25 Modern Passover Recipes for Your Family's Seder (2024)

Passover recipes are some of the tastiest, most looked-forward to Jewish dishes of the year. Sure, matzo doesn't hold a candle to challah, but matzo ball soup? Kugel? Brisket? (My stomach is growling now—but I guess that's better than locusts raining down on me.)

For your next Passover, try some of our easy recipes for delicious appetizers and main courses—and maybe finish off Seder with some chocolate-covered matzo so the adults feel better about not being able to look for the afikoman. I guess wine helps too, though...

Before you dust off those Haggadahs, recline on your chair-pillows, and try to get Elijah to drink with you; look through our hand-picked Passover recipes to consider during your Seder meal planning, whether you're looking to compliment your traditional dishes or for a new addition to your family's meal. L'chaim!

20 Delicious Passover Desserts to End Your Seder on a Sweet Note

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Parsley-Garlic Salmon

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For a holiday centerpiece that looks and tastes this good, this salmon recipe is surprisingly simple to make. Just chop up some garlic and parsley, mix it with mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, and lemon. Spread it on a large piece of salmon and bake. That's it!

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02of 25

Roasted Asparagus with Flax Seed-Walnut Crumble

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A flax and walnut topping spiked with turmeric gives this otherwise classic side a big flavor and texture upgrade. Even better, it comes together in just 20 minutes.

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03of 25

Matzo Ball Soup

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Is it really Passover without a bowl of matzo ball soup? This recipe is a classic that gets a flavor boost from chicken thighs that are simmered in the broth and then shredded from the bone. To ensure the matzo balls are cooked correctly, remove a ball from the broth and slice it in half. The color should be light throughout—if the center is darker, continue to cook for 5 to 10 minutes more.

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04of 25

Every-Citrus Salad With Almonds and Manchego

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Add some bright colors to your Passover table courtesy of this bold citrus salad. It pairs tart blood oranges, bitter grapefruit, and sweet navel oranges with Manchego and roasted almonds, yielding a dish that hits every note—crunchy, salty, nutty, bright, sharp, and bitter. And don’t skip the orange dressing, which combines shallots, maple syrup, and Dijon mustard. It ties the salad together beautifully.

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05of 25

Whole Roasted Cauliflower With Grapes and Feta

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For a vegetable side that will wow your seder guests, opt for this cauliflower stunner, which is boiled, roasted, and joined by pickled shallots, blocks of tangy feta, sweet grapes, and fresh oregano. If you have kosher guests and would rather have a seder without cheese, use plant-based sausage instead and cook it on the baking sheet right beside the cauliflower.

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06of 25

Quick Spring Lamb and Vegetable Stew

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Celebrate Passover and the start of spring simultaneously with this lamb and vegetable stew that comes together in a single large pot. The recipe calls for using a tablespoon of flour to thicken the stew. Instead swap in potato starch or arrowroot. Or, just leave out a thickener altogether and simmer the stew for another 10 minutes for a richer sauce.

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07of 25

Gabriella's Pot Roast

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Italian cooking expert Domenica Marchetti says that this pot roast recipe passed down from her mother Gabriella is "beyond easy." The best part: the vegetables that the meat cooks with are mashed with a potato masher to make a luscious sauce.

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08of 25

Lemon-Coriander Roasted Chicken With Leeks and Squash

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If you’re looking for a chicken dish that’s easy to make but still packs plenty of flavor, this one will get the job done. Here, butter spiked with cilantro, ginger, lemon zest, and ground coriander is rubbed underneath the chicken skin, resulting in a moist, spicy bird that has flavor in every bite. A bed of acorn squash and leeks roast under the chicken, for a built-in side that catches all of the flavorful drippings. To make this recipe kosher, use a plant-based butter like Miyoko brand.

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09of 25

Broccolini with Lemon and Smoked Almonds

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Quick-cooking Broccolini gets extra pizzazz thanks to a simple topping made with lemon zest, smoked almonds, parsley, and crushed red pepper. Feel free to swap in toasted regular almonds for the smoked, or use broccoli or even asparagus instead of Broccolini. Just cook until tender.

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Sweet Tahini and Date Truffles

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With only six ingredients and no cooking required, these sweet treats may be the ideal holiday dessert. The primary ingredients are dates, almond flour, and tahini, all of which gives the truffles a sweet, almost over-the-top richness. A final sprinkle of sea salt keeps everything balanced.

