At its heart, Passover is all about tradition and repetition. The entire purpose of the holiday is to remember—to look back at the history of the Jewish people and to tell the story of the exodus from Egypt using exactly the same words and symbols year after year. But […]
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At its heart, Passover is all about tradition and repetition. The entire purpose of the holiday is to remember—to look back at the history of the Jewish people and to tell the story of the exodus from Egypt using exactly the same words and symbols year after year. But just because repetition is central to the holiday ritual doesn't mean the Seder dinner itself has to be stuck in amber. This is where the celebration evolves. We cook the recipes we've inherited from family, but we also embrace the new flavors introduced by guests and by new generations. Personally, I've always used the Seder meal as an opportunity to try out foods eaten in Jewish communities in other parts of the world—after all, on this night, we are all taking part in the same meal, each at our own tables.
This collection of recipes will add some fun new ideas to your Passover table, whether you're looking to try other communities' traditions, swap out a meat main for a vegetarian or pescatarian meal, embrace rice and legumes as part of your holiday for the first time, or just update your menu with some new food fads. There are fun ways to enjoy dipping your karpas in something other than salt water, add some delicious maror to your plate, or explore food traditions from a variety of countries. You'll also find new ideas for using up your leftovers, and, of course, delicious desserts.
Gondi—a Persian Jewish soup of chicken, veal, or lamb meatballs—is usually served on Shabbat, but the dish makes a great substitute for matzo balls if you need to make a truly gluten-free Seder meal. In this recipe, the meatballs are flavored with ground cardamom, and the broth is full of fragrant, golden turmeric.
Embrace Sephardic traditions (or, if you're part of the Conservative movement, the relatively recent lifting on the prohibition on eating rice during Passover) with this easy Spanish meal of chicken and rice prepared in a slow cooker. The brown rice in this recipe makes it healthier than more traditional version of the dish and also gives it more flavor.
This chicken stew from Jewish-Persian cookbook author Louisa Shafia is served with rice and yellow split peas (which are permissible during Passover in Sephardic tradition and newly permissible to Conservative Jews). The chicken is flavored with turmeric, and the whole dish is dressed with a sauce made of spinach, dried mint, and citrus juices.
This main is perfect for a pescatarian Seder. The horseradish mayonnaise is a great way to incorporate the tradition of eating maror (or hazeret) into your meal, while the crispy leeks on top of the fish are reminiscent of the Iraqi Jewish tradition of hitting your fellow diners with leeks (or scallions) during the chorus of Dayenu.
Another salmon and leek combo, this elegant dish simmers in a slow cooker for more than three hours, with very little intervention, so you'll be free to spend your afternoon making your and desserts and readying your table and your Seder plate.
This stuffed fish flavored with fenugreek and tamarind—also from Jewish-Persian cookbook author Louisa Shafia—comes from the city of Shiraz, where a large Jewish community thrived for centuries. The head-on fish make a stunning centerpiece for the holiday meal.
Adding legumes to your Passover meal makes it far easier to serve a vegetarian main—and more and more American Jews are embracing these ingredients after to a 2016 change in the rule against kitniyot—grains, seeds, and legumes. This recipe piles black beans and kale on tender sweet potatoes; a hummus dressing ties all the flavors together.
This dish of lentils and vegetables boasts tons of Middle Eastern flavors. It makes a great vegetarian main but can also be served has a hearty side dish—the perfect thing to have on hand if your guest list includes people with a variety of different dietary restrictions. The sauce can be made with yogurt, for a dairy-based meal, or with tahini.
Another excellent lentil-based main, this vegan casserole topped with fluffy, toasted mashed potatoes (with vegan butter, of course) is basically the Swiss Army knife of dishes. It's flexible enough to act as a vegan main while doubling as a side dish for a meat- or dairy-based meal.
If you're looking for more ways to incorporate greens into your meal, consider mixing your cultural references and using a Chinese-style soup as the pool for your matzo balls. This version is packed full of vegetables and flavor. It would be great on its own later in the week, but if you do opt to drop in a matzo ball or two, it's an opportunity to remember that there have been small Jewish communities in the Middle Kingdom for over 1,000 years.
This refreshing Persian salad of cucumber, cilantro, and pomegranate arils will go well with anything you serve it with—whether you're focusing your meal on Middle Eastern dishes or making brisket and kugel. For a meat meal, leave out the feta (some chopped toasted walnuts would make an excellent substitute).
The rise of the spiralizer has given us all kinds of new ways to make grain-free dishes, which are particularly welcome and useful if you're observing Passover for a full eight days. This raw "noodle" dish of zucchini dressed with a traditional romesco made with almonds, bell pepper, garlic, and spices works well as a vegan main but also makes a great side dish for a Seder.
Another spiralized delight, this salad is quick and flavorful, made with raw beets and dressed with a shallot-heavy vinaigrette. For a really pretty presentation, use a variety of different beet colors all together.
The secret to a really creamy vegan chocolate pudding? Blend in some avocado. While most people associate this Central American staple with guacamole, the high-fat fruit is also delicious sweetened (just as anyone who's had an avocado cream pie). Here the avo is blended with sweet dates, nut milk, cocoa, and maple syrup for a delicious (and very healthy) dessert.
If you've never heard of "nice cream," you are in for a (non-dairy) treat. Popular among vegans and the dairy-averse, this frozen dessert is made by blending frozen fruit and nut milk. It's the perfect accompaniment to a flourless chocolate cake.
Instead of the traditional plate of chocolate-dipped dried fruit, why not serve your own fruit leather? This mango treat offers all the benefits of the dried fruit you'd normally see at dessert at a Seder but is far more fun to eat—and more impressive if you're serving guests.
If you're observing Passover all week, you'll love this lasagna made with butternut squash in place of noodles. The squash keeps the ingredients layered like a traditional lasagna but is far more flavorful—and healthier too.
There's no such thing as too much brisket, but if you have a lot of it left over after your guests have gone home, it's always good to have some new, unexpected ways of using it up. This Chinese-inspired soup balances out the meat's rich fattiness with crisp bok choy. The noodles in the recipe are made from rice; if you're keeping away from all grains, you can try konjac noodles, which are made with the starch of the konjac yam and are the hottest new thing for gluten-free cooks.
This fun casserole is a delicious, comforting mashup of a few different Passover staples. Shred two cups of your leftover brisket (any kind will do) and layer it with sliced potatoes and softened leeks for a dish so fun that no one will remember they're eating leftovers.
One of the quickest possible ways to turn leftover meat into something new is to use it in tacos. Brisket is particularly fantastic piled into corn tortillas, especially when you add jalapeños, scallions, cilantro and lime to balance out the meat's rich flavor. This recipe calls for dairy; omit it for a kosher meal.
Once the Seder leftovers have been eaten, a quick and easy grain-free dish can make getting food on the table later in the week far less stressful. This frittata full of delicious, healthy veggies makes the perfect Passover-appropriate lunch or dinner.
While traditional dishes (and their leftovers) are the heart of any holiday, keeping kosher for Passover for eight days practically requires some invention and variation. This rice-based meal showcases smoked salmon (a nice nod to traditional Eastern European Jewish cooking) along with avocado and fresh vegetables.
Chicken soup is a welcome meal at any time of year, and this flavorful version for the Philippines is healthy but hearty with pieces of chayote and leafy bok choy sitting alongside skinless chicken thighs. You could even double the recipes and use the broth—flavored with onion, garlic, and ginger—as the base for a matzo ball soup, then add the greens the second time you enjoy this soup. (To keep the soup kosher, make sure your fish sauce contains no shellfish or swap it for tamari.)
