Animal gelatin

Hi,

Gelatin derived from the hides of kosher animals is not considered "meat" in Jewish law, and may be used with dairy products.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Yoreh Deah 2:27)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Waiting after meat-derived pills

Hello,

One who swallows a pill derived from meat need not wait any length of time before consuming dairy.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Yoreh Deah 2:26)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Rendering an oven meat or dairy

Hi,

Baking [solid food] does not render an oven meat or dairy; the concern for steam only applies when boiling a liquid.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Yoreh Deah 1:59 [and see 1:40])

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Separate grates?

Hi,

A stove burner does not need separate grates for meat and dairy use. Any liquid that falls on the grate dries out when the burner is on. Any absorption in the grate is not a factor, because the grate is dry and the pot it touches is dry, and so the absorption in the grate would not transfer to the pot.

[Of course, one would need to remove any actual meat or dairy substance sitting on the grate before introducing a pot of the opposite kind.]

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Yoreh Deah 1:40)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Bread that was used with a meat meal

Hi,

One need not have separate loaves of bread for meat and dairy meals; people generally are careful not to touch the loaf with hands that have handled meat or dairy.

However, bread which was handled with a meat or dairy meal, with the expectation of eating it at that meal, should not be used later for a meal of the opposite kind. Because people think they will eat it with this meal, they are not careful to avoid getting meat/dairy on the bread.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Yoreh Deah 1:38)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Meat and dairy gas stovetops?

Hi,

The same burner on a gas stove may be used for both meat and dairy, without kashering in between. However, one must clean the surface of any actual food in between uses.

(Rav Moshe Feinstein, Igrot Moshe Orach Chaim 1:124)

[I believe the same is true for electric burners, but the question was asked of Rav Moshe regarding gas.]

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

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

When do we start waiting?

Hi,

When we talk about waiting between meat and dairy, the formal 'wait' time is calculated from the time one finishes eating meat, not from the time one recites birkat hamazon.

(Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah 89:1)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Waiting after dairy, before meat

Hi,

We have discussed waiting after eating meat, before eating dairy.

We do not require this wait after dairy, before meat, other than if one ate hard cheese. [Defining 'hard cheese' is beyond the scope of this post, but you might look at the Star-K's site, here.] However, one must still clean out his mouth of dairy, and rinse.

(Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah 89:2)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Cleaning one's mouth between meat and dairy

Hi,

We have mentioned the practice of waiting after eating meat, before eating dairy.

Further, one must clean out his mouth, removing any remaining meat and then rinsing out his mouth.

(Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah 89:1; Shach Yoreh Deah 89:4)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Waiting between meat and dairy

Hi,

We wait after we eat meat, before we eat dairy.

The gemara mentions the need for separate meals, but it does not say how long one must wait in between. Customs to wait various times, from one hour to six hours, have developed; each family should follow its custom.

(Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah 89:1; Taz Yoreh Deah 89:2)

Have an easy and meaningful fast,
Mordechai

Meat and dairy salt shakers

Hi,

We have noted that people may eat meat and dairy at the same table simultaneously, if they have a visible reminder on the table to prevent them from sharing food. However, they should not share food.

The diners should also not share utensils, including a pitcher of water, because food tends to stick to utensils. This is why we generally keep separate food containers - salt shakers, etc - for table use for meat and dairy.

(Rama, Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah 88:2)

Have a great day,
Mordechai

Serving meat and dairy at the same table

Hi,

One may not serve meat and dairy at the same table to people who are familiar with each other, lest they share food. However, one may do so if they have a visible reminder not to share, such as they eat on separate tablecloths.

(Shulchan Aruch Yoreh Deah 88:1-2)

Have a great day,
Mordechai