Food prepared with a Jew's non-immersed utensils

Hi,

Food prepared with a Jew's non-immersed utensils remains kosher, and may be eaten with properly immersed utensils.

(Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah 120:16)

Good moed,
Mordechai

Eating with another Jew's unimmersed utensils

Hi,

There is some debate as to whether one Jew may eat with another Jew's utensils, if those utensils were not properly immersed.

Rav Moshe Feinstein ruled that this is prohibited, but in a case of need he was lenient regarding use of the plate itself, for non-liquid foods.

(R' Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Yoreh Deah 3:22; based on Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah 120:8)

Chag kasher v'sameach,
Mordechai

A loophole regarding immersing utensils

Hi,

We have said that a Jew must immerse food-related utensils he purchases.

However: A Jew who purchases food-related utensils in real partnership with a non-Jew need not immerse them, so long as the utensils remain owned in partnership.

(Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah 120:11; Shach Yoreh Deah 120:24)

Chag kasher v'sameach,
Mordechai

Immersing a knife used for cutting non-food items

Hi,

Because the requirement to immerse utensils is limited to food-utensils, one need not immerse a knife which one purchased for the sake of cutting non-food items. This is true even if that kind of knife is normally used for cutting food.

However: Should one ever use that knife to cut food, even as a one-time event, he would be obligated to immerse it first.

(Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah 120:8; Shach Yoreh Deah 120:17)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Immersing borrowed utensils, Part II

Hi,

One who borrows or rents utensils from another Jew must make sure to immerse them before using them, if they require immersion and the owner did not take care of it.

(Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah 120:8)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Immersing borrowed utensils

Hi,

One need not immerse utensils which are borrowed or rented from someone who is not Jewish.

(Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah 120:8)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

The berachah on immersing a utensil

Hi,

One who is immersing a single utensil recites a berachah beforehand, "על טבילת כלי, al tevilat keli, on the immersion of a utensil."

One who is immersing multiple utensils, without interruption between them, recites a berachah beforehand, "על טבילת כלים, al tevilat kelim, on the immersion of utensils."

(Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah 120:3)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Holding a utensil while immersing it

Hi,

One should hold the utensil loosely while immersing it in the mikvah, to allow water to access all of the surfaces of the utensil.

(Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah 120:2)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Tovelling - Which materials require tevillat kelim?

Hi,

One who acquires new utensils which will be used with food and were owned by someone who was not Jewish must immerse them in a mikvah.

This applies principally to utensils made from metal or glass. For a thorough list of which utensils qualify as "used with food," as well as which material require immersion, please see the Star-K guide here.

(Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah 120:1)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Trusting you to say food is kosher, Part II

Hi,

One who has a record of violating strict prohibitions is automatically untrustworthy regarding prohibitions that carry lesser punishments, in cases where he could benefit by violating them.

(Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah 119:5; Shach Yoreh Deah 119:13)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Trusting you to say food is kosher

Hi,

Often, we rely on the statements of others to determine that food is kosher.

One may not trust the word of a Jew regarding a particular kosher food if he is known to have eaten a non-kosher version of that type of food when a kosher option was available.

(Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah 119:1,2,4)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Disgusting food and utensils

Hello,

One may not eat food which is repellent to him, and one may not eat with dirty utensils. [Of course, the definitions of 'repellent' and 'dirty' are somewhat subjective.]

(Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah 116:6)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Fish and meat, Part II

Hi,

Because of the concern for harm stemming from eating fish and meat together, we generally separate the two, cleaning our mouths by eating and then drinking in between.

(Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah 116:3)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Eating meat and fish together

Hi,

We have explained that the Torah requires us to guard our lives, and so we stay away from dangerous foods.

The sages understood that eating fish and meat together, or even cooking them together such that vapor from one could invade the other, is dangerous.

(Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah 116:2)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Uncovered water

Hi,

The Torah warns us to guard our lives, and therefore we avoid eating foods which might be dangerous.

Historically, Jews avoided drinking beverages that had been left out uncovered, due to concern for venomous creatures that might have imparted toxin into the drinks.

One whose environment is safe from such risks may drink such a beverage, but we tend to err on the side of caution.

(Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah 116:1; Pitchei Teshuvah Yoreh Deah 116:1)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Vegetables with worms in them

Hi,

If three worms have been found in a quantity of vegetables, all of the vegetables are prohibited; we assume that more worms are present, and are simply difficult to detect.

The only the way to permit the vegetables would be if there were a method of filtration available, guaranteed to remove the prohibited entities.

(Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah 84:9-10 and 100:4; Shach Yoreh Deah 100:11)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Dairy Bread - what if the package is marked Dairy?

Hi,

We have noted the prohibition against preparing dairy bread, lest one eat it with meat.

The Shulchan Aruch mentions an exemption to the prohibition, where the bread is unusual in its appearance and therefore people will remember not to eat it with meat. Example: Some agencies use this exemption to certify dairy English Muffins.

On this basis, some contend that bread which is in a package that is labelled "Dairy" would be acceptable.

Others disagree, for a few reasons:
1. Bread is often removed from the package, and so the sign will not be present;

2. In this case, the bread is already formed as prohibited dairy bread before it is placed in the package, and the packaging cannot reverse the extant prohibition;

3. The idea of marking the bread may only be acceptable for personal use, where the user is the one who made the unique mark and is therefore sensitive to it; commercial use could not rely on the anonymous consumer noticing the unique mark.

(Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah 97:1; Pitchei Teshuvah Yoreh Deah 97:3)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Dairy Bread - An exception

Hi,

We have mentioned that dairy bread is not considered kosher.

One may make dairy bread, if the quantity is small enough that it will be consumed at a single sitting, so that the bread will not be used with meat later.

(Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah 97:1)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Dairy Bread

Hi,

The sages forbade dairy bread, lest one eat it with meat; even eaten alone, dairy bread is not considered kosher.

Stay tuned for exceptions to the rule tomorrow...

(Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah 97:1)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Pesach posts

Hi,

Here are links to past halachah posts about Pesach. Please note that any times on these posts are for past years, and have not been updated.

Pesach Preparation

Pesach: Fast of the Firstborn

Pesach Seder

Chametz during Pesach

Chametz after Pesach

Have a great day,
Mordechai

A meat pot that was used to cook dairy

Hi,

One may not use a pot to cook dairy, once it has been used to cook meat. The reverse is also true.

If one accidentally cooked meat in an open dairy pot, or dairy in an open meat pot, but the pot is clean and has not been used in 24 hours, and the food cooked in the pot is not sharp-tasting, then the food is permitted, but the pot may still require kashering.

Please ask a competent rabbi for specific cases. Note, as well, that the law may change if there is a lid on the pot.

(Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah 93:1; Shach Yoreh Deah 93:4)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Meat that touched dairy

Hi,

If meat touches dairy, and both items are cold, and the contact is not through soaking in a liquid medium, and there is no grease present, then one may simply rinse their surfaces and they remain kosher.

[Of course, one should avoid this through measures like assigning separate kitchen counters and separate refrigerator areas, wherever possible.]

(Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah 91:1; Pitchei Teshuvah Yoreh Deah 91:1; see also Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah 95:6)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

A separate bread knife

Hi,

Technically, one could use a knife to cut meat, clean its surface, and then use the same knife to cut bread that would be eaten with dairy. We would not be concerned for the knife's absorption of meat and then potential extrusion of that absorption into the dairy.

Nonetheless, the general Jewish practice is to avoid this situation, presumably due to concern lest the knife or its handle be cleaned insufficiently in between; we keep separate knives. One should not deviate from this practice.

(Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah 89:4)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Meat and dairy tablecloths

Hi,

One may not use the same tablecloth or placemat for dairy and meat.

However, one who keeps all of the food on plates may use the same tablecloth for dairy and meat, so long as he wipes it down and then flips it so that one side is for dairy and the other for meat.

(Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah 89:4; Pitchei Teshuvah Yoreh Deah 89:8)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Food cooked in meat/dairy receptacles

Hi,

One may eat dairy right after eating food cooked in a meat pot, without actual meat present, and one may eat meat right after eating food cooked in a dairy pot, without actual dairy present.

(Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah 89:3)

Have a great day,
Mordechai