Baked Unleavened Bread is a flatbread with no leavening. This is how to make a quick, handmade, soft Matzo. Known within the Jewish community, it represents a meaningful feast in memorial of the Biblical event called Passover. This recipe for unleavened bread can be eaten for all seven days with no complaints! It’s a staple bread every year, especially for the Passover holiday (Pesach). 

baked unleavened bread (handmade soft matzo)

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We can eat this homemade Matzo recipe any time of the year, not just Passover! It’s a staple at our home with these Grilled Chicken Kabobs. It’s so soft and chewy that this flatbread can quickly become a family favorite!

Unleavened Bread

Making Matzah flatbread is such a great way to observe the feast of Unleavened Bread!

The Lord’s Passover was a memorial feast kept as an everlasting ordinance for the Lord that was to take place for seven days in the first month of the year (the 14th of the first month in Hebrew from the evening to the 21st day of the month at evening.) On our American calendar, that would be April.

The Jewish nation was to eat roasted lamb, unleavened bread, and bitter herbs as a memorial of God’s deliverance from Egypt. Unleavened bread was to be eaten for seven days, and leaven was to be removed from their houses on the first to the seventh day.

“No manner of work shall be done on them: but that which everyone must eat-that only be prepared by you” Exodus 12:16. This Bible verse indicates that unleavened bread was to be made by hand in each family.

It’s interesting that Matza is commercially available nowadays in a crisp cracker-like style when it was commanded to be prepared.

image of unleavened bread (soft matzo)

Watch Alyona Make Unleavened Bread!

Matzo

It’s a time when you can not only read about a symbolic event that occurred in the Bible but also as a way to show family and children what it’s about.

If you are strictly following the Halakha (Jewish law) for Pesach (Passover) then Kosher flour such as wheat, (preferably a kind that doesn’t come into contact with water at any stage during its production) is recommended. Since the Bible does not indicate which flour the Hebrews used, I’ll leave it to the baker to decide.homemade unleavened bread

That being said, our Passover is Christ: “For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed” 1 Corinthians 5:7. However, that doesn’t mean we can’t look upon the scriptures of the Old Testament as examples of God’s redemption of His people.

It’s a wonderful experience for children to watch and observe this ordinance given to Israel by Moses. And since “the children of Israel baked unleavened cakes of the dough which they had brought out of Egypt” (Exodus 12:39), it is baked Unleavened Bread with no leavening and simple ingredients!

We love this soft Matzo bread; observing the events with our family is a family ritual!

Want a stove-top recipe for Matzah? Try our skillet Unleavened Bread Recipe. Many of our readers have commented on how they have used it for communion and other meaningful events!

Got leftovers? Turn it into a Matzo meal by drying it in the oven and then crushing it into crumbs for a Matzo Ball Soup!

ingredients for baked unleavened bread

 FAQ:

Can I Use Whole Wheat Flour? 

The all-purpose flour can be substituted with freshly milled hard white wheat. I often fresh mill half soft white wheat with half hard white wheat to make an all-purpose flour blend from whole grains. 

My Dough Is Too Sticky? 

Although cup-to-gram conversions can be handy, many of them are approximate measurements. However, I weighed the exact amount of flour I used in grams for this recipe in order for it to be precise. 

What is Unleavened Bread?

Unleavened bread is a flatbread that contains no rising agents. Known as Matzah or Matzo within the Jewish community, it represents a symbolic element with great importance. This four-ingredient recipe is a great way to incorporate a Biblical approach to the Passover holiday.

There are many variations to making Unleavened bread. However, suppose you strictly want to follow the Halakha (Jewish law) for Pesach (Passover). In that case, Kosher flour such as wheat (preferably a kind that doesn’t come into contact with water at any stage during its production) is recommended by the suggestion of a Jewish Rabbi.

Furthermore, all the Biblical details of the Lord’s passover is given in Exodus chapter 12 and 13. The children of Israel baked unleavened cakes of the dough, (mentioned in Exodus 12:39.) This verse indicates that the bread was not leavened and that it was baked. However, the Bible does not indicate which flour they were to use, as every household probably had different flour.

