The traditional Passover food matzo brei (rhymes with fry) is essentially matzo fried with eggs, or scrambled eggs with matzo, depending on how you look at it.
The holiday requires observant Jews to stay away from any leavened breads, so matzo, which is unleavened, become a staple.
Usually, matzo brei recipes begin with the matzo getting soaked in water or milk before it's drained, broken up and combined with the eggs. I like the soak to be fast, slightly more than a dunk. The size of the pieces doesn’t matter so much; I prefer to break the matzo into about 1-inch pieces (and there are plenty of little shards and crumbs that end up being part of the mix). Then add it to the beaten eggs.
Some people break up the matzo first and then soak the pieces in the beaten eggs, but I like them a touch softened first, and don’t want them to absorb too much of the eggs themselves.
The ratio of eggs to matzo differs from recipe to recipe. I like about 2 eggs to every sheet of matzo, but you can play with it and decide. Some people use 1 sheet of matzo per egg, which results in a matzo-dense matzo brei. The good news is you can’t mess it up — you’ll only have varying consistencies.
Brei means “fry” in contemporary Yiddish, and translates to “mash” or “porridge” in German. After adding the egg-and-matzo mixture to a skillet, some people let it cook until brown on the bottom, then kind of flip it, like a pancake. Or you can scramble the mixture, aiming for a kind of super-chunky, matzo-studded scrambled eggs.
Some versions of matzo brei are sweet and some are savory. I prefer the savory version, adding a bit of minced red onion. In other savory versions you might find things like cabbage or sauerkraut and mushrooms, and possibly sour cream for serving. Sweet versions of matzo brei might include apples and honey and cinnamon, for instance, and may be served with maple syrup.
To stay within kosher guidelines, many people opt for oil instead of butter if meat is part of the meal. Conversely, people will go for chicken fat (schmaltz) if that's on hand and fits within the dietary guidelines. I’m a butter gal.
In the end, matzo brei is one of the tastiest and easiest ways to have a solid breakfast during Passover, not to mention using up leftover matzo after the holiday has ended.
Servings: 2
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
½ cup finely chopped red onion
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
2 sheets matzo
4 large eggs
Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onions, season with salt and pepper, and sauté for about 4 minutes, until softened.
Meanwhile, break the matzo into pieces about 1 inch in size and place them in a bowl (add all the crumbs). Have a strainer handy. Fill the bowl with hot water so the matzo is covered. Let sit for 30 seconds (not longer!), then drain the matzo in a strainer.
Beat the eggs in the same bowl, and season with salt and pepper. Add the drained matzo and stir to combine. Transfer the egg-and-matzo mixture to the pan with the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until the eggs are as firmly cooked as you like them, breaking up the mixture. Or, let it cook until the bottom is firm and browned and use a spatula to flip the mixture as a single entity, then allow the second side to brown.
Transfer to a plate and serve hot.
Katie Workman writes regularly about food for The Associated Press. She has written two cookbooks focused on family-friendly cooking, “Dinner Solved!” and “The Mom 100 Cookbook.” She blogs at https://themom100.com/. She can be reached at Katie@themom100.com.
For more AP food stories, go to https://apnews.com/hub/recipes
A recipe for matzoh brei is prepared in New York on May 30, 2019. (Cheyenne M. Cohen via AP)
A recipe for matzoh brei is prepared in New York on May 30, 2019. (Cheyenne M. Cohen via AP)
A recipe for matzoh brei is prepared in New York on May 30, 2019. (Cheyenne M. Cohen via AP)
U.S. President Donald Trump issued a warning to Tehran on social media to “get serious soon” on negotiating a deal to end the war. The post comes a day after Trump said a deal to end the war is near, despite Tehran’s dismissal of his 15-point ceasefire plan.
Iran has been blocking ships it perceives as linked to the U.S. and Israeli war effort from the Strait of Hormuz, but it's letting a trickle of others through the crucial waterway. Jasem Mohamed al-Budaiwi, of the Gulf Cooperation Council, a bloc of six Gulf Arab nations, said Iran was charging for safe passage through the strait.
