What Goes on a Seder Plate? The 6 Items and What They Mean

Updated November 2026 with the Passover 2027 dates.

The seder plate is the centerpiece of the Passover table, but what actually goes on it? And why is there a bone next to the parsley? Here's every item, what it means, how to arrange it and what to do with it during the seder.

If you're hosting for the first time, take a breath. Our guide to how to host a Passover seder (without losing your mind) covers the whole evening, and our Jewish holidays calendar shows where Passover falls in the year. This post is all about the plate.

What Is a Seder Plate?

Passover (Pesach) retells the story of the Israelites' exodus from slavery in Egypt. The seder, which means "order," is the ritual meal where we tell that story from a Haggadah, drink four cups of wine and eat matzah, because the Israelites left in such a hurry that their bread didn't have time to rise.

The seder plate (in Hebrew, the ke'arah) holds the symbolic foods that the Haggadah points to as the story unfolds. Most of these foods aren't the meal: a few get tasted at specific moments, and the rest just do their symbolic job.

What Goes on a Seder Plate? The Six Items

Here's what goes on a traditional seder plate, with the Hebrew name, what most people use and what each item symbolizes:

Zeroa: the shank bone

The zeroa stands for the korban Pesach, the lamb each family sacrificed and ate on Passover when the Temple stood in Jerusalem. The word means "arm," which also recalls the Torah's line that God took the Israelites out of Egypt "with a strong hand and an outstretched arm." Many families use a roasted lamb shank bone. Lots of others use a roasted chicken neck or wing.

Beitzah: the roasted egg

The egg stands for the chagigah, the extra festival offering brought to the Temple on holidays. Because eggs are a traditional food of mourning, many people also see it as a reminder of the Temple's destruction. And since an egg is round, with no beginning or end, it's often read as a symbol of life and renewal too. Use a hard-boiled egg; many families brown it briefly in the oven or over a burner so it's "roasted."

Maror: the bitter herb

Maror is the bitterness of slavery, served so we taste it instead of just talking about it. Ashkenazi families usually use horseradish, either a chunk of the root or the grated kind (white or the pink beet version). Many Sephardic families use romaine lettuce, which the Mishnah lists first among the vegetables you can use.

Chazeret: the second bitter vegetable

Why two bitter herbs? The second one is used in korech, the "Hillel sandwich" of matzah and bitter herbs. If maror is horseradish, chazeret is often romaine, or the other way around. Some families who follow a different arrangement leave chazeret off and use a five-item plate. Both are traditional.

Charoset: the sweet paste

Charoset looks like the mortar the Israelites used to build with bricks in Egypt, and its sweetness balances the bitter maror it gets paired with. Recipes vary a lot by community. Many Ashkenazi families chop apples and walnuts with cinnamon and sweet wine. Many Sephardic and Mizrahi families make a date-based charoset, often with raisins, figs, almonds or spices. Need ideas? Try this apple beet charoset.

Karpas: the green vegetable

Karpas is spring, new growth and the start of something new. Early in the seder, everyone dips it in salt water, which stands for the tears of the Israelites. Parsley and celery are the most common. In many Eastern European Ashkenazi families, boiled potato became the karpas because fresh greens were hard to come by in early spring.

What About the Matzah and Salt Water?

Two things are part of the seder plate setup even though they usually aren't on the plate itself.

The three matzot. Every seder has three whole matzot, stacked and covered, usually on a matzah plate or under a matzah cover. In some homes the seder plate sits right on top of the stack. One common explanation is that the three stand for the three groups of the Jewish people: Kohen, Levi and Yisrael. Early in the seder, at the step called yachatz, the leader breaks the middle matzah in two. The larger half becomes the afikomen, which gets hidden and found later (we have a whole post on how to hide the afikomen, plus afikomen prizes for whoever finds it).

If you'd like a dedicated piece for the matzah, the Handmade Soft Blue Porcelain Matzah Plate by Green Judaica is made in Boulder, Colorado, with a raised matzah-inspired design and a cork back.

