Search results for: ""Kosher""
Introduction to Shavuot
Shavuot (Yom HaBikurim in the Torah) celebrates and commemorates the giving of the Ten Commandments to the Israelites at Mt. Sinai.
Beginning with the second night of Passover, the Israelites who left Egypt underwent 49 days of spiritual improvement and purification until they were ready to receive the Torah from God (Shavuot ends this 49-day “omer” period). We can undergo a similar process of spiritual development each year during these 49 days (how to do that is beyond the scope of this website). According to our tradition, the Israelites in Egypt had sunk to the 49th level of spiritual impurity (tum'a). The Israelites had to raise themselves in 49 daily stages to be worthy of receiving the Torah. Several books and siddurs portray the 49 days of the omer as corresponding to the Seven Sefirot embedded in the seven weeks. This awareness can help us work on and maximize the power inherent in each day of the omer to fix that particular sefira in ourselves. We thus relive this transition from slavery to freedom and the service of God each year as we try to perfect our midot (personal characteristics) to again be worthy of receiving the Torah on Shavuot.
Symbolism of the Shavuot Offering
In the Temple in Jerusalem, the only communal sacrifice of leavened bread was on Shavuot. Leavening in dough is compared to arrogance in humans (people puff themselves up to look more important than they actually are). During Passover we destroy, and refrain from eating, leaven--just as we try to destroy/remove arrogance from our personalities. After Passover, we continue to work on our personal traits (midot) until we reach Shavuot, when we celebrate receiving the Torah. At Shavuot, we Jews have a right to feel important, since we are spiritually elevated by virtue of having been given the Torah.
Shavuot: Universal Customs
The universal custom is to eat at least one dairy food during Shavuot.
Possible reason At the time the Israelites received the Torah, they did not have any kosher meat (they had not been required to eat kosher until then) and so the only food they were permitted to eat was dairy food.
Another universal custom is to stay awake all night (if possible) studying Torah.
Shavuot: Symbols
Unlike other Jewish festivals, Shavuot has no concrete symbols and no specific unique commandments/mitzvot, other than sacrifices that were brought in the Temple in Jerusalem.
Beginning with the second night of Passover, the Israelites who left Egypt underwent 49 days of spiritual improvement and purification until they were ready to receive the Torah from God (Shavuot ends this 49-day “omer” period). We can undergo a similar process of spiritual development each year during these 49 days (how to do that is beyond the scope of this website). According to our tradition, the Israelites in Egypt had sunk to the 49th level of spiritual impurity (tum'a). The Israelites had to raise themselves in 49 daily stages to be worthy of receiving the Torah. Several books and siddurs portray the 49 days of the omer as corresponding to the Seven Sefirot embedded in the seven weeks. This awareness can help us work on and maximize the power inherent in each day of the omer to fix that particular sefira in ourselves. We thus relive this transition from slavery to freedom and the service of God each year as we try to perfect our midot (personal characteristics) to again be worthy of receiving the Torah on Shavuot.
Symbolism of the Shavuot Offering
In the Temple in Jerusalem, the only communal sacrifice of leavened bread was on Shavuot. Leavening in dough is compared to arrogance in humans (people puff themselves up to look more important than they actually are). During Passover we destroy, and refrain from eating, leaven--just as we try to destroy/remove arrogance from our personalities. After Passover, we continue to work on our personal traits (midot) until we reach Shavuot, when we celebrate receiving the Torah. At Shavuot, we Jews have a right to feel important, since we are spiritually elevated by virtue of having been given the Torah.
Shavuot: Universal Customs
The universal custom is to eat at least one dairy food during Shavuot.
Possible reason At the time the Israelites received the Torah, they did not have any kosher meat (they had not been required to eat kosher until then) and so the only food they were permitted to eat was dairy food.
Another universal custom is to stay awake all night (if possible) studying Torah.
Shavuot: Symbols
Unlike other Jewish festivals, Shavuot has no concrete symbols and no specific unique commandments/mitzvot, other than sacrifices that were brought in the Temple in Jerusalem.
