To the Point – What Do You Put on the Passover Seder Plate? What Is Karpas? What Is Maror? And What Is Afikoman?

The decorated Passover plate is not just a table item but a symbol of tradition and memory. On the Seder night, every item on the plate – matzah, shank bone, egg, bitter herbs, and karpas – carries a story and a deep message. What is the significance of the third matzah? Why does the egg symbolize mourning? And what special customs surround the Afikoman? Discover all the fascinating details about the customs and symbols of the Seder night, and enjoy a rich and meaningful experience.

Basically – what do you put on the Passover plate on the Seder night?

1. Three Matzot

Next to or under the Seder plate – three matzot are placed, two of the matzot for the blessing “Hamotzi” as done on every festival and Shabbat where two are blessed (Lechem Mishneh), and the third matzah is divided into two halves – one half to fulfill the commandment of eating matzah, and the other half is the Afikoman.

And the Afikoman – is eaten at the end of the meal (as stated in the Haggadah) in memory of the Passover sacrifice that was eaten to satiety after every holiday meal.

Therefore this matzah is called “Afikoman,” a word composed of two Aramaic words: Afiku- man, meaning: “they brought out food.” In the Mishnah (Pesachim 10:8), it is stated “One does not conclude the meal after the Passover sacrifice with Afikoman,” meaning after eating the matzah which is a remembrance of the Passover sacrifice, one does not say “Afiku-man” (brought out food) – to leave the taste of the matzah of the commandment in the mouth. Just as they would not eat anything after eating the Passover sacrifice when the Temple still stood.

There is a widespread custom that the child ‘steals’ the Afikoman and returns it only if promised a gift, or it is hidden and whoever finds it receives a present. The custom is to make the commandment enjoyable, keep the child awake, and it is part of the festival commandments to bring joy to the woman and the children with things that please them.

2. Zeroa (Shank bone)

–Some have the custom to take a shank bone of a lamb or kid or beef, and others take a chicken leg or wing. The shank bone must be roasted over fire as was done for the Passover sacrifice (it is possible to roast it over a gas flame and it does not necessarily have to be over coals).

“The ‘arm'” is named after the ‘outstretched arm’ that the Holy Blessed One showed in Egypt. It is a remembrance of the Passover sacrifice meat. And one who does not have a shoulder (arm) may take another meat. And it is forbidden to eat from the shoulder meat on the Passover night, because it looks as if one is eating the Passover sacrifice outside of Jerusalem, built in its holiness.

3. Egg

Hard-boiled egg Cooked, and the Ashkenazi custom is to roast it slightly over the fire
The egg is a remembrance of the “Festival Offering” sacrifice.

And in Aramaic, egg is called “ביעא” (Beia), which also means “want” – that is, it hints that “בעי רחמנא למפרק יתנא” (the Merciful Lord wants to redeem us), meaning the “will” of the Holy Blessed One to redeem us with an “outstretched arm.”

Also, the egg is round, symbolizing mourning, which is a cycle returning in the world, and we make it a remembrance of the mourning of the Temple’s destruction since we cannot bring the Passover sacrifice.

4. Maror –Lettuce

Eating Maror (lettuce) is a remembrance of the slavery in Egypt that began soft and eventually became hard, and this is also the nature of lettuce – which starts sweet and ends bitter, for lettuce, although not bitter in itself, hardens its ribs in the ground and becomes very bitter, and therefore it is called “Maror” (bitter).

It is a commandment to eat it even when it is sweet, because the Torah’s commandment to eat Maror does not specifically mean to feel a bitter taste in the mouth, but rather to eat a vegetable called “Maror,” and lettuce is called Maror because eventually if it is left in the ground it becomes bitter. And the mitzvah of Maror is also a remembrance of what the Egyptians embittered to us, etc., at first only in the mouth through sweet appeasements.

And even though lettuce is the most honored for maror, there are those who used to eat “harien” (what is nowadays called “chazeret”) abroad because abroad, small worms were found in lettuce that were hard to detect, and there was no lettuce without worms like there is nowadays. And some still have the custom nowadays to take harien in addition to lettuce leaves so as not to lose the custom of their ancestors.

5. Karpas

The common custom is to take a cooked potato for “karpas,” and some take parsley or celery.

“Karpas” is parsley or celery, and it is chosen for the Seder night because karpas also stands for the letters S-P-R-Kh—meaning S-Ribua (60,000) were forced into hard labor. In principle, any vegetable fruit can be taken for “karpas,” and in practice, the common custom is to take a cooked potato.

Charoset – a dip made from fruits that symbolize those the Israelites were enslaved in, such as apples, figs, nuts, pomegranates, almonds. It must be made thick in remembrance of the mortar with which the Israelites were enslaved in Egypt and with pieces of cinnamon and ginger that resemble the straw used to mix the mortar. A little red wine is also added to soften it.

The Sephardim and some Ashkenazim arrange the Seder plate according to the custom of the holy Arizal based on the wisdom of Kabbalah: the items are placed in two rows, as follows: the shank bone on the right, the egg on the left, and the maror underneath them in the center. The charoset is placed under the shank bone, the karpas under the egg, and the chazeret (harien) – for those who have this custom – under the maror.

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