Meanwhile, the U.S. was preparing for the arrival of thousands of troops that could be used on the ground in Iran.
The death toll from the war has risen to more than 1,900 people in Iran and nearly 1,100 people in Lebanon, with dozens more killed in Israel and elsewhere in the region. Thirteen US. military members have died. Millions of people in Lebanon and Iran have been displaced.
Here is the latest:
The top Iranian envoy to U.N. institutions in Geneva has warned in an interview that any attempt by Israel and the United States to mount a ground invasion of Iran would be a “big” mistake.
Ali Bahreini says Iran is winning the war, and has forced the U.S. and Israel to back off their initial goals. He says those have now been reduced to trying to keep the Strait of Hormuz open for shipments to countries dependent on oil from the Persian Gulf.
Bahreini also says Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, is “safe” and running the country. Khamenei has not been seen or directly heard from since he was named to replace his slain father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Asked why Khamenei hasn’t been seen, the ambassador cited “security arrangements which are very necessary for this particular time.”
“This is stuff for the history books; This is stuff for legacy,” the U.S. defense secretary said during a Cabinet meeting Thursday.
As part of his praise for the decision to engage in the conflict, Hegseth claimed that Iran had “a modern military” but that “never in recorded history has a nation’s military been so quickly and so effectively neutralized.”
The U.S. defense secretary said Thursday that the war in Iran is “unlike Iraq. This isn’t a tie. This is not parity. This is not chaos. This is success. Pure American success.”
Hegseth spoke as he sat next to Trump at a Cabinet meeting. Hegseth noted that the war’s objectives “remain clear: No nukes, no navy, and complete dismantling of their missile program and defense industrial base.”
Trump noted that the Strait of Hormuz, through which 20% of the world’s oil normally flows, remained effectively closed because of the war, although the president predicted the waterway will open up.
Addressing the Cabinet, Vance asserted that the “conventional military” in Iran has been “effectively destroyed” during the war.
Echoing Trump, Vance said Iran no longer has a navy and “they don’t have the ability to hit us like they could of even a few weeks ago.”
“And what that does is that gives us options,” Vance said.
He did not go into detail about those options.
Trump envoy Steve Witkoff said the U.S. has presented a 15-point “action list” to Iran, delivered through Pakistan as a framework for a possible peace deal.
It’s the first time the Trump administration has confirmed the 15-point plan.
Witkoff made the comment Thursday at a Cabinet meeting. He added that Trump directed Witkoff to “maintain confidentiality” as the administration reached out, citing sensitive diplomatic discussions.
“If a deal happens, it will be great for the country of Iran, the entire region and the world at large,” he said.
The top U.S. commander in the Middle East on Thursday hailed an Israeli strike that Israel earlier said killed Iranian naval commander Alireza Tangsiri.
Adm. Brad Cooper, head of U.S. Central Command, said Tangsiri’s killing put Iran’s navy on a path toward “irreversible decline” after weeks of U.S. and Israeli strikes that he said destroyed most of its larger ships and stripped it of much of its ability to project power.
He warned that the United States would keep striking naval targets in Iran. Though the U.S. claims to have destroyed most of Iran’s naval capabilities, it has smaller boats capable of laying mines and anti-ship cruise missiles that can be launched from ashore.
Iran did not immediately acknowledge Tangsiri’s killing.
Palestinians on Thursday mourned a man killed a day earlier during an attack by Israeli soldiers and settlers.
The Palestinian Red Crescent Society said it responded Wednesday to reports of beatings and tear gas. Witnesses told The Associated Press they’d been trying to return to the village of Umm al-Kheir but were blocked by a closed military gate and came under fire.
Israel’s military said a group of vehicles had fled a checkpoint and then lost control, veering off road. It said in a statement that forces fired warning shots in the air as part of an effort to apprehend those in the vehicles. It did not say whether anyone was apprehended.
Israel has erected hundreds of new military gates and checkpoints over the past two and a half years, as part of a broader effort that Palestinians say is to stifle their movement in the occupied West Bank. Violence — often fatal — has surged in the territory as attention and scrutiny has shifted elsewhere.
