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April 11, 2003
Pesach from Portugal to Persia
Apricots, pomegranates, bananas and pistachios sometimes form
the basis for the "traditional" charoset.
RAHEL MUSLEAH SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH BULLETIN
At my Passover seder, which follows the traditions of the Jews
of Indian-Iraqi-Syrian ancestry, we chant each paragraph of the
Haggadah in both Hebrew and Judeo-Arabic, a combination of Hebrew
and Arabic. We use romaine lettuce instead of horseradish; a thick
date syrup called halek for charoset; celery leaves instead
of parsley for karpas (greens); lemon juice instead of salt
water; bread instead of matzah....
No, no, just kidding. But only about the bread.
Although Jews all over the world conduct a seder for Passover with
the Haggadah as their "instruction manual," customs vary
from country to country. The words may be familiar and certain rituals
universal, but different melodies, novel customs and special foods
impart a distinctive flair to Passover traditions from Portugal
to Persia. One rule of thumb: American Jews generally follow the
customs of Ashkenazi Jews; what sounds unusual in America is actually
quite common among the many Sephardi and Mizrahi Jews (who hail
originally from Spain or the East).
Here is a sampler of different customs and foods that might whet
your appetite to add creativity to your own seder. They are compiled
from my own traditions, kosher ethnic cookbooks and Rabbi Herbert
Dobrinsky's A Treasury of Sephardic Laws and Customs (Yeshiva
University/Ktav).
All seder plates must include the shankbone (zeroa), egg
(betzah), bitter herbs (maror), charoset (symbolizing
mortar), green vegetable (karpas) and a second green vegetable
(hazeret). Three matzot and a liquid for dipping – either
salt water, lemon juice or vinegar – stand outside the plate.
As is my custom, many Sephardi families use romaine lettuce for
maror and celery leaves for karpas. Before boxed matzah was readily
available, some communities baked a thick pita-like matzah for the
seder and a wafer-thin variety for the rest of the week.
The one element that changes most from community to community is
the recipe for charoset, which symbolizes the mortar the Israelites
used to make bricks. Charoset is usually sweet, often made in large
quantities and eaten for breakfast, even lunch and dinner, throughout
the week of Passover. But the recipe most of us are familiar with
– chopped apples, walnuts, sweet wine and cinnamon – is
hardly set is stone. In my family, charoset is made from boiling
dates until they are reduced to a thick liquid, straining them,
then adding chopped walnuts. Persian communities mix spices with
more than a dozen kinds of fruits and nuts, including dates, pomegranates,
bananas, oranges and pistachios. Venetian Jews blend chestnut paste
and apricots. Some communities believe the charoset should also
have a bitter flavor and add ingredients that temper the pleasant
taste: among them, the Greek Jews of Zakynthos mash raisins in vinegar
and add pinches of pepper and finely ground brick. Yemenite Jews
use chopped dates and figs, chili pepper and spicy coriander.
The Haggadah, recited in Hebrew as well as the local vernacular
– whether Ladino, French or Arabic – highlights the concept
that each person should feel as if he or she were leaving Egypt.
A custom I'm particularly fond of – common among Sephardi and
Mizrahi Jews – helps reenact the Exodus. We tie the afikoman
in a large napkin and give it to one of the children, who slings
it from his or her shoulders. The leader asks a series of three
questions: "From where have you come?"
"From Egypt," the child answers.
"Where are you going?"
"To Jerusalem."
"What are you taking with you?"
The child points to the sack of matzah. Then, everyone bursts into
the singing of "Mah Nishtanah," the "Four
Questions," which is not reserved for the youngest child alone.
The questions also follow a different order. First, we ask, "Why
do we dip twice?" which is the third question according to
Ashkenazi custom, then "Why do we eat matzah?" "Why
maror?" "Why do we recline?"
Moroccan Jews hold the seder tray aloft and pass it over the heads
of everyone at the table, proclaiming that they have left Egypt
and are now free. Persian Jews beat each other lightly on the back
and shoulders with bunches of scallions or leeks when they chant
"Dayenu," to symbolize the sting of the taskmaster's whip.
In Ashkenazi homes, when the 10 plagues are recited, each person
dips a pinky in the wine and diminishes it by 10 drops. Sephardi
families are much more superstitious. Often, it is only the leader
who recites the plagues so that others will not be "contaminated."
In my house, the leader empties a special cup of wine into a bowl,
then washes his or her hands. Among Levantine and Balkan Jews, nobody
even looks at the wine that is spilled out.
While Sephardi Jews do not usually have a Cup of Elijah or hide
the afikoman, symbols from the seder plate are transformed into
good omens for year-round protection against the "Evil Eye."
No rabbits' feet here. The Bene Israel Jews in the villages around
Bombay still dip a hand in sheep's blood, impress it on a sheet
of paper, then hang it above the doorway as a chamsa, the
symbolic, protective hand of God. Moroccan Jews follow a similar
tradition, but with charoset instead of blood. They also strip the
shankbone of meat after the seders and leave the bone in the cupboard
all year as a good luck omen. My family stashes away a piece of
afikoman. We've even been known to take that afikoman on plane rides
to make sure we leave and arrive in safety.
Ashkenazi Jews do not eat legumes (kitniyot), such as rice,
corn, beans and peas on Passover, because these products were sometimes
ground into flour and baked into bread. To avoid confusion with
the grains which are truly chametz, legumes were added to the category
of forbidden foods. The practice of Sephardi Jews varies, but many
communities do eat rice and other legumes. Lamb – the original
Passover sacrifice – has been forbidden among Ashkenazim since
the destruction of the Temple, but some Sephardim feature lamb as
the centrepiece of the seder meal. Other special foods include haminados
(eggs boiled with red onion skins, vinegar and saffron); leek croquettes;
meat matzah pie; fava bean soup; almond torte; and nut cake.
For Sephardi and Mizrahi Jews, Passover celebrations do not end
with the seders. In Turkish homes, the father or grandfather throws
grass, coins and candy for the children to collect, a symbol of
the wealth the Israelites brought out of Egypt (the grass represents
the reeds of the Red Sea), and a wish that the year ahead should
be "green" and productive. Probably the best-known end-of-Passover
celebration is the Moroccan Maimuna, held the day after Passover.
During Maimuna, the Arabic word for wealth or good fortune,
tables groan with an array of sweets and symbols of good luck. Traditionally
a time for matchmaking, Maimuna has become a day for picnicking
in Israel.
As we say in the Iraqi tradition at the end of Passover, sant-il-khadra,
a year of good fortune!
Rahel Musleah is the author of Why on this Night?
A Passover Haggadah for Family Celebration (Simon & Schuster).
Please visit her Web site, www.rahelsjewishindia.com.
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