... Kashrut - Jewish Dietary Laws ...

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Kashrut is the body of Jewish law dealing with what foods we can and cannot eat and how those foods must be prepared and eaten ... "Kashrut" ... comes from the Hebrew root Kaf-Shin-Resh, meaning fit, proper or correct. It is the same root as the more commonly known word "kosher," which describes food that meets these standards ... The word "kosher" can also be used, and often is used, to describe ritual objects that are made in accordance with Jewish law and are fit for ritual use.

There is no such thing as ... "kosher-style" ... food. Kosher is not a style of cooking. Even Chinese food can be kosher ... if it is prepared in accordance with Jewish law, and there are many fine kosher Chinese restaurants here in Brooklyn as well in most large cities. Traditional Ashkenazic Jewish foods like knishes, bagels, blintzes, and matzah ball soup can all be non-kosher if they are not prepared in accordance with Jewish law. When a restaurant calls itself "kosher-style," it usually means that the restaurant serves these traditional Jewish foods ... and it almost invariably means that the food is not actually kosher.

Food that is not kosher is commonly referred to as treyf, (literally, torn ... from the commandment not to eat animals that have been torn by other animals).

Why Do We Observe the Laws of Kashrut?

Many modern Jews think that the laws of kashrut are simply primitive health regulations that have become obsolete with modern methods of preparing food. There is no question that some of the dietary laws have some beneficial health effects. For example, the laws regarding kosher slaughter are so sanitary that kosher butchers and slaughterhouses have been exempted from many USDA regulations.

However, health is not the only reason for Jewish dietary laws. Many of the laws of kashrut have no known connection with health. To the best of our modern scientific knowledge ... there is no real reason why camel or rabbit meat (both treyf) - is any less healthy than cow or goat meat ... In addition, some of the health benefits to be derived from kashrut were not made obsolete by the refrigerator ... For example, there is some evidence today that eating meat and dairy together interferes with digestion, and no modern food preparation technique reproduces the health benefit of the kosher law of eating them separately.

The short answer as to why we observe these laws is: because the Torah says so. The Torah does not specify any reason for these laws, and for a Torah-observant, traditional Jew, there is no need for any other reason. Some have suggested that the laws of kashrut fall into the category of "chukkim," laws for which there is no reason. We show our obedience to G-d by following these laws even though we do not know the reason ... Others, however, have tried to ascertain G-d's reason for imposing these laws.

In his book "To Be a Jew" (an excellent resource on traditional Judaism) ... Rabbi Hayim Halevy Donin correctly suggests that the dietary laws are designed as a call to holiness ... The ability to distinguish between right and wrong, good and evil, pure and defiled, the sacred and the profane, is very important in Judaism ... Certainly imposing rules on what we can and cannot eat ingrains that kind of self control. In addition, it elevates the simple act of eating into a religious ritual ... Note that the Jewish dinner table is often compared to the Temple altar in rabbinic literature.

How Difficult is it to Keep Kosher?

People who do not keep kosher often complain how difficult it is. Actually, keeping kosher is not particularly difficult in and of itself; what makes it difficult to keep kosher is the fact that the rest of the world does not do so.

As we shall see below, the basic underlying rules are fairly simple. If we buy our meat at a kosher butcher and buy only kosher certified products at the market, the only thing we need to think about is the separation of meat and dairy.

Note that keeping kosher only becomes difficult when we try to eat in a non-kosher restaurant, or at the home of a person who doesn't keep kosher. In such situations, our lack of knowledge about the host's ingredients and his or her food preparation techniques make it very difficult to keep kosher. Some commentators have pointed out, however, that this may well have been part of what G-d had in mind: to make it more difficult for us to socialize with those who do not share our religion.

General Rules

Although the details of kashrut are extensive, the laws all derive from a few fairly simple, straightforward rules:

1. Certain animals may not be eaten at all. This restriction includes the flesh, organs, eggs and milk of the forbidden animals.

2. Of the animals that may be eaten, the birds and mammals must be killed in accordance with Jewish law.

3. All blood must be drained from the meat or broiled out of it before it is eaten. (How ironic that during the crusades we were accused of killing and drinking the blood of Gentile children ... enough of that.)

4. Certain parts of permitted animals may not be eaten.

5. Meat (the flesh of birds and mammals) cannot be eaten with dairy. Fish, eggs, fruits, vegetables and grains can be eaten with either meat or dairy. (According to some views, fish may not be eaten with meat).

6. A sea creature is only kosher if it has fins and scales, so most species of fish are kosher (tuna, salmon, flounder, trout, etc.) but all shellfish are not kosher. Dolphins and whales are not kosher, jellyfish, sea slugs, and squids are not kosher either.

