Mixtures of milk and meat ( he, בשר בחלב, basar bechalav, meat in milk) are forbidden according to
Jewish law
''Halakha'' (; he, הֲלָכָה, ), also Romanization of Hebrew, transliterated as ''halacha'', ''halakhah'', and ''halocho'' ( ), is the collective body of Judaism, Jewish religious laws which is derived from the Torah, written and Oral Tora ...
. This dietary law, basic to
kashrut
(also or , ) is a set of dietary laws dealing with the foods that Jewish people are permitted to eat and how those foods must be prepared according to Jewish law. Food that may be consumed is deemed kosher ( in English, yi, כּשר), fro ...
, is based on two verses in the
Book of Exodus
The Book of Exodus (from grc, Ἔξοδος, translit=Éxodos; he, שְׁמוֹת ''Šəmōṯ'', "Names") is the second book of the Bible. It narrates the story of the Exodus, in which the Israelites leave slavery in Biblical Egypt through t ...
, which forbid "boiling a (goat) kid in its mother's milk" and a third repetition of this prohibition in
Deuteronomy
Deuteronomy ( grc, Δευτερονόμιον, Deuteronómion, second law) is the fifth and last book of the Torah (in Judaism), where it is called (Hebrew: hbo, , Dəḇārīm, hewords Moses.html"_;"title="f_Moses">f_Moseslabel=none)_and_th ...
.
Explanations for the law
The rabbis of the Talmud gave no reason for the prohibition,
[''Hullin'' 108a] but later authorities, such as
Maimonides
Musa ibn Maimon (1138–1204), commonly known as Maimonides (); la, Moses Maimonides and also referred to by the acronym Rambam ( he, רמב״ם), was a Sephardic Jewish philosopher who became one of the most prolific and influential Torah ...
, opined that the law was connected to a prohibition of
idolatry in Judaism
Idolatry in Judaism is prohibited. Judaism holds that idolatry is not limited to the worship of an idol itself, but also worship involving any artistic representations of God. The prohibition is epitomized by the first two "words" of the decalogue ...
.
Obadiah Sforno
Ovadia ben Jacob Sforno (Obadja Sforno, Hebrew: עובדיה ספורנו) was an Italian rabbi, Jewish commentaries on the Bible, Biblical commentator, philosopher and physician. A member of the Sforno (family), Sforno family, he was born in Ce ...
and
Solomon Luntschitz, rabbinic commentators living in the late
Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...
, both suggested that the law referred to a specific foreign
anaanitereligious practice, in which young goats were cooked in their own mothers' milk, aiming to obtain supernatural assistance to increase the yield of their flocks. More recently, a
theogonous text named ''the birth of the gracious gods'', found during the rediscovery of
Ugarit
)
, image =Ugarit Corbel.jpg
, image_size=300
, alt =
, caption = Entrance to the Royal Palace of Ugarit
, map_type = Near East#Syria
, map_alt =
, map_size = 300
, relief=yes
, location = Latakia Governorate, Syria
, region = F ...
, has been interpreted as saying that a
Levant
The Levant () is an approximate historical geographical term referring to a large area in the Eastern Mediterranean region of Western Asia. In its narrowest sense, which is in use today in archaeology and other cultural contexts, it is eq ...
ine ritual to ensure
agricultural fertility involved the cooking of a young goat in its mother's milk, followed by the mixture being sprinkled upon the fields, though still more recent sources argue that this translation is incorrect.
Some rabbinic commentators saw the law as having an
ethical
Ethics or moral philosophy is a branch of philosophy that "involves systematizing, defending, and recommending concepts of right and wrong behavior".''Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy'' The field of ethics, along with aesthetics, concerns ma ...
aspect.
Rashbam
Samuel ben Meir (Troyes, c. 1085 – c. 1158), after his death known as "Rashbam", a Hebrew acronym for RAbbi SHmuel Ben Meir, was a leading French Tosafist and grandson of Shlomo Yitzhaki, "Rashi".
Biography
He was born in the vicinity of Troye ...
argued that using the milk of an animal to cook its offspring was inhumane, based on a principle similar to that of
Shiluach haken
Shiluach haken ( he, שילוח הקן, "sending-away the nest") is the Jewish law derived from the Torah that enjoins one to scare away the mother bird before taking her young or her eggs. This only applies to Kosher birds in the wild. The Tor ...
.
Chaim ibn Attar
Chaim ibn Attar or Ḥayyim ben Moshe ibn Attar ( ar, حاييم بن موشي بن عطار, he, חיים בן משה בן עטר; b. - 7 July 1743) also known as the Or ha-Ḥayyim after his popular commentary on the Torah, was a Talmudist ...
compared the practice of cooking animals in their mother's milk to the slaying of nursing infants.
