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As you may know for the bread to be hamotzi it has to be made of one of the 5 minim (wheat, barley, oat, rye, and spelt). The problem for celiacs like me is that we can't eat 4 of them, the oats being the exception when certified Gluten Free.

I used to make bread with GF-certified oats for Shabbat, with a recipe I made with a rav a few years ago, but right now I can't reach him. However that recipe is not very good as when you are making breads without gluten you have to replace it with other additives and mix of flours + starches.

I now have a good recipe for bread, that I learnt a couple weeks ago, which I want to be able to do with oats so it can be hamotzi

So my question is what are the conditions for bread to be hamotzi? I know that the oat has to be distinguishable in the taste of the bread, but I believe there are some things about minimum quantities that I can't remember right now. I’m Sephardi if this makes a difference.

Please quote sources so I can study this further.

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Challah 3:7:

הָעוֹשֶׂה עִסָּה מִן הַחִטִּים וּמִן הָאֹרֶז, אִם יֶשׁ בָּהּ טַעַם דָּגָן, חַיֶּבֶת בַּחַלָּה, וְיוֹצֵא בָהּ אָדָם יְדֵי חוֹבָתוֹ בְּפֶסַח. וְאִם אֵין בָּהּ טַעַם דָּגָן, אֵינָהּ חַיֶּבֶת בַּחַלָּה, וְאֵין אָדָם יוֹצֵא בָהּ יְדֵי חוֹבָתוֹ בְּפֶסַח:

If one makes dough from flour and rice, if it has the taste of grain, it’s obligated in Challah, and one fulfills his obligation with it on Pesach. If it does not have the taste of grain, it is not obligated in Challah, and one does not fulfill his obligation with it on Pesach.

Zevachim 78a:

עשה עיסה מן חיטין ומן אורז אם יש בה טעם דגן חייבת בחלה ואע"ג דרובא אורז

If one made dough from wheat and from rice, if it has the taste of grain, it’s obligated in Challah, even though the majority is rice.

Rambam in Hilchos Bikkurim 6:11:

הַמְעָרֵב קֶמַח חִטִּין וְקֶמַח אֹרֶז וְעָשָׂה מֵהֶן עִסָּה אִם יֵשׁ בָּהּ טַעַם דָּגָן חַיֶּבֶת בְּחַלָּה וְאִם לָאו פְּטוּרָה. אֲפִלּוּ הָיָה הַשְּׂאוֹר חִטִּים לְתוֹךְ עִסַּת אֹרֶז. אִם יֵשׁ בָּהּ טַעַם דָּגָן חַיֶּבֶת בְּחַלָּה וְאִם לָאו פְּטוּרָה:

If one mixes wheat flour with with rice flour and makes from them dough, if it has the taste of grain, it is obligated in Challah, and if not, it is exempt. Even if the leavening was wheat in rice dough, if it has the taste of grain, it is obligated in Challah, and if not, it is exempt.

Shulchan Aruch, YD 324:9:

העושה עיסה מהחטים ומהאורז אם יש בה טעם דגן חייבת בחלה אע"פ שרובה אורז ואם לאו פטורה:

If one makes dough from wheat and from rice, if it has the taste of grain, it is obligated in Challah, even though the majority is rice, and if not, it’s exempt.

All of these sources are pretty clear: dough is only considered bread if it has the taste of the grain, even if the grain is in the minority.


If you’ll notice, all of these sources discuss specifically wheat and rice dough. What about oat and some non-Hamotzi, non-rice flour (ex. tapioca, potato, etc.)?

The Shach (YD 324:17) quotes a dispute on this:

אם יש בה טעם דגן חייב בחלה. דאורז גריר אחר החטין כן כתב העט"ז ולפי זה משמע בחטין ואורז אזלינן בתר טעם וכמ"ש הרשב"א אבל מהטור משמע להדיא דה"ה לכל ה' מיני דגן וכן משמע באשר"י דתלה הטעם דכיון דטעם כעיקר דאורייתא:

”If it has the taste of grain, it’s obligated in Challah.” For rice is dragged after the wheat; thus wrote the Taz. According to this, it’s implied that by wheat and rice we go after the taste, like that which the Rashba wrote. But from the Tur it’s clearly implied that this is the Halacha for all five grains, and it’s also implied like this in the Ashr”ei (?) who hangs the reasoning as since taste is the primary part on a Torah level.

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    @kobi oat matza producers have a really hard time making it on the regular machines because the dough doesn't form well. Gluten is stretchy and helps keep a dough together as you work it. Oat flour and water just falls apart/crumbles rendering the quick matza making process very difficult. Oats weren't designed for matza making. The high price isn't just because there's a small market. It's because it's incredibly difficult to make and lots of it ends up in the trash.
    – Double AA
    Mar 8, 2019 at 15:44
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    @DoubleAA Not to mention that oat Matza is absolutely nasty
    – DonielF
    Mar 8, 2019 at 15:45
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    @Doniel You know why? It's because oats, unlike wheat etc., have a nasty tasting chemical in them. Usually Quaker etc. steam treats them to denature that protein, but for Pesach no can do. Arguably the beracha probably is just shehakol on "oat matza" since it tastes so bad and isn't the normal way of eating that food. Like green tomatoes or raw onion. Unsteamed oats aren't food.
    – Double AA
    Mar 8, 2019 at 15:47
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    @DoubleAA @DonielF Yes! i knew that as i was diagnosed with celiac disease on 2002, i have tried all diffrent brands, talked with many producers and they explained why the flavor is so bad, and the price is so expensive, kestembaum, lakewood, and the one that i found with less bitter taste was tiv hashibolet from Israel, i am also the one that gets gluten free matzah every year for the jewish celiacs in argentina(thats where i live) and we distribute it at the price that it is sold to us, so right now im starting to contact many distributors from us to israel for this year`s pesach
    – Kobi
    Mar 8, 2019 at 16:33
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    Note also it's a Machloket Rishonim if wheat that can't rise because you took out the gluten parts and just made bread with the bran is kosher for matza. So even if oat is the right species, if you breed and process some stalks to not have gluten, it might be invalid for the Mitzva anyway. You need a dough which could in theory rise. See bit.ly/2TFLgKw
    – Double AA
    Mar 8, 2019 at 16:46

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