Matzo Brei Recipe – Classic Jewish Comfort Food for Breakfast, Brunch or Brinner
A few years ago, my hubby and I drove over to one of our favorite Los Angeles breakfast spots, Factor’s Famous Deli on Pico Boulevard. Factor’s is a quintessential deli with a big menu full of American-style Jewish delicacies. Usually, when we go to a deli, I order the same delicious breakfast—toasted egg bagel, cream cheese, smoked salmon, capers and tomatoes. It’s sinfully yummy. But for some reason, on this occasion, I felt like trying something different. One dish stuck out to me, one I’d never tried before but had always been curious about…
Matzo Brei.
Now, I’ve been cooking Jewish food for several years, but because of my husband’s ancestry and birthplace I’ve focused more on the Sephardic side of the cuisine. Certain Ashkenazi dishes are foreign to me. While this dish is made by both Sephardic and Ashkenazi Jews, it’s more of an Ashkenazi favorite. The only thing I knew about matzo brei was that it contained eggs and matzo. I like both eggs and matzo—the idea of the two being scrambled together was intriguing.
Not knowing any better, I’d always thought the dish was pronounced matzo bree. My hubby corrected me.
“It’s pronounced matzo brigh,” he said. “And it’s delicious. You should try it. It’s Stephen Spielberg’s favorite breakfast.”
How my husband knew that, I don’t know. So brei rhymes with try, huh? Feeling adventurous, I decided to try it and see what I was missing. The waitress came to take our order.
“I’ll have the matzo brei,” I said proudly, my pronunciation pitch-perfect.
“Would you like it salty or sweet?” she asked.
Yikes! I was caught off guard. “People eat it sweet?”
“Sure,” she said. “Some people like it with sugar. And some like it salty. It’s up to you.”
I was totally confused, but the thought of sweet eggs made me a little queasy. “Uhh, I guess I’ll have it salty?”
“Great,” she replied. “I’ll bring you a side of sour cream and applesauce, too.”
Sour cream and applesauce? With eggs? Maybe this breakfast experiment wasn’t such a great idea. But I wasn’t about to chicken out. I was in it to win it.
After about ten minutes, the waitress brought me a plate of matzo brei. It looked harmless enough, and it smelled good. I decided to dig in.
With my first bite, I tried the eggs and matzo on their own. Yum, I thought. Second bite, I tasted the eggs and matzo with a dab of sour cream on top. Double yum. Finally, I tried a bite with everything… eggs, matzo, sour cream, and applesauce.
Have mercy. I’m in matzo brei heaven.
Now I understand why some people like this dish sweet. After that first taste, I ended up piling on the applesauce. There’s something about that added sweetness that really enhances the egg/matzo mixture. I cleaned my plate. It’s the perfect comfort food, and it stuck with me all day… I skipped lunch.
What does matzo brei mean?
Matzo brei aka matzah brei, pronounce matzo brigh, as my husband so lovingly told me, translates to fried matzo since it’s fried in butter.
What is a typical Jewish breakfast?
While there isn’t a “typical” Jewish breakfast, there are some things that come to mind when you think of Jewish breakfast.. bagels and lox, matzo brei, french toast, blintzes – all of the Jewish daily staples. In Israel it’s also common to eat shakshuka and salads made from fresh produce and a simple olive oil dressing.
Fast forward to now. Matzo brei has become a regular part of our kosher for Passover meal rotation. It’s a great way to use up the extra matzo from the Seder. We eat it for breakfast, brunch and brinner. It’s so adaptable and tasty, we actually look forward to it all year!
How do you like your matzo brei?
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Matzo Brei
Ingredients
- 2 large eggs
- 1 sheet matzo or egg matzo
- 1 tablespoon milk or water
- 1 tablespoon butter
- Salt and pepper
Optional Extras
- Applesauce, sour cream, sugar, cinnamon, apples, nuts… you can even get creative and add grated cheese or diced veggies.
NOTES
Instructions
- Add eggs to a bowl and scramble with a whisk along with 1 tbsp milk or water until the eggs are nice and fluffy.Run a sheet of matzo under running hot water for 20-60 seconds until it just begins to soften. The amount of time you'll need to keep it under the water depends on the type of matzo you're using. Let it get soft, but don’t let it turn mushy! Shake off the excess water and reserve the matzo.