The Biblical law as understood by the rabbis
Three distinct laws
The Talmudic rabbis believed that the biblical text only forbade cooking a mixture of milk and meat,
but because the biblical regulation is triplicated they imposed three distinct regulations to represent it:
*not cooking meat and milk together (regardless of whether the result was eaten)
*not eating milk and meat together (regardless of whether it was cooked together)
*not benefiting from the mixture in any other way
Jacob ben Asher
Jacob ben Asher (c. 1269 - c. 1343), also known as Ba'al ha-Turim as well as Rabbi Yaakov ben Raash (Rabbeinu Asher), was an influential Medieval rabbinic authority. He is often referred to as the Ba'al ha-Turim ("Master of the Columns"), after ...
, an influential medieval rabbi, remarked that the
gematria
Gematria (; he, גמטריא or gimatria , plural or , ''gimatriot'') is the practice of assigning a numerical value to a name, word or phrase according to an alphanumerical cipher. A single word can yield several values depending on the cipher ...
of ''do not boil a kid'' (Hebrew: לא תבשל גדי) is identical to that of ''it is the prohibition of eating, cooking and deriving benefit'' (Hebrew: ובישול והנאה), a detail that he considered highly significant. Though ''deriving benefit'' is a superficially vague term, it was later interpreted by medieval writers to include:
*Serving mixtures of milk and meat in a restaurant, even if the clientele are non-Jewish, and the restaurant is not intended to comply with kashrut
*Feeding a pet with food containing mixtures of milk and meat
*Obtaining a refund for an accidental purchase of mixtures of milk and meat, as a refund constitutes a form of sale
The classical rabbis only considered milk and meat cooked together biblically forbidden, but Jewish writers of the Middle Ages also forbade consumption of anything merely containing the mixed tastes of milk and meat. This included, for example, meat that had been soaked in milk for an extended period. The prohibition against ''deriving benefit'', on the other hand, was seen as being more nuanced, with several early modern authorities (including
Moses Isserles
). He is not to be confused with Meir Abulafia, known as "Ramah" ( he, רמ״ה, italic=no, links=no), nor with Menahem Azariah da Fano, known as "Rema MiPano" ( he, רמ״ע מפאנו, italic=no, links=no).
Rabbi Moses Isserles ( he, משה ...
and
Taz Taz or TAZ may refer to:
Geography
*Taz (river), a river in western Siberia, Russia
*Taz Estuary, the estuary of the river Taz in Russia
People
* Taz people, an ethnic group in Russia
** Taz language, a form of Northeastern Mandarin spoken by ...
) arguing that this restriction only applied to the milk and meat of ''g'di'', not to the much wider range of milks and meats prohibited by the rabbis; other prominent medieval rabbis, like
Solomon Luria
Solomon Luria (1510 – November 7, 1573) ( he, שלמה לוריא) was one of the great Ashkenazic ''poskim'' (decisors of Jewish law) and teachers of his time. He is known for his work of Halakha, ''Yam Shel Shlomo'', and his Talmudic commen ...
, disagreed, believing that the prohibition of ''deriving benefit'' referred to mixtures of all meats and milks.
The term "g'di"
The
Book of Genesis
The Book of Genesis (from Greek ; Hebrew: בְּרֵאשִׁית ''Bəreʾšīt'', "In hebeginning") is the first book of the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Old Testament. Its Hebrew name is the same as its first word, ( "In the beginning") ...
refers to young goats by the Hebrew phrase ''g'di izim'', but the prohibition against ''boiling a kid...'' only uses the term ''g'di'' (גדי).
Rashi
Shlomo Yitzchaki ( he, רבי שלמה יצחקי; la, Salomon Isaacides; french: Salomon de Troyes, 22 February 1040 – 13 July 1105), today generally known by the acronym Rashi (see below), was a medieval French rabbi and author of a compre ...
, one of the most prominent talmudic commentators, argued that the term ''g'di'' must actually have a more general meaning, including calves and lambs, in addition to young goats. Rashi also argued that the meaning of ''g'di'' is still narrow enough to exclude birds, all the undomesticated
kosher animals
Kosher animals are animals that comply with the regulations of '' kashrut'' and are considered kosher foods. These dietary laws ultimately derive from various passages in the Torah with various modifications, additions and clarifications added to ...
(for example,
chevrotain
Chevrotains, or mouse-deer, are small even-toed ungulates that make up the family Tragulidae, the only extant members of the infraorder Tragulina. The 10 extant species are placed in three genera, but several species also are known only ...
s and
antelope
The term antelope is used to refer to many species of even-toed ruminant that are indigenous to various regions in Africa and Eurasia.
