Matzo suddenly looks like an everyday pantry option instead of a once-a-year buy. Home cooks now use it in sweet and savory dishes that come together fast, and the familiar Passover staple finds wider use as a crisp shortcut for desserts, coatings and easy meals.
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Americans now eat in smaller, less formal ways more often than they did a few years ago. In the International Food Information Council’s 2025 Food & Health Survey, 62% of Americans said they replace traditional meals with snacks or smaller meals, up from 56% in 2024 and 38% in 2020. For pantry staples like matzo, this creates more opportunities for quick, low-prep options throughout the day.
Matzo moves beyond the holiday plate
Publishers and brands give matzo far more jobs than soup accompaniment or a holiday side. A matzo collection for Passover and beyond includes matzo-crusted fried chicken, key lime pie with a matzo crust, stacked minas and matzo brei.
A sheet of matzo can stand in for crackers on a snack plate, broken pieces can replace breadcrumbs in coatings and crumbs can add crunch to vegetables or proteins. Some stores now sell chips, crumbs, baking mixes and chocolate-dipped matzo, a lineup that suggests broader kitchen use rather than a once-a-year purchase.
Snacking habits open the door for matzo
SNAC International’s 2025 report states that snack sales rose 4.8% over the past year to $156 billion, with the cracker category reaching $9.5 billion. Within crackers, products with gluten-free claims posted dollar growth of 5.3% and volume growth of 3.4%, suggesting shoppers still try crisp pantry foods in new formats.
The Institute of Food Technologists’ March 2026 food outlook also pointed to substantial snacks and do-it-yourself snack kits, such as sampler packs and dipping assortments. These formats align with matzo’s strengths: it works as a base for spreads, cheeses, smoked fish, chopped salads or sweet toppings without any cooking beyond opening the box.
Brands take matzo past Passover
Industry players are trying to position matzo beyond its seasonal lane. FoodNavigator reported in July 2025 that brands want staples such as matzo and matzo ball soup moved from the kosher aisle to endcaps or placed beside mainstream counterparts so more shoppers see them during routine grocery trips.
The retail move works best when brands also give shoppers distinct reasons to use matzo outside the holiday window. New gluten-free formats, broader packaging language and more explicit everyday use cases are meant to help shoppers view matzo as useful well past Passover.
Sweet and savory uses keep matzo practical
Flavor data also aligns with how matzo is used. According to IFT, savory-sweet pairings and other mashups are moving across food categories, and SNAC reports spicy and globally inspired flavors rose 15% in popularity among snack consumers. For matzo, that opens room for uses such as chocolate toffee bark, seasoned crumbs for cutlets or roasted vegetables and small plates topped with herb spreads, spice blends or pickle-forward mixes.
“I love a good matzo with chocolate spread, but it gets boring,” explains Ksenia Prints of At the Immigrant’s Table. “That’s why I make different variations using this staple throughout the holiday, from a sweet French toast-inspired take on matzo brei to my kids’ favorite toffee matzo crack. It’s so much better than just the boring old crackers!”
Based on responses from 3,000 Americans, a survey finds 70% of Americans snack at least once a day. That places pantry foods like matzo into more quick meals, where convenience and flexibility matter as much as flavor.
Matzo still earns pantry space
Passover still gives matzo its biggest annual moment, but the staple now fits into more parts of the everyday meal routine. In a food culture built around smaller meals, pantry shortcuts and flexible ingredients, matzo extends beyond one holiday window. As brands widen distribution and cooks find more sweet and savory uses for it, the familiar snack earns a steadier place in the kitchen.
Jennifer Allen is a retired professional chef and long-time writer. Her work appears in dozens of publications, including MSN, Yahoo, The Washington Post and The Seattle Times. These days, she’s busy in the kitchen developing recipes and traveling the world, and you can find all her best creations at Cook What You Love.