Salt water. You need a small bowl of salt water for dipping the karpas. Some seder plates have a spot for it; most families just set a bowl nearby, or a few bowls down a long table so nobody has to pass.

Modern Seder Plate Additions: The Orange, the Olive and More

Lots of families add a new symbol or two alongside the traditional six. None of these are required, and none replace the originals. They're a way to bring today's questions to the table, which is what the seder is for.

• An orange. This one is associated with the scholar Susannah Heschel, who started placing an orange on her seder plate in the 1980s as a symbol of inclusion, especially for gay and lesbian Jews and others who have felt left out of Jewish life. A popular retelling says it was a response to a man who claimed a woman belonged on the bimah like bread on the seder plate. Heschel has said that isn't how it started. Many families also spit out the seeds as a gesture of rejecting hatred.
• Olives. Some families add olives or an olive branch as a symbol of hope for peace in Israel and the Middle East.
• Fair trade chocolate. Some families add chocolate to start a conversation about modern forced labor and ethical buying.
• Miriam's cup. This one goes on the table, not the plate. A goblet of water honors Moses' sister Miriam and the well that tradition says followed the Israelites through the desert. It's a newer custom that sits next to the traditional cup of Elijah. Emily Rosenfeld's pewter Miriam's Cup and Joy Stember's handmade pewter and brass Elijah's Cup both make the pair feel intentional.

If you add something, say why when you get to it.

How Do You Make a Vegan or Vegetarian Seder Plate?

Good news: this one has a long pedigree. The Talmud (Pesachim 114b) already mentions beets as an option for the two "cooked dishes" that became the zeroa and beitzah. Here are common swaps:

• Instead of the shank bone: a roasted beet (the most popular choice, and its red color fits the story), a roasted sweet potato or carrot, or a decorative wooden or ceramic bone.
• Instead of the egg: a roasted avocado pit, a roasted white onion, a small potato or a decorative wooden egg.

Everything else on the plate is already plant-based. Just check your charoset if you use honey and someone at your table avoids it.

How Do You Arrange a Seder Plate?

If your plate has labeled spots, put each food where it says and you're done. If it doesn't, there are a few traditional layouts, and different families follow different ones.

The Arizal's arrangement. A widely used layout comes from the 16th-century kabbalist Rabbi Isaac Luria, known as the Arizal. Many Sephardic and Hasidic families follow it, and it's the one printed on lots of seder plates. It forms two triangles:

• Top right: zeroa (shank bone)
• Top left: beitzah (egg)
• Center: maror (bitter herb)
• Middle right: charoset
• Middle left: karpas
• Bottom center: chazeret

The three matzot go underneath the plate or beside it.

Order-of-use arrangements. Other traditions, including one associated with the Rema (Rabbi Moshe Isserles), arrange the plate so the foods you use first are closest to the leader. The idea comes from a Jewish principle that you shouldn't "pass over" one mitzvah to reach another.

Honestly? Many families just use whatever layout their plate shows. If you want an easy cheat sheet, browse our labeled seder plates or Hebrew seder plates. The Kotel Scene Glass Seder Plate labels each food in Hebrew and English, so guests and kids can follow along. If you want flexibility, the Round Magnetic Seder Plate by Joy Stember, handcrafted in Pennsylvania, has pewter cups that attach with magnets so you can position them anywhere on the plate. There's a whole magnetic seder plates collection too.

What Do You Do With the Seder Plate Items During the Seder?