7. Utensils that have come into contact with meat may never be used with dairy, and vice versa. Utensils that have come into contact with non-kosher food may not be used with kosher food. This applies only where the contact occurred while the food was hot.

8. Grape products made by non-Jews may not be eaten.

I should like to point out here, yes, to digress a bit, that the ability to distinguish differences is a step toward intelligent thinking ... how does this differ from that, this idea from that idea ... this situation from that situation ... these practices from those practices - all develop in the child a strength of thinking that lasts a lifetime.

Of the "beasts of the earth" ... (which basically refers to land mammals with the exception of swarming rodents), we may eat any animal that has cloven hooves and chews its cud. Lev. 11:3; Deut. 14:6 ... Any land mammal that does not have both of these qualities is forbidden. The Torah specifies that the camel, the rock badger, the hare and the pig are not kosher because each lacks one of these two essential qualifications. Sheep, cattle, goats and deer are kosher.

Of the things that are in the waters, we may eat anything that has fins and scales. Lev. 11:9; Deut. 14:9. Thus, shellfish such as lobsters, oysters, shrimp, clams and crabs are all forbidden. Fish like tuna, carp, salmon and herring are all permitted.

For birds, the criteria is less clear. The Torah lists forbidden birds (Lev. 11:13-19; Deut. 14:11-18), but does not specify why these particular birds are forbidden. All of the birds on the list are birds of prey or scavengers, thus the rabbis inferred that this was the basis for the distinction. But other birds are permitted, such as chicken, geese, ducks and turkeys.

Of the "winged swarming things" (winged insects) ... there are a few specifically permitted (Lev. 11:22) ... but the Sages are no longer certain which ones they are, so all have been forbidden (that's called "keeping a fence around the Torah").

Rodents, reptiles, amphibians, and insects (except as mentioned above) are all forbidden. Lev. 11:29-30, 42-43.

Some authorities require a post-mortem examination of the lungs of cattle ... in order to determine whether the lungs are free from adhesions. If the lungs are free from such adhesions, the animal is deemed "glatt" (that is, "smooth") ... In certain circumstances, an animal can be kosher without being glatt; however, the stringency of keeping "glatt kosher" has become increasingly common in recent years.

As mentioned above, any product derived from these forbidden animals, such as their milk, eggs, fat, or organs, also cannot be eaten ... Rennet, an enzyme used to harden cheese, is often obtained from non-kosher animals, therefore kosher hard cheese can be difficult to find.

Kosher slaughtering

The mammals and birds that may be eaten must be slaughtered in accordance with Jewish law. (Deut. 12:21). First, we may not eat animals that died of natural causes (Deut. 14:21) or that were killed by other animals. Second, the animal must have no disease or flaws in the organs at the time of slaughter ... These restrictions do not apply to fish; only to the flocks and herds (Num. 11:22).

Ritual slaughter is known as shechitah, and the person who performs the slaughter is called a shochet, both from the Hebrew root Shin-Chet-Tav, meaning to destroy or kill ... The method of slaughter is a quick, deep stroke across the throat with a perfectly sharp blade with no nicks or unevenness. This method is painless, causes unconsciousness within two seconds, and is widely recognized as the most humane method of slaughter possible.

Another advantage of shechitah is that ensures rapid, complete draining of the blood, which is also necessary to render the meat kosher.

The shochet is not simply a butcher; he must be a pious man, well-trained in Jewish law, particularly as it relates to kashrut. In smaller, more remote communities, the rabbi and the shochet were often the same person.

Draining of Blood

The Torah prohibits consumption of blood. Lev. 7:26-27; Lev. 17:10-14. This is the only dietary law that has a reason specified in Torah: we do not eat blood because it is thought the life of the animal is contained in the blood. This applies only to the blood of birds and mammals, not to fish blood. Thus, it is necessary to remove all blood from the flesh of kosher animals.

The first step in this process occurs at the time of slaughter. As discussed above, shechitah allows for rapid draining of most of the blood.

The remaining blood must be removed, either by broiling or soaking and salting. Now liver may only be koshered by the broiling method, because it has so much blood in it and such complex blood vessels. This final process must be completed within 72 hours after slaughter, and before the meat is frozen or ground. Most butchers and all frozen food vendors take care of the soaking and salting for us, but we should always check this when we are buying someplace we are unfamiliar with ... Buddy's ending a sentence with a preposition? Gasp.

An egg that contains a blood spot may not be eaten. This isn't very common, but we do find them once in a while. So it's a good idea to break an egg into a container and check it before we put it into a heated pan, because if we put a blood-stained egg into a heated pan, the pan becomes non-kosher.

Forbidden Fats and Nerves

The sciatic nerve and its adjoining blood vessels may not be eaten. The process of removing this nerve is time consuming and not cost-effective ... so most American slaughterers simply sell the hind quarters to non-kosher butchers.

