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Is Pasta Allowed on Passover?


By Chani Benjaminson

Question:

Is there any type of pasta that may be eaten on the holiday of Passover?

Answer:

On Passover we do not eat any leavened food, chametz. This includes most foods made with flour grains, unless baked under certain conditions and guidelines. The matzah (a thin, cracker-like flatbread) that we eat on Passover is baked under controlled conditions that do not permit the thin bread to become leavened.

The pasta we eat year round is made from wheat flour and is not baked under those conditions. For this reason we do not eat it on Passover. Likewise we do not eat pasta, and other products, made from barley, rye, oats, spelt or their derivatives.

But, there is pasta available that may be eaten on Passover. The pasta is made from potato flour and has a “Kosher for Passover” certification on the package. This means that the pasta is kosher to eat and also tells us that it was processed under strict conditions to prevent it from coming into contact with any leavening from flour of the five grains mentioned.

In recent years the Kosher for Passover market has exploded and you can find anything from pizza to cereal to cake mixes in the Kosher for Passover supermarket aisle.

On the other hand, many families observe the custom of going back to the basics on Passover, refraining from using prepared products. The reason for the custom is to be extra careful not to consume any leavened foods. Eating homemade food is the best way to ensure that.

Personally I enjoy getting creative with vegetables and fruits, seeing the healthy and delicious food I can create for my family and guests without any prepared products.

Please see our section on leavened bread “chametz” and our delicious Passover recipes.

Best wishes for a Kosher and happy Passover,

Chani Benjaminson
For the Judaism Website Chabad.org
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Chani Benjaminson is co-director of Chabad of the South Coast, coordinator of Chabad.org's Ask the Rabbi and Feedback department and is a member of the editorial staff of Chabad.org

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Reader Comments
Latest Comments:
Posted: Apr 12, 2012
Fresh Pasta
This has always confused me, why can't I make my own pasta from wheat flower?

Fresh pasta is decidedly unleavened, there is no yeast in it and there need not be any water in it, all it is is flour and eggs. With a mixer it can be made very quickly and is only cooked in boiling water for 2-3 minutes. I'm all for being over inclusive, but unless there's some part of the rule that I don't understand fresh pasta doesn't seem to violate any prohibition on leavened wheat products. Can anyone explain this to me?
Posted By mh, Brooklyn, New York

Posted: Apr 2, 2012
Sea weed
My daughter is vegetarian and I found a kelp product that looks like a fake noodle. It is packed in water and you just pour hot water over it to serve. Can this be used for Passover?
Posted By Freda, thornhill, Ontario

Posted: Apr 21, 2011
Is Pasta Allowed on Passover?
Since you say "your" heritage, religion, traditions, etc., I assume that you are not Jewish.

Of course God cares, even about the minutiae of the smallest Commandment.
If you are not Jewish, then it does not affect you too much. You have only the 7 Noachide Commandments to observe.
We have hundreds more, plus Rabbinical decrees, and age-old customs. That is what we are here for.

I do not know what "magnet 4 curiosity" is, but we do not actively seek converts.
Posted By levi bookin, Jerusalem, Israel

Posted: Apr 19, 2011
a desperate cry
i understand wanting to hold on to your heritage with all your might. i understand the reasoning behind the rituals and it all makes sense to remind you of the journey that was taken. the question i have is does G-d care this much about pasta or is this just your religion separating yourselves from the herd to prove a point and to show the world.
i keep reading on Chabad that we are all for one and one for all. it just doesnt seem this way when one is deciding that we somehow will be closer to G-d from not eating pasta at passover. in the end when Moshiach comes this will be my first question. to claim to pass over (get it) a plate of pasta when there are some who can not even afford to eat on this planet seems arrogant to me but again i do fully understand and do not feel any ill will as your traditions have been carried through the centuries for all to follow and to bring them to the one true G-d and for this i thank you. maybe some of these strange rituals are a magnet 4 curiosity?
Posted By john smith, fort lauderdale, fl

Posted: Apr 18, 2011
Getting matza wet
It is a question of custom.

There are those who are particular not to eat Matzah that has come into contact with water.

There are those who do not eat Matzh again after the Seder, just in case ...

In my family, we make a point of having broken machine-made Matzah in our soup, and similar items.

But I cannot speak for our minority Chabad branch.

As for pizza from Matzah, Halachah and Minhag aside, it would probably be pretty awful, as most of these patents are.

One can do without pizza for a week.

Chag Kasher veSameach.
Posted By Anonymous

Posted: Apr 15, 2011
Something to be said for "going back to basics"
In my history of making Pesach, I have largely relied on the basics: fruits, vegetables, meats, fish and dairy products, and matza of course. True, I did buy some Kosher for Pesach food, (mostly things like jam, ketchup, potato starch, matzo meal, sugar, salt, spices and so forth.) It wasn't until I had a child old enough to eat solid food that I considered getting a few specialty Pesach product, such as noodles. I did this one year, and since then never repeated this. Cost aside, when I served the "noodles" to my daughter she didn't want to eat them all. When I tasted them, I understood why. As small as that package of noodles was, we never did finish them that Pesach.

I have learned my lesson, and now stick to the basics for Pesach. There are so many wonderful things you can make for Pesach, and the food is delicious. It also has that special "Pesach" feel, smell and taste.
Posted By Anonymous, Ottawa

Posted: Apr 13, 2011
pizza
can you make pizza from matza and what about getting matza wet
Posted By jj, quito, ecuador



 


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