"Gebrokts": Wetted Matzah

Many communities, chassidic ones in particular, have the custom to refrain from eating gebrokts -- matzah that came in contact with water after it was fully baked -- on the first seven days of Passover. Although such matzah is kosher-for-Passover, this stringency is kept by many as a higher level of safeguarding for the matzah.

In order to refrain from wetting the matzah, the matzah must not come in contact with any water. This affects cooking: those who are careful with gebrokts don't eat matzah balls, matzah brie, or matzah anything -- in short, they do not cook at all with matzah. Also, they are very careful to keep the matzah on the table covered, and away from any food that may have water in it. Drinks, soups, vegetables that have been washed and not thoroughly dried, etc., are all kept far away from any matzah.

A situation in which this stringency comes into play is during the Korech step of the Seder. This step requires that we take maror -- lettuce and horseradish -- and put it between two pieces of matzah to make a sandwich. Because the lettuce will be actually touching the matzah, it must be absolutely dry. Many families spend much time preparing the maror for the Seder; these preparations include careful washing of the lettuce, and then very meticulous drying.

On the eighth day of Passover, which exists only outside the Land of Israel, the gebrokts stringency doesn't apply. On this last day of Passover, all feast on matzah-balls and matzah brei, and dip their matzah into soups and salads.

"Gebroktz" is the Yiddish word which refers to matzah that has come in contact with water. "Gebroktz" literally means "broken," and it has come to mean wet matzah because matzah is usually ground or broken up into crumbs before it is mixed with water.

Those who refrain from eating gebroktz on Passover do so for fear that during the baking process there may have been a minute amount of flour which did not get kneaded and mixed into the dough and remained dry. If that is the case, upon contact with water the flour will become chametz.

The custom of not eating gebroktz gained prominence around the end of the eighteenth century. At that time people began to bake matzahs much faster than halachically mandated in order to be absolutely sure that the dough had no chance to rise before being baked. The flipside of this stringency is that the matzah we eat today is not as well kneaded as matzah used to be, and pockets of flour are a real possibility.1

The stringency of not eating gebroktz only applies to matzah and water -- not to matzah that came in contact with pure fruit juices or other liquids2 which don't cause flour to become chametz.

Outside of the Land of Israel, where Passover is celebrated for eight days, the celebration of the eighth day is of rabbinic origin. On this day we do eat gebroktz. In fact, many have the custom of trying to eat their matzah with as many liquids and wet foods as possible.3

A spiritual note:

The last day of Passover is connected with the future redemption (see Remembering the Future), a time when no evil will befall us. This is demonstrated by our going out of our way to eat gebroktz on this day, without fear that it may become chametz.4

Another explanation for the custom of eating gebroktz on the last day of the holiday: Passover celebrates the Exodus, a time when we were (and are) spiritually immature. At this time we need to be constantly on guard for the slightest bit of chametz (i.e. pride and ego) lest we be adversely affected. Fifty days later, after the seven weeks of Omer counting and character refinement, we have spiritually matured and have been fully immunized from the harmful side-effects of chametz. We are then ready as a nation to receive the Torah. Thus on the holiday of Shavuot one of the communal offerings brought in the Temple was specifically made of chametz. (For further elaboration on this idea, see Chametz: What Would Your Psychologist Say?)

On the last day of Passover we have already completed the first of the seven weeks of counting. We are now somewhere in between. We are not quite ready for chametz, but we are a bit more secure. For this reason we eat our matzah with liquid without fear.5

For a lengthier treatment of the spiritual implications of gebroktz on the last day of Passover, see A Speck of Flour.