What to Serve With Unleavened Bread?

The Scriptures indicate that unleavened bread was to be eaten with a lamb taken from a sheep or goat and with bitter herbs. Although the Bible doesn’t indicate the other dishes eaten with unleavened bread, I’ve noticed meat, fish, soup, grains, vegetables, and cookies on the Passover Recipes list.

Just make sure to use Kosher for Passover ingredients and no leaven. No leaven means no yeast, no baking soda, or baking powder.

Does Unleavened Bread have Oil?

Since the scriptures do not indicate whether the children of Israel were to use oil or other specific ingredients besides the order of no leaven (the dough was baked and had no leaven, Exodus 12:39.) Perhaps, each household prepared unleavened bread in their own way as long as they didn’t use any leaven. If you think about it, almost every cook bakes bread differently.

 

Tips:

  1. Parchment paper prevents the dough from sticking to the surface and makes it easier to transfer over to the sheet pan. 
  2. Score the top.
  3. Broil for pretty bread spotting.
  4. Dry leftovers to make Matzo Meal for recipes like Matzo Ball Soup!

 

How To Make Baked Unleavened Bread (Soft Matzo):

Baked Unleavened Bread (Handmade Soft Matzo)

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 12 minutes
Total Time: 17 minutes
Servings: 10 servings
Author: Alyona Demyanchuk
Baked Unleavened Bread is a flatbread with no leavening. This is how to make a quick, handmade, soft Matzo. Known within the Jewish community, it represents a meaningful feast in memorial of the Biblical event called Passover. This recipe for unleavened bread can be eaten for all seven days with no complaints! It's a staple bread every year, especially for the Passover holiday (Pesach). 

Equipment

  • 18x13 baking sheet
  • 1 sheet of parchment paper

Ingredients

Ingredients:

  • 2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour ** (360 grams, plus more for dusting)
  • 4 tbsp olive oil
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1 cup water

Instructions

How To Make Unleavened Bread:

  • Combine the ingredients to make a ball of soft dough. It will be slightly tacky.
  • Cut a piece of parchment paper 18" long. Sprinkle with flour and roll the dough into a 15x8 oval on the parchment paper.
  • how to roll and score unleavened bread
    Lightly score the top by running a knife through it to make diamond shapes. (Don't cut all the way down. This is to make serving easier as each person can tear off a piece).
  • how to bake unleavened bread
    Transfer the paper onto a baking sheet and place it on the bottom rack of the oven. Broil at High for about 5 minutes per side or until bread is spotted and golden brown.

Notes

  • Pan Size: I use a large 18x13-inch sheet pan. I like to invert the pan and transfer the matzah bread on top of parchment paper right over the inverted side of the baking pan.
  • Use 360 grams of any flour, including fresh milled hard white wheat, to substitute for all-purpose flour. I like to mix half soft white wheat with half hard white wheat to make my own all-purpose flour blend. 
  • This unleavened bread is cooked on the broil setting of an oven to replicate a Baker's oven. Cooking matzah at a high temperature gives the bread even brown spotting.
  • The metric system is the best for making bread. I measured out the flour and weighed it to convert it into grams for the most accurate results. 

Nutrition per serving

Serving: 1servingCalories: 149kcalCarbohydrates: 21gProtein: 3gFat: 6gSaturated Fat: 1gSodium: 118mgPotassium: 29mgFiber: 1gSugar: 1gCalcium: 5mgIron: 1mg

 

 

 

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102 comments

    • Gigi

    My mom used to make this every year for Good Friday she was the only one that ever learned out of all her sisters and brothers how to make this bread and I so wish that I listened and watched her so that I could have carried on this tradition and even though she’s still here unfortunately she has dementia and doesn’t remember how to make it so wish me luck I’m going to try out your recipe I’m an ok Baker as long as they have a recipe and all the ingredients that goes with it and I do now thanks to you sharing your recipe with us so I think I can do this🤞 God willing I’ll let you know how it turns out I have a lot of people today that are counting on me 🙏

      • Alyona Demyanchuk

      I’d love to hear how it went for you!