Introduction to Passover
Introduction to Passover: Passover Names
Passover celebrates the seven or eight days starting with the 14th of Nisan, when God took the Israelites out of Egypt about 3300 years ago. The holiday has several names:
Passover celebrates the seven or eight days starting with the 14th of Nisan, when God took the Israelites out of Egypt about 3300 years ago. The holiday has several names:
- Chag HaPesach--Holiday of "Skipping Over" (reflecting that God passed over the Jewish homes and did not kill the first-born sons, unlike those of the Egyptians);
- Chag HaAviv--Festival of Spring (the Jewish calendar is based on the moon and is adjusted to the solar cycle so that Passover always comes in the spring);
- Chag HaMatzot--Holiday of Unleavened Bread; and
- Zman Cheiruteinu--Time of our Freedom.
Introduction to Passover: Passover Observance
Passover observance includes removal of chametz, the Passover sacrifice and its reminders, and the Passover seder:
However, the chametz in food acquired before Passover can be nullified before Passover, but ONLY if:
Destroying chametz is not a violation of “do not destroy” (bal tashchit) since it is done to perform a commandment.
Chametz
Chametz Gamur and Ta'arovet Chametz
The Five Grains, once fermented into items such as bread or beer, are genuine chametz (chametz gamur) and are forbidden on Passover by the Torah (d'oraita). Ta'arovet chametz (a mixture containing chametz) includes foods such as breakfast cereal and are also forbidden on Passover.Rules for Chametz
- You may not own or see (your own) chametz during the entire period of Passover.
- You may not benefit in any way from chametz during Passover, whether it belongs to a Jew or to a non-Jew. If the chametz was owned by a Jew during Passover, you may not benefit from that chametz even after the holiday has ended.
What To Do with Chametz
Ideally, any chametz should be used up before Passover, given to a non-Jew, or destroyed. But if the chametz has significant value, the custom is to sell that chametz to a non-Jew. You do not need to sell kitniyot, but you must sell any genuine chametz and any mixtures of chametz (ta'arovet chametz).Passover and Nullification by 1/60th
During the year, 1/60th or less of an undesired substance is considered to be inconsequential and nullified by the other substances. But on Passover, any amount of leaven mixed in food is forbidden.However, the chametz in food acquired before Passover can be nullified before Passover, but ONLY if:
- It is 1/60th or less of the total volume of food,
- The food is liquid mixed in other liquid, or solid in other solid, AND
- The chametz/non-chametz elements cannot be easily separated from each other.
Four Steps To Eliminating Chametz
There are four means of eliminating chametz:-
Bedika: Searching
You try to find any chametz. -
Bitul: Verbal and Intentional Nullification
Since you may have overlooked some chametz during bedika, declare that any chametz in your possession is not important to you and has no value. -
Bi'ur: Burning
By burning and therefore destroying the chametz, we fulfill the Torah
commandment of “tashbitu” (making it cease to exist). -
Mechira: Selling
By changing the ownership, we no longer own chametz on Passover and we create the opportunity to re-acquire the chametz after Passover has ended if the non-Jewish buyer agrees.
Chametz Symbolism
Fermented grains represent (among other things) arrogance and pride: the puffing up of fermented grains is symbolic of people puffing up themselves. In Judaism, one way to get rid of a bad personal trait is to utterly destroy it and so we symbolically remove and destroy any fermented grain foods from our houses and ownership.Destroying chametz is not a violation of “do not destroy” (bal tashchit) since it is done to perform a commandment.
What Are Kitniyot
Kitniyot are foods that look similar to the five chametz grains or that could be ground into a flour that could look like flour from those grains, such as beans, peanuts, rice, corn, mustard seeds, and other food plants that are grown near the Five Grains.What To Do with Kitniyot
Kitniyot may not be used on Passover but do not need to be sold or removed from one's ownership. Kitniyot should be stored away from kosher for Passover food.Passover Sacrifice
In Temple times, the Passover sacrifice was to be eaten with one's family and possibly with neighbors, depending on the number of people present. The only two instances of kareit (being cut off spiritually) for not doing a positive commandment are for not doing a brit mila and not bringing a Passover offering (in Temple times).Seder
The Passover seder (order) was prescribed in ancient times as a means for helping all Jews, of all ages and both genders, to re-experience the transition from having been slaves to becoming free and from having ascended from idol worshippers to being monotheistic.Kashering Oven Racks
You may kasher oven racks by putting them in a self-cleaning oven and running the self-clean cycle. Or, clean with oven cleaner and then put into a normal oven on its highest temperature for 40 minutes.
