "Why is this night different from all other nights?", traditionally asked via song by the youngest capable child attending Passover Seder.

Which cup did Jesus not drink? ›

The fourth is the Cup of Restoration (“I will protect you”). Jesus does not drink from this cup and tells His followers that He will not drink from it until He drinks it new with us in His Father's kingdom.

Which wine is kosher for Passover? ›

Kosher-for-passover wines must be made in a cellar that's free of bread, dough, or grain products, or, perhaps most importantly, leavening agents (such as any non-kosher non-indigenous yeasts, which are often added in wineries to kickstart fermentation.

How many glasses of wine do you drink on Passover? ›

During a Seder, each adult diner drinks four cups of wine, representing the redemption of the Israelites from slavery under the Egyptians. A fifth cup is reserved for the prophet Elijah in hopes he will visit during the celebration; representing future redemption, it is left unconsumed.

Do you eat eggs on Passover? ›

A hard-boiled egg, usually roasted, is often placed on the Seder plate. Its roundness alludes to the cycle of rebirth and renewal, while it's burnt, sometimes cracked shell serves as a reminder of ancient sacrificial offerings.

What are the six items on the Passover plate? ›

At a Passover seder, the following traditional items are on the table: Seder plate: The seder plate (there's usually one per table) holds at least six of the ritual items that are talked about during the seder: the shankbone, karpas, chazeret, charoset, maror, and egg.

Are potatoes for Passover? ›

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

What should you not eat 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. In fairly recent history, it's been overturned.

References

Top Articles
Latest Posts
Article information

Author: Catherine Tremblay

Last Updated:

Views: 5328

Rating: 4.7 / 5 (67 voted)

Reviews: 90% of readers found this page helpful

Author information

Name: Catherine Tremblay

Birthday: 1999-09-23

Address: Suite 461 73643 Sherril Loaf, Dickinsonland, AZ 47941-2379

Phone: +2678139151039

Job: International Administration Supervisor

Hobby: Dowsing, Snowboarding, Rowing, Beekeeping, Calligraphy, Shooting, Air sports

Introduction: My name is Catherine Tremblay, I am a precious, perfect, tasty, enthusiastic, inexpensive, vast, kind person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.