The president told his cabinet he plans to roll out a “variety” of policies “to support American farmers,” as the war with Iran has increased the cost of fertilizer during planting season.
Trump emphasized that he previously supported farmers by giving them $12 billion in aid when the agricultural sector faced blowback last year after his tariffs started a trade war.
The president, speaking at the start of a Thursday cabinet meeting, said he wanted to “set the record straight” that he isn’t the one pushing for a deal.
“They’re begging to make a deal, not me,” Trump said.
Iranian officials have denied that they’re negotiating with the U.S. as the war continues in its fourth week. Trump insisted they are.
“Anybody would know they’re talking,” he said. “They’re not fools, they’re very smart actually in a certain way. And they’re great negotiators. I say they’re lousy fighters but they’re great negotiators.”
Houthi leader Abdul Malik al-Houthi reiterated the group’s condemnation against the U.S.-Israel war against Iran, describing it as “unjustifiable,” and called for solidarity protests on Friday in Sanaa, Yemen’s capital.
During a lengthy televised speech posted on Telegram on Thursday, the Iran-backed Houthi leader said the Iran war destabilized the region and impacted the global economy, accusing the U.S. and Israel of ignoring such consequences.
Al-Houthi didn’t mention whether the armed rebel group would fight alongside Iran but said “any developments in the fight that necessitate a military response will be met with complete trust in God and reliance upon Him.”
“Our position is clear and unequivocal against America and Israel, and hold no hostile intentions towards any Muslim country,” he added.
Since the war began nearly a month ago, Houthis maintained their support for Iran through statements and protests, despite playing an active role in the Israel-Hamas war when they upended shipping in the Red Sea, through which about $1 trillion worth of goods passed each year before the war.
The stock market wavered Thursday as hopes for an end to the Iran war faded and oil prices surged, with the S&P 500 falling 0.4%, the Nasdaq dropping 0.6% and the Dow little changed. The moves were the latest in a week of volatile swings driven by shifting signals around ceasefire talks between the U.S. and Iran.
A barrel of Brent crude oil climbed 3.8% to $100.93 as hopes dimmed for a potential return to normal for the strait. That’s up from roughly $70 before the war began. Benchmark U.S. crude climbed 3% to $93.05 per barrel.
Rising energy prices have lifted oil and natural gas companies while worsening worries about inflation and weighing on sectors in which higher energy costs threaten to curb demand, including for steel and other industrial goods.
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Uganda’s top general threatened to join the widening war in the Middle East, warning “any talk of destroying or defeating Israel will bring us into the war. On the side of Israel!”
In a series of posts Thursday, Gen. Muhoozi Kainerugaba, chief of Uganda’s Defense Forces, said Uganda would be willing to come to Israel’s assistance if asked, citing the Bible as a basis for the deeply Christian East African nation’s support.
The country has a robust military known for campaigns against militias in Congo and for supplying troops to international forces, including in Somalia. Kainerugaba is known as Uganda’s “tweeting general” and was fired by his father, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, in 2022 over provocative posts about faraway wars.
Israel has in recent years attempted to expand its economic inroads in East Africa, including in Somaliland, a breakaway territory in the Horn of Africa, across the Gulf of Aden from Houthi-controlled Yemen. Israel developed an alliance with Uganda decades ago when its early leaders sought allies outside the Middle East.
The Iran war has deflected global attention from Russia’s all-out invasion of its neighbor Ukraine as Europe’s biggest conflict since World War II enters its fifth year and an emboldened Kremlin undertakes a spring offensive.
The past week showed neither side is easing up. Russia on Tuesday fired almost 1,000 drones and 34 missiles at Ukraine in one of the war’s biggest bombardments. The following day Ukraine launched almost 400 drones in the largest reported overnight attack on Russian regions and Crimea.
Ukraine’s fate is still Europe’s top foreign policy issue, fueled by fears that Moscow has wider ambitions. Meanwhile, the Trump administration has wound down talks with Russian and Ukrainian delegations as the Iran war grips its attention. The administration has warned it could turn its back on the conflict if peace efforts come to nothing.