Kashering a Gas Stove
To kasher a gas stove:
- Remove the burner grates,
- Clean off any deposits,
- Place the grates on a clean surface inside the oven, and
- Heat the grates to the oven's maximum temperature for 40 minutes.
Passover: Kashering an Oven
To kasher an oven for Passover:
- Clean it completely, including any hard deposits, and
- Heat the oven for 40 minutes at its highest temperature.
Kashering a Clean Electric Stove
To kasher a clean electric stove, turn the burners on to the highest setting until the burner glows red (this is easier to see at night) or until a piece of paper will burn on it (the paper does not need to burst into flame).
Kashering an Electric or Gas Regular Oven
To kasher an oven that is not self-cleaning, you must:
-
Remove any deposits on the walls, racks, and window.
Note If there are stains or deposits, you must clean them off or burn them off. If the stains or deposits do not come off after two cycles of using strong oven cleaner such as Easy Off, the oven is considered sufficiently clean.
-
Turn the oven on to its maximum temperature for 40 minutes.
Note Self-cleaning ovens attain a higher maximum temperature than do non-self-cleaning ovens.
Kashering an Electric or Gas Self-Cleaning Oven
To kasher a self-cleaning electric or gas oven, you do not need to clean it first. Just run the self-clean cycle.
Kashering a Grill
Make a grill red hot to kasher it.
Kashering a Dishwasher from Dairy to Meat, or Vice Versa
You may not kasher a dishwasher (even if it is stainless steel) from dairy to meat, or vice versa, in order to use the dishwasher for dairy and for meat utensils, even sequentially.
Passover: When To Finish Kashering
When kashering an oven or utensils for Passover, you may kasher:
- By Libun
Anytime, including on chol ha'moed (but not on Jewish festivals or Shabbat).
- By Hag'ala
Until one hour before halachic midday on Passover eve (but b'di'avad it is OK until
just before sunset of Passover eve).
just before sunset of Passover eve).
Passover: Kitniyot in Passover Utensil
Situation Kitniyot were cooked in a Passover utensil.
Situation 1 The kitniyot's volume was less than 50\% of the volume of food cooked in that utensil.
Status The food may be eaten and the utensil may be used on Passover (no need to kasher).
Situation 2 The kitniyot's volume was more than 50\% of the volume of the food cooked in that utensil.
Status The food is not permitted to be eaten.
Situation 2a The kitniyot's volume was more than 50\% of the volume of the food cooked in that utensil, and the total volume of the food cooked (kitniyot + non-kitniyot) was less than the normal volume of food which is cooked in that utensil.
Status The utensil may be used even without kashering, as long as you wait at least 24 hours after the utensil has been cleaned.
Situation 2b The kitniyot's volume was more than 50\% of the volume of the utensil itself and more than 50\% of the normal volume of food cooked in it.
Status You may not eat the food (until after Passover) and must kasher the utensil after waiting 24 hours.
NOTE You may only kasher a utensil on chol ha'moed but NOT on the festival days themselves.
Situation 1 The kitniyot's volume was less than 50\% of the volume of food cooked in that utensil.
Status The food may be eaten and the utensil may be used on Passover (no need to kasher).
Situation 2 The kitniyot's volume was more than 50\% of the volume of the food cooked in that utensil.
Status The food is not permitted to be eaten.
Situation 2a The kitniyot's volume was more than 50\% of the volume of the food cooked in that utensil, and the total volume of the food cooked (kitniyot + non-kitniyot) was less than the normal volume of food which is cooked in that utensil.
Status The utensil may be used even without kashering, as long as you wait at least 24 hours after the utensil has been cleaned.
Situation 2b The kitniyot's volume was more than 50\% of the volume of the utensil itself and more than 50\% of the normal volume of food cooked in it.
