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Kosher Food
Kosher food is food that meets Jewish dietary laws. Any food can be called kosher food if it adheres to Jewish law. Foods that are considered Jewish aren't necessarily kosher. Kosher food laws are rather extensive, some are derived from the bible and others through rabbinic interpretations over the years.
1,170 Questions
What does Kosher mean when you are referring to animal tissues?
With reference to food animals, kosher means:
- the animal is a permitted species
- it was slaughtered according to Jewish law
- only permitted parts are certified kosher
- the meat was processed according to Jewish law
- All of the above was supervised by an expert (a shochet and/or a mashgiach)
Does not eating kosher make you a bad Jew?
Now that's a hard question to answer! Some Jews will tell you that it does, because by not keeping kosher you are ignoring quite a few of the 613 Mitzvot (commandments) given to us by G-d in the Torah, commandments that every Jew is expected to follow.
Having said that, Jews are traditionally quite a liberal people - at least in our opinions on others, even if many of us choose to live quite conservative lives ourselves. For example, I keep strictly kosher (which admittedly isn't too difficult since I'm also vegan) but I most certainly don't think that anybody who does not is a bad Jew. The 613 Mitzvot are broadly divided into the mishpatim - those for which a reason is given - and the chukim - those for which no reason is given, and the laws regarding food are in the second group. As such, we simply do not why these foods are forbidden to us - it could be to show our faith in G-d's word, it could be for some trifling, unimportant reason, it could be due to some reason of G-d's which is beyond our comprehension. We just don't know, and for that reason many people might well argue that as independent human beings we are all allowed a little bit of leeway to decide for ourselves here. So long as you carry out the most important miztvot, such as chesed ("loving kindness," charity), respect for your parents, not doing to others that which you would not want done to yourself then I'm sure I'm not the only person who would still think of you as a good Jew.
What is the jewish rule about pork consumption?
The Torah forbids Jews to eat pork (Deuteronomy ch.14).
See also:
Does a YMHA or YWHA facility have to serve kosher food?
There is no national YMHA/YWHA association, so there are no rules. There are very few YMHAs anyway; most of the ones that used to exist changed their names to JCC. But they can do whatever they like.
Is a duck kosher if it is hunted?
No. Jewish law forbids the consumption of kosher animals killed by hunters.
Why is beef gelatine not kosher?
Beef gelatine is certainly kosher, if it is made from kosher cows, i.e. ones that were slaughtered properly and whose internal organs showed no sign of disease or injury. The only brand of gelatine that is made from kosher cows is Kolatin™.
Regarding other beef gelatine, made from cows that were not kosher, there is a dispute among the halachic authorities. Some authorities held that gelatine made from the bones of such cows is not kosher, but there were many authorities who held that it is, because the it's changed so radically that it's no longer the same substance. The rabbinic consensus in the USA is in accord with the stricter opinion, to regard such gelatine as not kosher; but the consensus in Israel and Europe is that the lenient opinion may be relied on, though it is better not to do so, and so the rabbinates in those countries certify two levels of kashrut: the basic level allows all beef gelatine, but the "mehadrin" level allows only Kolatin™ brand.
You would have to have access to a kosher kitchen as any contact with non-kosher utensils (this includes ovens, microwaves, counters, tables, etc), would render kosher ingredients non-kosher.
The basic rules to follow are:
* Any meat or poultry has to be certified kosher.
* Fish has to be from a kosher species, skin on. If the packaging the fish is in has kosher certification, it doesn't have to have the skin.
* Meat and dairy cannot be combined in any way, poultry qualifies as meat in this case. Even products that contain dairy byproducts (whey, etc) cannot be combined with meat.
* Fish and meat cannot be served on the same dish or at the same time.
* In North America, milk is considered acceptable by most groups. Some groups do require kosher certification for milk. Almost all require kosher certification for dairy products (cheese, etc). There is a higher level of certification for dairy products called Chalav Yisroel.
* Any processed ingredient must have kosher certification.
* Some groups do not eat certain vegetables because it's too difficult to clean them of all bugs and dirt (broccoli, cauliflower, romaine lettuce, asparagus, etc).
* Some groups require that a Jew is involved in the food preparation process of cooked food in some way, even turning on the stove/oven qualifies.
Depending on what's being served and where, some people require supervision by a mashgiach. A mashgiach is a religiously observant Jew who is well versed in the laws of kashrut.
Why do you have carrots on Rosh Hashanah?
Carrots symbolize our hope to increase our good deeds in the coming year.
Yes, if they were cooked in a vessel that was not used for non-kosher foods. Commercially produced chips require a valid kashrut certification on the packaging.
If a Jewish person keeps Kosher what do they do if they accidentally eat un-Kosher food?
They generally stamp their foot, mutter "Shoot!", make up their mind to be more careful
in the future, and perhaps spend a few extra minutes studying a Judaic subject, or make
a small charitable contribution, as a gesture of repentance and re-affirmation of their
resolve to be more careful.
But those for whom it's really, really, really important will conduct themselves in such
a way that accidents like that can't happen ... by buying groceries only from all-kosher
markets, eating only in homes and restaurants known to be all kosher, etc.
There are a few branches of KFC in Israel that are Kosher, however, in general, the rest of the branches in Israel and around the world are not Kosher.
There is a Kosher branch of KFC in the Malcha Mall in Jerusalem.
Where are Kosher animals slaughtered?
Anywhere on the neck. (Chulin 1:4; Shulchan Aruch YD 20) On a giraffe this is easy to find; on a sparrow it's very difficult.
Where can you download a kosher list for sydney?
You can look up the kosher list at the link I have attached, but I don't think you can download it from there, unless you download each sub-page separately.
