Easy as Brei

This Passover staple is nothing more than matzo and eggs—and infinite possibilities

KOSHER FUSION | Kimchijeon brei, a spicy matzo brei variation based on the Korean scallion pancake.

THEY DON'T CALL it the bread of affliction for nothing. At Passover, millions of Jews forgo leavened grain and eat matzo, tricking out the cracker in various ways to mask its essential, incontrovertible blandness. My own favorite use for the stuff is matzo brei, a scramble of broken matzo and eggs. It sounds simple, and it is, but what happens when the matzo soaks up some egg and fries in a generous slick of fat is at the same time profound: What was dry and severe becomes plush and custardy.

Thanks to a chance encounter years ago, I learned that matzo brei is also a dish of infinite adaptability. It was the summer of 1995. Having engineered my own exodus out of Florida, I was newly arrived in New York, living on the Lower East Side, flat broke. Strolling in the neighborhood one day, newspaper tucked under my arm, I passed a man, stooped but dignified in a three-piece suit, shuffling in the same direction. "Could you spare me the stock tables?" he asked.

If there was one thing I had no use for at that point, it was the stock tables. We continued walking, and by the time I handed the section to him, we were in front of Streit's Matzo factory— his matzo factory. "Come, let me give you something for that," he said. I followed him inside, and the old man began grabbing boxes of matzo, stacking them in my arms until I had to crane my neck to see. The ladies behind the counter chuckled, while one of his young charges shook his head: "Next time, Pop, please, just ask. I'll buy you the paper."

I ate a lot of matzo brei that summer, discovering along the way that poverty and monotony can make a fellow pretty creative. There were curried and primavera versions, and an egregiously un-kosher one fried in bacon fat. But then, when it comes to Passover, heresy is easy; Jewish dietary law, already a thicket of regulation and contention, doubles back on itself with the stricter holiday regime. Beyond the hard and fast restrictions lies a gray area that seems to go on forever.

The recipes below span a spectrum of strictness. A cultural Jew, I'm more observant of regulations concerning jaywalking than I am of the laws of kashrut—but that's not to say matzo isn't meaningful to me. Mr. Streit's generosity brought new insight into the two conditions unleavened bread is meant to symbolize: privation and freedom. Who knew they could both taste so delicious?

Kimchijeon Brei

Total Time: 30 minutes Serves: 4

Matzo brei gets a spicy kick from kimchi in this variation on a traditional Korean scallion pancake. While certified kosher-for-Passover kimchi is almost impossible to find, Mother-In-Law's brand makes a vegan version without any objectionable ingredients.

Ingredients

2 cups cabbage kimchi, drained (reserve liquid)

2 bunches scallions

4 eggs

1 teaspoon salt

4 pieces of matzo

4 tablespoons canola oil

What To Do

1. Chop kimchi into bite-size pieces, and diagonally slice scallions into inch-long ribbons.

2. Beat eggs in a large bowl with salt and 2 tablespoons kimchi liquid.

3. Crumble matzo into a bowl of water. (Pieces should be quarter- to half-dollar-size.) Let soak about 3 minutes. Drain and gently squeeze excess water from matzo.

4. Add matzo, kimchi and scallions to eggs. Mix well.

5. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a sauté pan over medium-high heat. Working in batches, spoon ½ cup batter per pancake into pan and fry, turning when well browned, about 3 minutes per side. Add remaining oil between batches, as necessary. Serve with soy sauce, for dipping.

Matzo Brei Chilaquiles

Chilaquiles are traditionally made with day-old tortillas. At Comal in Berkeley, Calif., Matt Gandin substitutes matzo for a Mexican-style brei. We made the salsa because we didn't know of a good kosher store-bought option. If you're being less strict, you can shave 20 minutes off the cooking time by using salsa from a jar.