- Melt a tablespoon of butter in a skillet or frying pan over medium heat.
- Break the matzo into small pieces and place them in the skillet. Sauté the matzo pieces over medium heat for about a minute, until they are evenly coated with butter.
- Pour the scrambled egg mixture over the matzo pieces. Stir the eggs with a spatula until they are well combined with the matzo. Cook the eggs for about 2 minutes over medium, flipping and stirring continuously—don’t let the eggs sit, or they will overcook. You want the eggs to be cooked soft- not runny, but just barely cooked. Overcooked or browned eggs ruin the flavor entirely. As you are cooking, sprinkle in salt and pepper to taste. This would also be the time to add sugar, if you want a sweeter matzo brei.
- Serve the matzo brei immediately with a small side of applesauce and sour cream, or maple syrup if you like.
Lori Day says
This is terrific and I wanted to let you know that my Jewish Mom made me something similar called Matzoh Pancakes. Basically the same thing, but using Matzoh Farfel, soaking it in water for a few minutes then combine with eggs. And salt. Butter a pan and make a big thick pancake. When Browned it’s done !
She topped mine with Cinnamon Sugar or Maple Syrup. It was the best!!
Jonathan says
Growing up in a yiddish-language-loving, gentile family, we called this dish “furshlugginer matzos”. Who knew this was a real dish!
Kristof says
Try it with maple syrup!
Anne says
I have no idea where this came from but my mother and her sisters broke up the matzo into bite-sized pieces, put the pieces in a wooden bowl (she claimed it must be wooden), poured boiling water (must be a full boil according to Mum) over the matzo and let it sit for a few minutes. After draining the water out, she added the eggs, mixed it thoroughly and then dumped the mixture into the pan. I have no idea what happened at that point since the whole wooden bowl/boiling water schtick bored me to death as a kid. Note: After Mum’s death a few years back, I threw away that wooden bowl and now regret it out of nostalgia.
Anna says
Perfect.
Anna Rayne-Levi
Paul Shaviv says
Excellent easy recipe – light, sugar-free, adaptable etc. I used sour cream in the egg mixture; threw in some left-over lox in the sauté. You will need more butter to sauté the matzah. Sauté a little longer if you want more brittle matzah – to taste.
Celia says
This is not the way my mother makes it- she soaks it in water and then the egg mixture and then fries it. But it tastes way better than what she has been making so I’m happy I tried it! I put both salt and sugar in the pan. I also used 2 sheets of matzah. Now I’m eating it with some maple syrup. Definitely the way I will be making it in the future.
Sharon Hamilton says
I love , love , love matzo Brei. I will eat it anytime. But I make it differently. I break the matzo and soak it in warm water and the squeeze or trail the extra water. then add it to the mixed eggs and salt and pepper. fry it in melted butter. Yumm. No one in my family likes is but then they weren’t raised on it. I will try it your way and see how it compares.
AL says
Growing up my dad would make this occasionally. He always stir fried onions first. I would consider that essential honestly.
Tori Avey says
Depends on if you’re going savory or sweet. 🙂
Jennifer Hodell says
Your recipes are outstanding!! The same goodness and taste as my mother’s cooking. I’ve made the Matzo ball soup (floaters), brisket, potato pancakes and now the matzo brie. Awesome ?
Tori Avey says
Glad to hear it!!
G says
My Grandmother and my Father made it this way: break up matzo into small pieces and cover with water for about a minute, then drain and press to extract as much water as possible. Move to one side, add 1 egg per sheet of matzo and whisk with a fork until liquid, then stir to combine eggs and matzo. Add salt/pepper (generously). Heat schmatz or neutral oil until hot, add matzo mixture and cook to desired doneness. Can make pancake style or scrambled. Serve with preserves or horseradish. Much later, saw deli’s serve it with maple syrup (try it, it’s good). I like to saute diced onions or scallions and add it to the matzo/egg mixture before frying. When scrambling, I like to add preserves to mixture before frying, then scramble. Look, this is Jewish French Toast, anything you can do with French Toast you can do with Fried Matzo.
