Kosher?

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TARRAT

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I was wondering if any of our Jewish friends could clear something up for me. What makes a meat kosher? Is it how it is killed, are there special blessings, is a Rabbi supposed to be present?

Just curious.
 
Lots of things - it can’t be a prohibited animal, it can’t be from a prohibited part of the animal, it can’t be killed in certain ways, it can’t have died on it’s own, it has to be bled, and it can’t be prepared in certain ways.

e.g. For mammals, it should have cloven hoofs (no dogs, cats, pigs, etc.) and chew cud (cows, goats, sheep are ok) For birds, it shouldn’t be a meat or fish eater. For fish, it should have scales. There are several more rules for what animals are allowed.

Blood is prohibited, as are certain fats that surround certain organs. These were used in temple sacrifice.

There’s a specific rule that a goat shouldn’t be cooked in it’s mother’s milk. This is generally seen as a prohibition against mixing meat and dairy.

See Leviticus 11.
 
TomFromMD said:
Lots of things - it can’t be a prohibited animal, it can’t be from a prohibited part of the animal, it can’t be killed in certain ways, it can’t have died on it’s own, it has to be bled, and it can’t be prepared in certain ways.

e.g. For mammals, it should have cloven hoofs (no dogs, cats, pigs, etc.) and chew cud (cows, goats, sheep are ok) For birds, it shouldn’t be a meat or fish eater. For fish, it should have scales. There are several more rules for what animals are allowed.

Blood is prohibited, as are certain fats that surround certain organs. These were used in temple sacrifice.

There’s a specific rule that a goat shouldn’t be cooked in it’s mother’s milk. This is generally seen as a prohibition against mixing meat and dairy.

See Leviticus 11.
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I would add to your very good summary that a Torah-observant Jew must supervise the whole koshering process from the slaughtering of the animal to the preparation of the meat and the dishes, utensils, and sink used in the process. Further, the hindquarters of a “kosher animal” are generally not used because of the difficulty in removing the blood from the veins and not necessarily because of its being a prohibited part of the animal.

There are 1001 further intricate rules (and leniencies) which apply to the Halacha of the koshering process as well as the foods which are acceptable and those which are not. It is an exhaustive and exhausting study unto itself.
 
Thank you TomFromMD and Meltzerboy,
I guess one thing that I was curious about was how the animal is slain in order for the blood to be removed from the animal. A shot to the head wouldn’t work nor would a wack with a hammer. Please forgive me I don’t mean to be vulgar. I have helped do in some animals in my life and was wondering how the blood was let. If it is too graphic you could PM me. Thanks and forgive me I don’t mean to offend.
 
The only liver I ever ate that I enjoyed was at a kosher restaurant (with two kitchens) off Rus Ste-Catherine in Montreal. It was delish — It tasted better than some steaks I have had in a non-kosher restaurant; it didn’t have that metallic tang I always seem to get, and had a nice char-broiled taste.

Unfortunately, that particular dish set the bar rather high, and the next time I ate liver…

…it was breaded.

…and baked.

…at a hospital. :eek:
 
TARRAT said:
Thank you TomFromMD and Meltzerboy,
I guess one thing that I was curious about was how the animal is slain in order for the blood to be removed from the animal. A shot to the head wouldn’t work nor would a wack with a hammer. Please forgive me I don’t mean to be vulgar. I have helped do in some animals in my life and was wondering how the blood was let. If it is too graphic you could PM me. Thanks and forgive me I don’t mean to offend.
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It has to have it’s neck slit, using a single stroke. The knife can’t have any nicks or anything in it. By historical standards, it’s pretty humane. By modern standards, a bit less so. Blood is removed after the fact using various means, including salting.
 
TomFromMD said:
It has to have it’s neck slit, using a single stroke. The knife can’t have any nicks or anything in it. By historical standards, it’s pretty humane. By modern standards, a bit less so. Blood is removed after the fact using various means, including salting.
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The Muslim dietary law regarding killing the animal is similar. Vinegar is used instead of salt to remove the blood.
 
7_Sorrows said:
how do vinegar and salt help remove the blood?
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I don’t know the exact physical process involved but salt does draw out blood, and so does vinegar I presume. The meat must first be thoroughly rinsed and then soaked before salting. After salting, it must be rinsed again. There are also time restrictions and many other details involved in the whole process.
 
meltzerboy said:
I don’t know the exact physical process involved but salt does draw out blood, and so does vinegar I presume. The meat must first be thoroughly rinsed and then soaked before salting. After salting, it must be rinsed again. There are also time restrictions and many other details involved in the whole process.
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interesting.
 
John_Lazarus said:
The only liver I ever ate that I enjoyed was at a kosher restaurant (with two kitchens) off Rus Ste-Catherine in Montreal. It was delish — It tasted better than some steaks I have had in a non-kosher restaurant; it didn’t have that metallic tang I always seem to get, and had a nice char-broiled taste.

Unfortunately, that particular dish set the bar rather high, and the next time I ate liver…

…it was breaded.

…and baked.

…at a hospital. :eek:
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I despise liver and even the thought of eating it makes me ill. However, chopped (chicken) liver is another story altogether.
 
7_Sorrows said:
interesting.
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To keep a strictly kosher home is a major undertaking. And during Passover, there are even more restrictions concerning the foods one is permitted to eat, apart from the required change of dishes and utensils both for meat and dairy.

The more general idea behind a kosher home is that, in Judaism, the home is regarded as a holy sanctuary and it is primarily the woman’s responsibility to maintain it. As you may already know, women light candles on Friday night before the Sabbath on the (kitchen) table, say a prayer, and a special meal is prepared. This sanctification of the home and everyday activities such as eating is what the dietary laws are really all about.
 
meltzerboy said:
To keep a strictly kosher home is a major undertaking. And during Passover, there are even more restrictions concerning the foods one is permitted to eat, apart from the required change of dishes and utensils both for meat and dairy.

The more general idea behind a kosher home is that, in Judaism, the home is regarded as a holy sanctuary and it is primarily the woman’s responsibility to maintain it. As you may already know, women light candles on Friday night before the Sabbath on the (kitchen) table, say a prayer, and a special meal is prepared. This sanctification of the home and everyday activities such as eating is what the dietary laws are really all about.
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thank you meltzerboy. and before Passover don’t the women have to thoroughly clean and remove leavened bread from the house-even the crumbs? or unleavened?
 
7_Sorrows said:
how do vinegar and salt help remove the blood?
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Salt draws water so salt on the outside draws all the moisture out. Just think about how thrust you get after eating salty pretzels. Plus if you have ever seen bacala, it is salted fish and must be soaked in order to be used. The large amount of salt also preserves it.

Thanks for the helpful answers. They are what I was looking for. Special thanks Meltzerboy.👍
 
7_Sorrows said:
thank you meltzerboy. and before Passover don’t the women have to thoroughly clean and remove leavened bread from the house-even the crumbs? or unleavened?
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Yes, even the leavened bread crumbs must be removed, traditionally by means of a feather and wooden spoon with the illumination of a candle.
 
A very good overview of these laws is found in a book called the Laws of Kashrus by Binyomin Forst. When I was Jewish, I didn’t keep kosher, as I was Classical Reform, but I nonetheless studied these laws thoroughly to know what they were.
 
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