Motzei Matzah

From Halachipedia
Three handmade Matzahs

How to make the Brachot

  1. One should take the Matzahs the whole one on bottom the broken one in middle and another whole one on top and make the Bracha of HaMotzei. Then one should drop the bottom matzah which is whole and make the Bracha of Al Achilat Matzah. [1]
  2. Then one should break off a piece from the top and middle Matzahs to have a Kezayit from each. [2] The best way to do that is to eat both pieces simultaneously. If one is not able to eat both together, one should eat the piece from the top Matza first [3]

Leaning while eating the Matzah

  1. The matzah should be eaten while leaning. [4]

Dipping the Matzah in salt

  1. The Sephardic minhag is to dip the matzah in salt and the Ashkenazic minhag is not to dip the matzah in salt. [5]

Measuring a Kezayit

  1. Most permit measuring the required amounts for the Mitzvah of eating Matzah. [6]Some are strict to require one to measure before Shabbat. [7]

How much Matzah should one have?

  1. See the Required Amount of Matzah and Wine for the Seder page.

For someone who is unable

  1. For someone who can't eat the appropriate amount of Matzah according to Ashkenazim, should have at least 17 cc (which is 9 rows on a machine matzah). [8]
  2. For someone who it’s difficult to eat that much Matzah one may dip the matzah in water for a second and then eat it. [9]

How to eat it

  1. Since our Matzahs are thin and hard to eat 2 Kezayitim in Kedi Achilat Pras one should eat then one after another. [10]

Ownership over the Matzah

  1. The minhag is that one doesn’t need to acquire the Matzahs from the homeowner, however, the pious maintain this practice. [11]

Soft Matzahs

  1. Some say that even for Ashkenazim it's permissible to have soft Matzahs and for those that it's difficult to eat hard matzah it's preferable to eat Soft Matzah. [12]

Machine Matzah

  1. Many poskim permit eating machine matzah to fulfill the mitzvah of eating Matzah at the seders, if the matzah was made with intent to be used for the mitzvah of Matzah. [13]
  2. There’s no difference in preference in having whole wheat or white flour matzah. [14]

Egg Matzah

  1. According to Ashkenazim one should not eat egg matzah on Pesach unless one is ill or weak. However, according to Sephardim it's permissible to eat but one can not eat it for the mitzvah of Matzah at the Seder, however it's praiseworthy to avoid it. [15]

Sources

  1. ↑ S”A 475:1, Mishna Brurah 475:2
  2. ↑ S”A 475:1
  3. ↑ S”A HaRav 475:6-7
  4. ↑ S”A 475:1
  5. ↑ S”A and Rama 475:1, Mishna Brurah 475:4 explains that Ashkenazim don’t dip the matzah in salt so that the matzah can be seen as poor man’s bread.
  6. ↑ Shemirat Shabbat KeHilchata 29:40 (also in Halichot Shlomo 9:7), Petach Dvir 306:7
  7. ↑ Natai Gavriel (vol 2, 90:30) quoting S”A HaRav
  8. ↑ Halichot Shlomo (pg 214 note 55)
  9. ↑ Halichot Shlomo (pg 282 note 274), Chaye Adam 129:2
  10. ↑ Halichot Shlomo 9:41
  11. ↑ Halichot Shlomo 9:4
  12. ↑ Rav Hershel Schachter YUTorah.org between minutes 58 and 66. Rav Shlomo Zalman Auerbach in Halichot Shlomo 9:80 says although in the past ashkenazim may have eaten it there is no tradition anymore to permit it. Rav Asher Weiss at the end of the Minchat Asher Haggada siman 15 writes that really it is permissible but there may be some concern that since we aren't experts in making them soft it may become chametz.
  13. ↑ Rav Schachter on OU Pre-Pesach Webcast 5770 between minutes 75:15 and 81:00. In a shiur on yutorah.org, Rav Schachter discussed the issues of Machine Matzah at length. The major that was whether the pressing of the button to start the machine is considered enough of an action of a person to consider the matzah to be baked lishma. He concluded that it many poskim consider it to be acceptable Shemurah Matzah. He also quotes Rav Soloveitchik saying that he found machine matzot to be preferable for the mitzvah of eating matzah at the seder. Haggadah of the Roshei Yeshivah (pg 2) records the practice of Rav Isser Zalman Meltzer to eat machine matzah for the seder.
  14. ↑ Rav Schachter on OU Pre-Pesach Webcast 5771 between minutes 101 and 101:30
  15. ↑ Daily Halacha by Rabbi Mansour. Kitzur S"A 117:6 writes that the elderly and sick may eat Matzah Ashirah which is made from fruit juice, eggs, milk, or wine as long as no water was added. However, if there's not such a great need one shouldn't bake Matzah Ashirah.
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