The seder has 15 steps, and the plate shows up at several of them. Here's when each item comes into play (customs vary, so follow your Haggadah):

1. Karpas: Everyone dips the green vegetable in salt water and says the blessing over vegetables.
2. Yachatz: The leader breaks the middle matzah. The bigger piece becomes the afikomen.
3. Maggid (telling the story): The Haggadah explains three key symbols: the Passover offering, matzah and maror. Many families lift the matzah and maror when they're named. Many point to the shank bone instead of lifting it, since there's no sacrifice today.
4. Motzi matzah: Blessings, then everyone eats matzah.
5. Maror: Everyone eats bitter herbs dipped in charoset.
6. Korech: The Hillel sandwich: bitter herbs (often the chazeret) and charoset between two pieces of matzah.
7. Shulchan orech (the meal): In many Ashkenazi homes, dinner starts with a hard-boiled egg in salt water. The zeroa usually isn't eaten.

Some Moroccan and other North African families have a lovely custom: early in the seder, the leader lifts the seder plate and circles it over each guest's head while singing, as a way of bringing everyone into the story.

Leftover charoset is excellent on matzah all week.

Do You Need a Special Seder Plate?

No. Any large plate and six little bowls will do. But a seder plate you love is the kind of thing families pass down. Here are a few from our seder plates collection:

• Oak Street Seder Plate by kate spade new york: a porcelain plate with "Passover" in Hebrew at the center and six small colorful dishes labeled in Hebrew and English.
• Pink and White Porcelain Seder Plate by SIND Studio: handmade in Israel, with six small dishes trimmed in genuine gold.
• Freestyle Walnut and Brass Seder Plate: handmade in North Carolina by Interplay Designs. Six walnut triangles rearrange into a hexagon, a line down the table or a Star of David with room for matzah, and a brass stand holds the shank bone.
• Vienna Ceramic Seder Plate and Bowl Set by Israel Museum: made in Israel, a replica of a ca. 1900 Viennese seder plate held in the Jewish Museum in Prague.

Looking for a specific style? Shop modern seder plates, handmade seder plates or seder plates from Israel. For little ones, our Passover gifts for kids help them get in on the action. Heading to someone else's seder instead? Here's what to bring to a Passover seder.

When Is Passover 2027?

Passover 2027 begins at sundown on Wednesday, April 21, 2027 (15 Nisan 5787). The first seder is Wednesday night. Outside Israel, many families also hold a second seder on Thursday night, April 22. Passover lasts seven days in Israel, ending at nightfall on Wednesday, April 28, and eight days for many communities elsewhere, ending at nightfall on Thursday, April 29. Shop the full Passover collection to get ready.

Seder Plate FAQ

What are the 6 items on a seder plate?

The six traditional items are the zeroa (shank bone), beitzah (roasted egg), maror (bitter herb), chazeret (a second bitter vegetable), charoset (a sweet fruit-and-nut paste) and karpas (a green vegetable like parsley). Matzah and salt water are also part of the seder but usually sit beside the plate.

What does the egg represent on the seder plate?

The egg (beitzah) represents the festival offering brought to the Temple in Jerusalem. Many people also see it as a symbol of mourning for the Temple and of the cycle of life.

What does the shank bone represent on the seder plate?

The shank bone (zeroa) represents the Passover lamb sacrificed in Temple times. The word zeroa means "arm," a reminder of God's "outstretched arm" in the Exodus story.

Why is there an orange on the seder plate?

The orange is a modern addition associated with scholar Susannah Heschel, who began using it in the 1980s as a symbol of inclusion for gay and lesbian Jews and others who have felt marginalized in Jewish life. It is optional and goes alongside the six traditional items.

What can I use instead of a shank bone?

A roasted beet is the most common vegetarian substitute, and the Talmud mentions beets as an option. Roasted sweet potato, carrot, or a decorative wooden or ceramic bone also work.

Do you eat the food on the seder plate?

Some of it. The karpas, maror, chazeret and charoset are eaten during the seder rituals, and many families eat a hard-boiled egg at the start of the meal. The shank bone is usually not eaten.

When is Passover 2027?

Passover 2027 begins at sundown on Wednesday, April 21, 2027, with the first seder that night. It ends at nightfall on Wednesday, April 28 in Israel and Thursday, April 29 for many communities outside Israel.

Chag Pesach sameach!