Ingredients

1 small white onion, sliced into rings, plus 1 medium white onion, finely diced

3 cloves garlic, peeled

1 serrano chili

16-ounce can plum tomatoes

¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons canola oil

Salt

4 pieces matzo

5 eggs

¼ cup crumbled queso fresco or shredded jack cheese

2 tablespoons chopped cilantro

¼ cup Mexican crema or sour cream

What To Do

1. Make the salsa: In a dry skillet over medium-high heat, toast onion rings, garlic and chili until lightly charred on all sides, 7-10 minutes. Split chili lengthwise and remove stem and seeds. Add charred vegetables to a blender along with tomatoes. Purée until smooth. Heat ¼ cup oil in a high-sided skillet over medium heat until it shimmers. Carefully add purée. (It will bubble and splatter.) Boil, stirring, until purée thickens, 5-7 minutes. Set aside. (Salsa will keep, refrigerated, up to 48 hours.)

2. In a large skillet over medium heat, sauté ¾ of diced onions with remaining oil and a pinch salt.

3. While onions cook, break up matzo into a large bowl of water. In a separate bowl, beat eggs with ½ teaspoon salt. After 2 minutes of soaking, remove matzo from water and gently squeeze out excess moisture. Fold matzo into eggs and add mixture to pan with onions.

4. Increase heat to medium-high and let matzo brei cook undisturbed until brown, 1-2 minutes. Gently scramble until edges crisp slightly, 5-7 minutes.

5. Pour 1 cup salsa over matzo brei, and gently stir to coat. Cook until most of salsa is absorbed, about 2 minutes.

6. Divide chilaquiles among four plates. Top each with 1 tablespoon queso fresco, a sprinkling of remaining diced onion, a pinch cilantro and 1 tablespoon crema.

In this elevated brei from Michael Solomonov of Philadelphia's Zahav, matzo sandwiches pea purée and comes topped with sautéed chicken livers and charoset, a zesty fruit relish.

Matzo Brei With Peas, Sauteed Chicken Liver and Charoset

Total Time: 90 minutes Serves: 2-4

In this elevated brei from Michael Solomonov of Philadelphia's Zahav, matzo sandwiches pea purée and comes topped with sautéed chicken livers and charoset, a zesty fruit relish.

Ingredients

1 large carrot, finely grated

1 tablespoon diced Granny Smith apple

1 tablespoon freshly grated horseradish

1 tablespoon golden raisins, chopped

1 teaspoon fresh mint, finely chopped

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 teaspoons red wine vinegar

Salt

2 sheets matzo

2 cups chicken stock

1 cup frozen peas, defrosted

¼ cup walnut oil

3 eggs

1 cup matzo meal

¼ cup ground walnuts

½ cup plus 2 tablespoons canola oil or schmaltz

1 cup chicken livers

4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced

¼ teaspoon ground black pepper

¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 tablespoon minced parsley

What To Do

1. Make the charoset: Combine carrots, apples, horseradish, raisins, mint, olive oil and vinegar. Mix well and salt to taste. (If possible, make a day in advance, to let flavors meld.)

2. Soak matzo in stock 2 minutes. Carefully remove matzo to a paper-towel-lined plate and set stock aside.

3. Make the pea filling: Place peas, walnut oil, 1 egg and a pinch salt in a food processor. Purée until smooth.

4. In a bowl, beat remaining eggs with a pinch salt. In a second bowl, combine matzo meal with walnuts and ½ teaspoon salt.

5. Assemble the matzo brei: Use scissors to cut each piece of matzo into four equal pieces. Spoon 1 heaping tablespoon pea purée onto four of the pieces and cover them with the remaining four. Carefully submerge each "sandwich" in the beaten egg, then coat with matzo meal mixture. These can be set aside and refrigerated up to 24 hours in advance.

6. Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Heat ½ cup canola oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Working in two batches to avoid crowding, carefully add matzo brei "sandwiches" to pan. Cook until golden, 2-3 minutes per side. Remove to a paper towel to drain, then transfer to a heatproof plate and keep in oven until ready to serve.

7. Heat remaining oil in a sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add livers, garlic, pepper, cinnamon and ½ teaspoon salt. Cook until livers brown, 3-5 minutes. Add ½ cup reserved stock and increase heat to high. Stir, scraping pan, until sauce thickens and glazes livers. Add parsley, stir and remove from heat.

8. To serve, top each matzo brei "sandwich" with livers and charoset.