    • Sophia R

    This was perfect for my Last Supper / Passover meal. It was super simple and delicious. A million thank you’s!

      • Alyona Demyanchuk

      Your welcome!

    • V

    Hi! Can I make a couple smaller breads instead of one long one? If so, how long to broil?

      • Alyona Demyanchuk

      You could, just flip them in the oven when you see speckles on top of the dough. This might take faster.

    • Mary Dadds

    Dont use self rising flour.

    • Dawn

    This looks like a great recipe, I have one question. I’m trying to get back to my Jewish heritage and so I’m novice with Kosher for Passover. Could you please help me understand how using flour in those recipe is alright for Passover, when we just remove all leaven from our homes? Thank you in advance!

      • Alyona Demyanchuk

      Hi Dawn, flour is not forbidden for passover, it is the leaven that was supposed to be purged out of the homes. I like to think leaven was like a sourdough starter.

        • Marcy

        The leaving out of yeast or leavened is to symbolize the haste in which Israel left Egypt… was not a purge of the home

      • Mary Dadds

      Dont use self rising flour.

      • Kerry Pickens

      Leaven is what makes the bread rise like yeast or baking powder. Unleavened bread would be like tortillas or matzah

      • Fritzie Wolfe

      Leaven refers to yeast, baking powder, soda, products that make flour rise.

      • Yoni

      So leaven is anything that causes bread to rise, the process where it “inflates” with air. Yeast and baking powder are leavaning agents. Shalom!

    • Ruby Morton

    Looks easy

    • Michelle

    Can I make a bunch at one time. How would u store it, and how long do u think it’ll keep? Gotta have it for all 7 days of unleavened bread.

      • Alyona Demyanchuk

      Hi Michelle, I would make one batch of unleavened bread each day for the best flavor and texture. I haven’t tried making it for seven days worth. It usually all goes in one day for us.

        • Christine

        Basically by letting go sit in the fridge, I’ll start becoming like sourdough. By then it would be no safe for passover.

    • Sangeeta Kohli

    What temperature do you bake it & for how long ?

      • Alyona Demyanchuk

      Hi, I broil this bread and flip it. See more details in the instructions.

    • Judi

    Hello, and thank you for the recipe. I do a good bit of baking and am comfortable with wet doughs, but I had problems with this attempt. 2-1/3 c all purpose flour should weigh 276 gms; that’s what I used, along with the 8 oz water and 4T olive oil. It made a batter too thin for pancakes! I ended up adding more flour.
    The problem is certainly mine; it may be because of my nerd-ish baking habit of weighing my flour, and it may be because I was called away for 20 min or so, allowing the flour to absorb the water, which always makes it feel “wetter.” I’d love your take on it before I try again—which I will.

      • Alyona Demyanchuk

      Hi Judy, I weighed my cups of flour to grams and 2 1/3 cups of flour equals 360 grams, so that was not enough flour, your looking for a soft and tacky dough. I like to roll it out on parchment paper dusted with flour and have been using equal parts of freshly milled hard white and soft wheat for whole grain unleavened bread.

        • Mechele

        The conversion calculates 280 for APF..? So I’ll just go off the 320grams you mentioned.

          • Alyona Demyanchuk

          Hi, you would need 360 grams of flour if you wanted to convert this recipe into grams.

    • Vicki

    Is this 5 min broiled with a from-below broiler (gas) or an above-broiler (electric)?

      • Alyona Demyanchuk

      Hi Viki, I have an electric oven, so, the top broiler is what I’d be using.

      • Neringa

      The temperature is not specified. “On the high” doesn’t say anything – some ovens have 250°C the highest, some 400°C.

        • Alyona Demyanchuk

        Hi, the broil setting on my oven is at the highest temperature of 500°F (260°C) but 232°C (which is 450°F) should work too. Happy baking!

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