Unleavened, baked in under eighteen minutes — and higher glycaemic than it looks.
Matzo is flour and water, baked fast and completely flat. Traditional production allows
under eighteen minutes from water touching flour to leaving the oven, to prevent any
fermentation.
Because it is so dry and so thin, it is easy to eat a lot of it without
noticing. And despite the plainness, matzo has a relatively high glycaemic index — the
starch is fully accessible with no fat, fibre or fermentation to slow it.
Whole wheat
matzo exists and is a genuine improvement.
Per 100g. One sheet is roughly 28g.
Based on the nutrients and fibre this food supplies. These are supporting foods, not treatments.
Whole wheat matzo roughly triples the fibre — the easiest
improvement available.
Pair it with fat and protein. Eaten plain it
produces a fast glucose rise; with egg, cheese or avocado it behaves very
differently.
It is very dry, which is worth knowing during Passover
week — constipation is a common and well-recognised complaint. Increase fluid and
vegetables.
Matzo brei — soaked and fried with egg — adds
the protein it lacks.
No fermentation, no fat and almost no fibre means nothing slows starch digestion. That is
why a plain, unremarkable-looking cracker sits high on the glycaemic
index.
The constipation issue is straightforward mechanics: replacing varied bread and
grains with a very low-fibre, very dry food for a week reduces both fibre and water content of
the diet at the same time.
Coeliac disease: wheat, barley and rye must be avoided completely,
and cross-contamination counts.
Diabetes: portion and pairing matter
more than banning. Eat bread with protein or fat rather than alone.
IBS:
wheat is a common trigger — for many people it is the fructans rather than the gluten,
which is why sourdough is often tolerated when ordinary bread is not.
This is information, not a prescription. If you are managing a diagnosed condition or taking medication, talk to your doctor before making a large change to your diet.
Nutrition figures on this page come from standard food composition data. These links let you check the numbers and read the underlying research yourself rather than taking our word for it.