There is a certain kind of fat, known as chelev, which surrounds the vital organs and the liver, may not be eaten. Kosher butchers remove this. Modern scientists have found biochemical differences between this type of fat and the permissible fat around the muscles and under the skin.

Separation of Meat and Dairy

On three separate occasions, the Torah tells us not to ... "boil a kid in its mother's milk." (Ex. 23:19, Ex. 34:26, and Deut. 14:21) ... The Oral Torah explains that this passage prohibits eating meat and dairy together. The rabbis then extended this prohibition to include not eating milk and poultry together. But it is permissible to eat fish and dairy together; in fact it is quite common. It is also permissible to eat dairy and eggs together. According to some views, it is not permissible to eat meat and fish together, but we are not certain of the reason for that restriction.

The prohibition applies to the milk and meat of any permitted animal. Note that one message here has its roots in the original wording: not to cook a calf (the young of the species) in its own mother's milk.

The milk was produced by the mother in order to give life to the kid, and now we see the calf in this same milk after its death. Here the milk produced by the mother to nourish her offspring is now feeding the very one who slaughtered that offspring. It is as if we were seeking to nurse and nourish the forces of death and cruelty (the slaughtered calf and the human who took it from its mother), instead of life and loving kindness.

There is a related negative symbolism in consuming any milk with any meat - which is also forbidden by the Torah. Eating animals can naturally symbolize assimilating their bestial qualities, as indeed it does in many pagan cultures; and the laws of kosher meat are fraught with the symbolism of overcoming these base qualities. We only eat docile ruminants; we don't hack or hunt them but rather slaughter them in a rapid and humane way; we salt the meat to get rid of the blood, which more than anything else symbolizes the animal's lower, bestial nature. And while meat may be eaten uncooked, the law indicates that meat is best eaten well cooked - to overcome its natural toughness.

This separation includes not only the foods themselves, but the utensils, pots and pans with which they are cooked ... the plates and flatware from which they are eaten ... the dishwashers or dishpans in which they are cleaned, and the towels on which they are dried. A kosher household will have at least two sets of pots, pans and dishes: one for meat and one for dairy. See Utensils below for more details.

One must wait a significant amount of time between eating meat and dairy. The opinions differ, and vary from three to six hours. This is because fatty residues and meat particles tend to cling to the mouth. From dairy to meat, however, one need only rinse one's mouth and eat a neutral solid like bread, unless the dairy product in question is also of a type that tends to stick in the mouth.

The Yiddish words fleishig (meat), milchig (dairy) and pareve (neutral) are quite commonly used to describe food or utensils that fall into one of those categories.

Note that even the smallest quantity of dairy (or meat) in a neutral food (neither dairy nor meat) will render it entirely dairy (or meat) for purposes of kashrut. For example, most margarines are dairy for kosher purposes, because they contain a small quantity of whey or other dairy products to give it a dairy-like taste. Animal fat is considered meat for purposes of kashrut ... We read the ingredients very carefully, even if the product is kosher-certified.

Utensils

"Pareve" means neither dairy nor meat (a neutral food). Examples are eggs, fruits, vegetables, grains, nuts, and fish ... all neither dairy nor meat. And "treyf" is food that is forbidden (see above) ... I mention this to better understand the next point.

Utensils (pots, pans, plates, flatware, etc., etc.) must also be kosher ... A utensil picks up the kosher "status" (dairy, meat, pareve, or treyf) of the food that it is cooked in or eaten off of , and transmits that status back to the next food that is cooked in it or eaten off of ... Thus, if we cook chicken soup in a saucepan, the pan becomes meat ... If we thereafter use the same saucepan to heat up some warm milk, the fleishig status of the pan is transmitted to the milk, and the milchig status of the milk is transmitted to the pan, making both the pan and the milk a forbidden mixture (Calling Moskowitz, Moskowitz, and Moskowitz ... Help.)

Kosher status can be transmitted from the food to the utensil or from the utensil to the food only in the presence of heat, therefore if we are eating cold food in a non-kosher establishment, the condition of the plates is not an issue. And likewise, we could use the same knife to slice cold cuts and cheese ... as long as we clean it in between, but this is not really a recommended procedure, because it increases the likelihood of mistakes.

Stove tops and sinks routinely become non-kosher utensils, because they routinely come in contact with both meat and dairy in the presence of heat. It is necessary, therefore, to use dishpans when cleaning dishes ... (don't soak them directly in the sink) and to use separate spoon rests and trivets when putting things down on the stove top.

Dishwashers are a kashrut problem ... If we are going to use a dishwasher in a kosher home, we either need to have separate dish racks or we need to run the dishwasher in between meat and dairy loads.