SSL says
What’s this brei stuff? I have been eating FRIED matzo for 50 years and about ten years ago I start hearing matzo brei. About the same time the Nyfat started getting hard to find – yeah I know, for good reasons.
I agree with others that mention chicken fat for frying matzo. Since Nyfat went away I found a mix of butter and oil with some onion powder works very good but schmaltz is best IMO.
Like some Cajun recipe, everybody has their own take and they are all good:
4 eggs with 5 sheets. Slight water soak, just let some water run over the matzos but also let the matzo soak in the egg mix for a few minutes before frying in LOTS of butter/oil/schmaltz. Only spice is some onion powder and kosher salt – serve with some type of berry preserves.
Dan says
My Mom always used onion and garlic powder with it, and then you put on a bunch of butter when it’s all done. I’ve never heard of sour cream or applesauce or sweet or anything with it. I guess I’m trying different fried matzoh versions for a while…
Henry Ballon says
I use a hinged electric grill – raised upper grill and fixed bottom grill. Oil both plates, preheat, and ladle on and spread out brei mixture. Close, heat till browned as desired. Remove, slice and enjoy.
MJS says
My matzah Brie is different. Break up 2-3 sheets matzah into small pieces and cover with boiling water for about a minute. Drain off water and squeeze the pieces to get more water out. Beat 2-3 eggs well and pour over the softened pieces. Wait for the eggs to begin to soak in. No milk, since historically these would have been cooked in chicken fat. Add oil to pan and heat. Once hot, add large spoonfuls of batter and cook, flipping, until brown and crispy on both sides.
Robin Orliner says
I make matzoh brei like my mother taught me (and she learned from her Lithuanian mother). It’s a different technique than those I’ve read online. I like that the matzoh gets cooked enough but is not mushy.
Scramble 1-2 eggs, set aside.
Break the matzoh into pieces approximately 2-3” square, give or take.
Add enough butter to a large pan over low/medium heat to allow the matzoh to soak up a delicious amount. Add the matzoh in a single layer without overlapping.
After about 30 seconds, when you see the butter soaking into the mstzoh, pour in the beaten egg, making sure you get it in between those spaces between the pieces of matzo and then pour the rest it in. Turn it over to make sure the liquid egg is cooked and serve!
Laurie Jacob says
Hi Tori!
Love your site!
I make matzoh brei like my Romanian mother-in-law taught me.
It’s like yours, but the broken pieces of matzoh, get submerged in milk, that has first been warmed on the stovetop. The warm milk adds flavor to, and better softens, the matzoh. Once the milk has become heated, remove from the stove, and dunk in the matzoh pieces to fully cover them in the milk. Let soak 5 minutes or while beating the eggs and salt in a separate bowl. Then pour the milk/matzoh mixture into the eggs, and thoroughly combine. Fry up the mixture in a large, buttered skillet. When almost set, sprinkle the brei with a healthy scoop of sugar and cinnamon.
Tori Avey says
Sounds great Laurie! I will try it that way next time 🙂
jason says
thanks for the recipe, came out amazing!
Joan Lang says
Made this just as the recipe lays out. Yum! So easy now I expect to be able to make it many times in the future. My family loved it!
Jan says
Try making it the way my mother taught me and it comes out far less eggy and more like a pancake:
1 sheet of matzo per egg
Soak the matzo in a bowl of water first
Pre-heat the pan to a sputter temp and heat the butter
Drain out the matzo
Beat the egg in a separate bowl and then blend into the matzo
Then spoon out onto the pan and fry
Serve with sugar on top
Peter says
This is the way my grandpa used to make it.
Stella says
That’s what my grandma did, except that she didn’t soak the matzoh. She crumbled it right into the beaten eggs, mashed everything a little finer with a fork, and put it in the skillet. It comes out like a pancake and it’s to die for.
But I’ll try these other variations. I have plenty of matzoh this year (thank you, amazon!)
Richard A Miller says
I like this version too. More like french toast. It should be matzo with egg added, not eggs with a little bit of matzoh added. How long you soak the matzoh in water becomes the only real trick to making it perfect. It even works with two sheets per egg.