Status You may not eat the food (until after Passover) and must kasher the utensil after waiting 24 hours.
NOTE You may only kasher a utensil on chol ha'moed but NOT on the festival days themselves.
Kashrut: Fish: Fish and Meat Together
Do not cook or eat meat-containing and fish-containing foods together:
- After eating fish, you must eat and drink some other food before eating meat-containing food.
- After eating meat-containing food, you must eat and drink some other food before eating fish.
Note If meat and fish were mixed or cooked together, there is no need to kasher the utensils.
Introduction to Kashering: Pots and Utensils: Libun
Kashering: Pots and Utensils: Libun: How It Works
Kashering by “burning” (libun) burns up any residual food taste and is of two types:
Libun gamur (complete burning) is when the entire metal substance of a utensil, oven, or other cooking surface becomes red hot.
When To Use Libun Gamur
Heating to red-hot (libun gamur) is required to kasher utensils that are used with direct heat, such as baking pans, roasting pans, and roasting grates. Libun gamur works on anything except pottery (this is a rabbinic injunction since you might not do a good job).
How To Do Libun Gamur
Libun gamur can be done by blowtorch or by placing the item in a kiln.
Libun Kal: Heating so Other Side of Pot Singes Paper
Heating so that the heat goes through to the opposite side of whatever is being kashered is called libun kal.
When To Use Libun Kal
This method may be used whenever there is a question of whether an item needs libun or not, such as grates on a gas stove.Grates on a gas stove are considered questionable since food may have overflowed onto them and, due to safek, we kasher using libun kal.
Note Grates on a gas stove do not need libun gamur.
Note Whenever hag'ala is effective, you may instead use libun kal, since libun kal is a stronger form of kashering. Sometimes you may find it more convenient to use libun kal to kasher an item that needs only hag'ala. You may use libun kal instead of hag'ala since libun kal is a stronger form of kashering.
Situation A stainless steel pot of the opposite gender went through a dishwasher cleaning.
What to Do Even though the pot only needs hag'ala, you may instead kasher it by libun kal by putting it in an oven at 500° F (for this application).
How To Do Libun Kal
Direct a flame, such as a blowtorch, onto the inside of a pot. Pot is hot enough when a piece of paper that touches the outside of the utensil burns (it need not burst into flame, just to smolder and be consumed).
Kashering by “burning” (libun) burns up any residual food taste and is of two types:
- “Complete burning” (libun gamur), and
- “Light burning” (libun kal).
Libun gamur (complete burning) is when the entire metal substance of a utensil, oven, or other cooking surface becomes red hot.
When To Use Libun Gamur
Heating to red-hot (libun gamur) is required to kasher utensils that are used with direct heat, such as baking pans, roasting pans, and roasting grates. Libun gamur works on anything except pottery (this is a rabbinic injunction since you might not do a good job).
How To Do Libun Gamur
Libun gamur can be done by blowtorch or by placing the item in a kiln.
Libun Kal: Heating so Other Side of Pot Singes Paper
Heating so that the heat goes through to the opposite side of whatever is being kashered is called libun kal.
When To Use Libun Kal
This method may be used whenever there is a question of whether an item needs libun or not, such as grates on a gas stove.Grates on a gas stove are considered questionable since food may have overflowed onto them and, due to safek, we kasher using libun kal.
Note Grates on a gas stove do not need libun gamur.
Note Whenever hag'ala is effective, you may instead use libun kal, since libun kal is a stronger form of kashering. Sometimes you may find it more convenient to use libun kal to kasher an item that needs only hag'ala. You may use libun kal instead of hag'ala since libun kal is a stronger form of kashering.
Situation A stainless steel pot of the opposite gender went through a dishwasher cleaning.
What to Do Even though the pot only needs hag'ala, you may instead kasher it by libun kal by putting it in an oven at 500° F (for this application).
How To Do Libun Kal
Direct a flame, such as a blowtorch, onto the inside of a pot. Pot is hot enough when a piece of paper that touches the outside of the utensil burns (it need not burst into flame, just to smolder and be consumed).