We should use separate towels and pot holders for meat and dairy. Fortunately, routine laundering koshers such items ... so we can simply launder them between using them for meat and dairy. There's a Yiddish expression, "Tzis shvach tzu zein a Yid" ... meaning, "It's not easy to be a Jew" ... but it has its advantages, I'd say.

Certain kinds of utensils can be "koshered" if we make a mistake and use it with both meat and dairy ... Since this gets complicated, we might consult a rabbi for guidance if this situation occurs.

Grape Products

The restrictions on grape products derive from the laws against using products of idolatry ... Wine was commonly used in the rituals of all ancient religions, and wine was routinely sanctified for pagan purposes while it was being processed. For this reason, use of wines and other grape products made by non-Jews was prohibited. (Whole grapes are not a problem, nor are whole grapes in fruit cocktail).

For the most part, this rule only affects wine and grape juice. This can become a concern with many fruit drinks or fruit-flavored drinks, which are often made sweet with grape juice. Note that it is virtually impossible to find kosher baking powder, because baking powder is made with cream of tartar, a by-product of wine making.

Kashrut Certification

The task of keeping kosher has been greatly simplified by widespread kashrut certification. Todate, approximately 3/4 of all prepackaged foods do have some kind of kosher certification ... and most major brands have reliable Orthodox certification.

Many symbols are all widely-accepted kashrut certifications commonly found on products throughout the United States. With a little practice, it is very easy to spot these marks on food labels, usually near the product name, occasionally near the list of ingredients. There are many other certifications available, of varying degrees of strictness.

The most controversial certification is the K ... a plain letter K found on products asserted to be kosher. All other kosher certification marks are trademarked and cannot be used without the permission of the certifying organization. The certifying organization stands behind the kashrut of the product. But we cannot trademark a letter of the alphabet, so any manufacturer can put a K on a product. For example, Jell-O brand gelatin puts a K on its product, even though every reliable Orthodox authority agrees that Jell-O is not kosher.

It is becoming increasingly common for kosher certifying organizations to indicate whether the product is fleishig, milchig or pareve ... If the product is dairy, it will frequently have a D or the word Dairy next to the kashrut symbol ... If it is meat, the word Meat or an M may appear near the symbol ... And if it is pareve, the word Pareve (or Parev) may appear near the symbol (Not a P ... That means kosher for Passover). If no such clarification appears, we read the ingredient list carefully to determine whether the product is meat, dairy or pareve.

The Kosher laws in the Torah describe to us which animals, birds and fish we may consume and which we may not consume. They are a mainstay of Jewish communal and personal life. I would venture to suggest that a vast majority of Jews in the world today observe some degree of Kashrus (adherence to Kosher laws).

Nothing in the Torah is just random - the fact that the Kosher laws lay out specific requirement means that we can learn different ideas from these laws.

We are all familiar with the phrase 'You are What You Eat'. From early childhood I recall hearing this phrase - it is used to dissuade a child from eating too much chocolate and sweets; it is used to encourage us to eat healthy foods; it is used by advertisers to convince us to consume their particular product. Ubiquitous as it may be, it is not so far from the truth. According to Kabbalah, Jewish mysticism, everything that we consume not only becomes part of us physically, but also spiritually. The food or drink, which we consume, affects us on a spiritual plane, on a soul-level, influencing our character and affecting our natural tendencies.

If we take a look at the Kosher animals, for example deer, sheep and cows, we find that they are naturally timid, modest, non-predatory, quiet animals. The birds which are Kosher are those which are not birds of prey. We see that, at the simplest level, the characteristics of Kosher animals are those that we would seek to emulate - peaceful, modest, non-predatory, 'civilized' creatures.

Regarding mammals, the Torah teaches us the signs to look for on a Kosher animal, namely that it should chew the cud and that it should have cloven hooves. These signs were not chosen arbitrarily. Each of them teaches us a way of behaving, a good character trait.

What do we learn from the idea of chewing the cud? That we do not say immediately what we think, we do not always act on impulse. We 'chew things over', we consider carefully before acting. We carefully weigh up our decisions and do not act in haste but with thought and foresight, taking into consideration the consequences of our actions.

What about cloven hooves? The hoof is the lowest part of the animal, with which the animal connects to the ground. The ground symbolizes materialism, the physical world around us. A cloven hoof has a split in it - the hoof is connecting the animal with the ground but at the same time, there is a distinction, a separation. This mirrors our approach to the physical world - we have to be involved in everyday matters, in mundane, material affairs - but we also maintain a conscious separation, a realization that there is something more beyond the physical world, a higher dimension, a spiritual dimension. We are involved in material affairs yet we maintain a certain detachment.

So much of Jewish life revolves around food. The Torah gives us ways to elevate this otherwise routine aspect of our lives, to infuse it with holiness, and to learn from it.