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Slow Cooker Brisket with Melty Onions and Chimichurri

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This brisket has so much going for it. First and foremost, it's made in the slow cooker so after an initial sear, cooking time is completely hands-off. It's also incredibly tender and made even tastier thanks to sweet onions and a punchy herb sauce.

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12of 25

Braised Fish with Spicy Tomato Sauce

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Inspired by a North African dish with Sephardic roots called Chraime, this recipe for braised fish builds big flavor in a very short amount of time, under a half-hour to be precise. Skip the couscous for Passover, but when you make the dish again, which we're confident you'll want to, serve a batch of the tiny pasta to soak up all of the fragrant, spiced sauciness.

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Caramelized Veggies with Poppy Seed Dressing

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The creamy dressing that graces these sweet, caramelized root vegetables may look like it's made with dairy. But, it actually gets its silkiness from tahini and is boosted with lemon zest and juice and garlic. Consider making a double-batch for future salads. You won't regret it.

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14of 25

Chocolate-Almond Cake

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From the cookbook Portico: Cooking and Feasting in Rome's Jewish Kitchen, this cake is rich, fudgy, and very simple to make. Almond flour takes the place of wheat flour and gives the dessert a fragrant nuttiness that makes it oh-so-easy to go back for seconds.

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Roasted Salmon With Beet Salad

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While the fish bakes, toss a quick beet and kale salad, made super-quick thanks to pre-cooked beets. A dill dressing makes for a classic pairing, and cuts through the rich salmon. To make the dressing appropriate for Passover, swap in a plain, unsweetened plant-based yogurt for the dairy yogurt called for in the recipe. Taste and add an extra pinch of salt and squeeze of lemon if necessary.

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Horseradish Potato Gratin

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Thinly sliced russet potatoes bake in a horseradish-infused cream until tender and golden. Obviously this recipe is full of dairy (hello, cream!), but if the rest of your Passover menu is vegetarian, this dish could serve as the star of your spread.

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The Best Types of Potatoes to Use for Your Favorite Recipes

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Slow-Cooker Coffee-Braised Brisket With Potatoes and Carrots

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This economically priced cut of meat becomes tender and flavorful when cooked low and slow in a mix of tomato paste, coffee, Worcestershire sauce, and brown sugar. When preparing this comforting recipe for Passover, use a vegan Worcestershire sauce, since the classic version contains anchovy.

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Baby Lamb Chops With Mixed Olive Relish and Roasted Carrots

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Lamb chops that cook quickly? Yes, please! These chops need just two minutes per side, and are accompanied by a briny, bright, and herby relish made with green and Kalamata olives, capers, and lemon zest. Plus, they're fun to pick up with your fingers.

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Greek Chicken and Potatoes

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This sheet-pan recipe serves six people. If you're cooking for a larger crowd, just double the recipe and use two sheet pans. No Broccolini at the grocery store? Swap in thinly sliced broccoli with an inch or two of stem attached.

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Lemony Almond Macaroons

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Make these sweet treats up to one week ahead of time. Let them cool completely and store in an airtight container at room temperature.

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Slow-Roasted Lamb Shoulder

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A gently sweet and subtly sour sauce is an excellent companion to slowly-cooked, falling-apart-tender roast lamb. Before serving, top it with chopped parsley or other soft spring herbs like chopped chives or dill.

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Classic Chicken Soup

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Simmer a whole chicken with carrots, onions, and celery to create a flavorful broth, and then add fluffy matzo balls to round out the soup.

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Roast Beef and Onions

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Let the meat rest for 15 minutes before slicing to ensure the beef stays juicy. Serve with mashed or roasted potatoes and green beans or asparagus for a classic, crowd-pleasing meal.

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Flourless Chocolate Cake

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Before serving, dust this rich, moist cake with cocoa powder or confectioners' sugar for an elegant presentation. This cake does contain dairy, so if you're keeping kosher, it would be a delicious capper to a vegetarian Passover meal. Or, use plant-based cream and sour cream and serve it after anything.

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4 Five-Ingredient Desserts Anyone Can Make

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Espresso Truffles

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These rich, coffee-infused bites are rolled in cocoa powder for an extra hint of chocolate. If you're avoiding dairy for the meal, use a plant-based heavy cream.