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Iran’s internet shutdown is badly hurting many businesses, as well as limiting access to news of the war inside the country. A designer in her mid-twenties says her fashion products company is “on the verge of closing” as online sales have ground to a halt.
She added a nearby strike had damaged her apartment in central Tehran. Speaking on condition of anonymity, she shared with The Associated Press a photo of her street showing it filled with debris and broken glass from the blast wave.
She said she had gone to stay at her parents' house where she felt safer.
“I don’t leave the house much except to buy necessities. The checkpoints are still in place and every night, a few supporters of the government hold rallies throughout the city. To be honest, I don’t dare go near the damaged or dangerous areas,” she added, referring to security checkpoints set up across the capital.
Iran has repeatedly restricted internet access since security forces shot thousands of anti-government protesters in early January. Rampant inflation has also throttled the economy. The designer said she has been forced to live on her small savings.
“I think we’ve experienced everything bad possible. We’ve seen it all, from the terrible atmosphere of January and the killings and arrests to the war.”
— Amir-Hussein Radjy
The vast majority of Republicans in the AP-NORC poll, 81%, say it’s “extremely” or “very” important for the U.S. to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, lending support to one of the goals Trump has articulated since the war began. But only about half of Republicans see replacing Iran’s government with leaders who are more friendly to the U.S. as a high priority.
Stephen Hauss, 40, is a state Agriculture Department employee in Camden, Delaware, where he manages environmental programs. Hauss described his political views as libertarian-leaning, and he voted for Trump in 2024. But the start of the Iran war has changed his views about the president.
“Before the war I was just kind of like, ‘OK, like, I voted for him. I got to give him, like, some benefit of the doubt,’” he said.
Now, Hauss said he can’t support the U.S. trying to change the leadership of another country. He added, “I don’t think I am on board with this anymore.”
About three-quarters of Republicans approve of Trump’s handling of the presidency, and a similar 70% approve of how he’s handling Iran.
Many Republicans continue to have “a great deal” or “quite a bit” of trust in the president to make the right decisions on foreign issues. About half place a high level of trust in him when it comes to the use of military force outside the U.S. Roughly the same percentage of Republicans have a high level of trust on his dealings with adversaries and allies.
Sharon Fuller, 68, is a firm backer of the president and approves of his handling of the job, as well as the war in Iran.
A retired hospital analyst from Ocklawaha, Florida, Fuller expressed some reservations about the war but called Trump a “huge patriot” and said she’s been impressed with how the stock market has done since he became president again.
“I don’t really agree with the war, but on the other hand, I think it’s a necessity at this point,” she said.
Oil depots spewing black smoke. Debris sinking in the Persian Gulf. Missiles pounding military sites.
The Iran war has unleashed a toxic mix of chemicals, heavy metals and other pollutants that threaten everything from agriculture to drinking water to people’s health — and will leave behind environmental damage and health risks that could persist for decades, experts said.
“All the burning of oil and gas fields in the coastal areas, all the ships that are there, the oil tankers that are being burned or (sunk) — all of these mean pollution,” said Kaveh Madani, an Iranian scientist and director of the United Nations University Institute for Water, Environment and Health. “For someone like me who has fought for sustainability and protection of the environment in that region, this is like going many years backward.”
Documenting the damage has proved daunting, with a full accounting impossible for now, said Doug Weir, director of the Conflict and Environment Observatory, a U.K.-based nonprofit that monitors environmental harms from armed conflicts.
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It’s costing more and more to gas up the hot rods Donnie Beson has spent a lifetime tinkering with. He’s not questioning his support for Trump, but he feels as though the war in Iran has distracted the Republican president from the issues that got him elected.
“Come on, Trump. Worry about us,” said Beson, 68, of Woodland Park, Colorado. “We’re in a billion-dollar-a-day war. It’s like, ‘Man, you forgot about the other stuff, and you got to take care of that first.’”
Trump still has deep support among Republicans, but a new poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research indicates the president risks frustrating his voters during a midterm election year if the United States gets involved in the kind of prolonged war in the Middle East that he promised to avoid.