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25 Modern Passover Recipes for Your Family's Seder (2024)

FAQs

What is a good menu for Passover? ›

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 food do you bring to the Passover seder? ›

6 Hostess Gifts to Bring to a Passover Seder
  • Kosher Wine. Seders call for each adult to drink four cups of wine throughout the meal. ...
  • Nuts or Dried Fruit. Oh! ...
  • A Passover-Themed Cookbook. ...
  • Passover Candies. ...
  • Flowers in a Pot or Vase. ...
  • Passover Cookies.
Sep 11, 2019

What are the 6 symbolic foods of Passover? ›

There are at least five foods that go on the seder plate: shank bone (zeroa), egg (beitzah), bitter herbs (maror), vegetable (karpas) and a sweet paste called haroset. Many seder plates also have room for a sixth, hazeret (another form of the bitter herbs).

What 7 traditional foods are eaten at the Seder and what do they symbolize? ›

What Are the 6 Items on a Seder Plate?
  • Karpas. Karpas represents the Israelites' early prosperity during their first few years in Egypt. ...
  • Haroset. This concoction of fruits, wine or honey, and nuts represents the mortar the enslaved Israelites used to build Pharaoh's temples. ...
  • Maror. ...
  • Hazeret. ...
  • Beitzah. ...
  • Zeroa.

What is the most important Passover food? ›

Matzah. The most iconic of all the Passover foods, matzah is an unleavened cracker-like food that represents the bread the Israelites took with them when they were rushing to leave Egypt. So the story goes, when the Israelites had the opportunity to escape, they didn't even have enough time to allow the bread to rise.

What is the seder meal for Christians? ›

Jesus chose this special time of remembrance for Jews to begin a new tradition of remembrance for Christians: the Lord's Supper. Like the Passover meal, the Lord's Supper takes place at the table. It is at the table that we are spiritually fed, just as the bread and the cup sustain our physical bodies.

Are potatoes kosher for Passover? ›

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

Can you eat chicken during Passover? ›

What Do You Eat for Passover Seder Dinner? In addition to the foods included on the Seder plate, Passover typically involves a delicious meal for all to enjoy. The menu may differ depending on family tradition, but some popular choices include brisket, roasted chicken, gefilte fish and potato kugel.

What kind of desserts can you eat on Passover? ›

Passover Desserts
  • Halva Diva Cake with Tahini Buttercream. This halva diva cake with tahini buttercream, chocolate ganache and crushed pistachios is a perfect cake for passover. ...
  • Pavlova. A pavlova is a study in perfect imperfection. ...
  • Matzoh Crack S'mores. ...
  • Flourless Chocolate Hazelnut Cake. ...
  • Easy Macarons.
Apr 9, 2024

Is rice ok for Passover? ›

In many ways, Passover is all about food. The Jewish holiday is traditionally celebrated with a giant feast called a seder, and observant Jews follow strict rules around what they can and can't eat during the celebration.

Why is an orange on a Seder plate? ›

Many seder plates include an orange, which is attributed to Susannah Heschel, professor of Jewish studies at Dartmouth College. Heschel included an orange in recognition of gay and lesbian Jews, and others who are marginalized in the Jewish community.

What was Jesus's Passover meal? ›

A bean stew, lamb, olives, bitter herbs, a fish sauce, unleavened bread, dates and aromatized wine likely were on the menu at the Last Supper, says recent research into Palestinian cuisine during Jesus's time.

What can you put on the Seder plate instead of lamb shank? ›

Although tradition calls for use of a shank bone to honor the sacrificial lamb, red beet is scripturally permitted on the Seder plate—in fact, it's common for even omnivores to use this substitution instead.

What are the 7 ingredients on a Seder plate? ›

Everything You Need To Know About Making A Seder Plate For...
  • Charoset. Charoset is a medley of apples, walnuts, and raisins that's sweetened with honey, spices, and kosher wine. ...
  • Beitzah (Egg) ...
  • Zeroah (Shank Bone) ...
  • Maror and Chazeret (Bitter Herbs) ...
  • Karpas (Green Vegetable) ...
  • Matzo. ...
  • Salt Water. ...
  • Optional: Orange.
Mar 28, 2024

What was the Seder meal with Jesus? ›

This is a festival which remembers the escape of the ancient Israelites from Egypt. Jesus and his disciples were celebrating the Passover meal together. As this was the last meal that Jesus would share with his disciples, he took elements of the Passover meal and made them symbols of his death.

What is the Seder meal in the Bible? ›

The SEDER (SADER) - the Passover meal - is the central celebration of the Passover. It's origin stems from our text today. The entire extended family is to come together. They go through the meal and the retelling of the story in first person as if they had been one of the slaves freed from Pharaoh's bondage.

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