Although 63% of Republicans back airstrikes against Iranian military targets, the survey found, only 20% back deploying American ground troops.
Rising gas prices could also pose a problem for Trump. The cost of oil and gas has soared since the Iran war began nearly four weeks ago, adding more financial pressure when many Americans are already worried about affording essentials.
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Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty met Lebanese President Joseph Aoun in Beirut on Thursday amid a swirl of diplomatic discussions about the Iran war.
Abdelatty said that, in shuttling messages between Iran and the United States, Egypt has noted a mutual “desire for calm, for the exploration of negotiations” on both sides. But he warned the talks have not yielded “specific conclusions.”
When asked about Egypt’s role in mediating between Israel and Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah, he told reporters that Egyptian diplomats were voicing to all parties their opposition to Israeli occupation and destruction of civilian infrastructure in southern Lebanon.
He said the goal was to prevent the region “from sinking into a state of chaos from which it cannot emerge.”
The Israeli military says Behnam Rezaei was a “central knowledge authority in maritime intelligence.”
Earlier Thursday, Israel said it had killed the commander of Iran’s navy, Alireza Tangsiri, in an overnight airstrike in Bandar Abbas. Israel said Tangsiri had been responsible for bombing operations that blocked the Strait of Hormuz.
But Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry did not confirm whether direct talks would take place in Islamabad later this week.
At a weekly news briefing, ministry spokesperson Tahir Andrabi said details on the timing, venue and itinerary would be shared in due course. Asked whether Iranian or U.S. delegations were expected to hold talks in Islamabad later this week, he said, “We will let you know when these developments take place.”
He added that Pakistan’s diplomatic efforts are aimed at ending the conflict and emphasized that the initiative is not directed against any country.
In the Israeli-occupied West Bank, residents say they’re increasingly confronting missile debris after it’s intercepted by Israel’s air defenses. Debris was reported Wednesday and Thursday, including in Silwad, Ramallah and Beitin as well as in Israeli settlements.
Palestinians in the West Bank lack the siren alerts and shelter infrastructure that most of Israel has relied on to limit wartime fatalities, leaving communities exposed to missiles and debris. In Beitin, Bahjat Mousa Haj said he heard a boom and later learned through social media that debris had fallen nearby Thursday morning. Nobody was killed. Emergency crews tended to the missile fragment’s husk in a nearby field.
Last week, shrapnel struck a beauty salon near Hebron, killing four women. Despite the dangers, bystanders have filmed interceptions and gathered around the fallen fragments and scorched casings, drawn by a mix of curiosity and disbelief.
A US B1 Lancer bomber takes off from RAF Fairford, England, Thursday, March 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant)
Israeli soldiers carry the flag-draped casket of Staff Sgt. Ori Greenberg who was killed in combat in Lebanon, during his funeral at Mount Herzl military cemetery in Jerusalem Thursday, March 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Mahmoud Illean)
Smoke rises from an Israeli airstrike that hit Zibbikin village as seen from Tyre city, Lebanon, Thursday, March 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
Children displaced from Beirut's southern suburb of Dahiyeh shelter from the rain inside their tents along the coast in Beirut, Lebanon, Thursday, March 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)
Members of a family, who fled Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon, sit around a bonfire outside a tent used as a shelter in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, March 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)
Pro-government supporters chant slogans and wave Iranian flags during a rally, in a square in western Tehran, Iran, Wednesday, March 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
People take cover in a bomb shelter as air raid sirens warn of incoming Iranian missile strikes in Bnei Brak, Israel, Wednesday, March 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
Smoke and flames rise following an Israeli military strike on a target in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza Strip, Wednesday, March, 25, 2026.(AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
Members of the displaced Abd el-Hajj family, and two of their cousins, right, who fled Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon, sit inside a tent used as a shelter in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, March 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)
Members of a family, who fled Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon, sit around a bonfire outside a tent used as a shelter in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, March 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)
Pro-government supporters chant slogans and wave Iranian flags during a rally, in a square in western Tehran, Iran, Wednesday, March 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