Antelope comprise a wastebasket taxon defined as any of numerous Old World grazing and browsing hoofed mammals ...
), and all of the non-kosher animals. The Talmudic writers had a similar analysis, but believed that since domesticated kosher animals (sheep, goats, and cattle) have similar meat to birds and to the non-domestic kosher land-animals, they should prohibit these latter meats too, creating a general prohibition against mixing milk and meat from any kosher animal, excepting fish.
[''Hullin'' 115b]
Consumption of non-
kosher
(also or , ) is a set of dietary laws dealing with the foods that Jewish people are permitted to eat and how those foods must be prepared according to Jewish law. Food that may be consumed is deemed kosher ( in English, yi, כּשר), fro ...
animals (e.g.,
pig
The pig (''Sus domesticus''), often called swine, hog, or domestic pig when distinguishing from other members of the genus '' Sus'', is an omnivorous, domesticated, even-toed, hoofed mammal. It is variously considered a subspecies of ''Sus ...
s,
camel
A camel (from: la, camelus and grc-gre, κάμηλος (''kamēlos'') from Hebrew or Phoenician: גָמָל ''gāmāl''.) is an even-toed ungulate in the genus ''Camelus'' that bears distinctive fatty deposits known as "humps" on its back. C ...
s, and
turtle
Turtles are an order of reptiles known as Testudines, characterized by a special shell developed mainly from their ribs. Modern turtles are divided into two major groups, the Pleurodira (side necked turtles) and Cryptodira (hidden necked tu ...
s) is prohibited in general, and questions about the status of mixtures involving their meat and milk would be somewhat academic. Nevertheless, the lack of a classical decision about milk and meat of non-kosher animals gave rise to argument in the late Middle Ages. Some, such as
Yoel Sirkis
Joel ben Samuel Sirkis (Hebrew: רבי יואל בן שמואל סירקיש; born 1561 - March 14, 1640) also known as the Bach (an abbreviation of his magnum opus BAyit CHadash), was a prominent Ashkenazi posek and halakhist, who lived in centra ...
and
Joshua Falk
Joshua ben Alexander HaCohen Falk (1555 – 29 March 1614) was a Polish Halakhist and Talmudist, best known as the author of the ''Drisha'' and ''Prisha'' commentaries on the ''Arba'ah Turim'' as well as ''Sefer Me'irat Enayim'' (סמ"ע) on ...
, argued that mixing milk and meat from non-kosher animals should be prohibited, but others, like
Shabbatai ben Meir and
David HaLevi Segal
David ha-Levi Segal (c. 1586 – 20 February 1667), also known as the Turei Zahav (abbreviated Taz ()) after the title of his significant ''halakhic'' commentary on the ''Shulchan Aruch'', was one of the greatest Polish rabbinical authorities.
...
, argued that, excluding the general ban on non-kosher animals, such mixtures should not be prohibited.
The term "halev immo"
Rashi expressed the opinion that the reference to ''mother's milk'' must exclude
fowl
Fowl are birds belonging to one of two biological orders, namely the gamefowl or landfowl (Galliformes) and the waterfowl (Anseriformes). Anatomical and molecular similarities suggest these two groups are close evolutionary relatives; together ...
from the regulation, since only
mammal
Mammals () are a group of vertebrate animals constituting the class Mammalia (), characterized by the presence of mammary glands which in females produce milk for feeding (nursing) their young, a neocortex (a region of the brain), fur or ...
s produce milk. According to
Shabbethai Bass Shabbethai ben Joseph Bass (1641–1718) ( he, שבתי בן יוסף; also known by the family-name Strom), born at Kalisz, was the founder of Jewish bibliography, and author of the ''Siftei Chachamim'' supercommentary on Rashi's commentary on the ...
, Rashi was expressing the opinion that the reference to a ''mother'' was only present to ensure that birds were clearly excluded from the prohibition;
[Shabbethai Bass, ''Sifsei Chachamim'' to Rashi, ''commentary'' to Exodus 34:26] Bass argued that Rashi regarded the ban on boiling meat ''in its mother's milk'' to really be a more general ban on boiling meat in milk, regardless of the relationship between the source of the meat and that of the milk.
Substances derived from milk, such as
cheese
Cheese is a dairy product produced in wide ranges of flavors, textures, and forms by coagulation of the milk protein casein. It comprises proteins and fat from milk, usually the milk of cows, buffalo, goats, or sheep. During production, ...
and
whey
Whey is the liquid remaining after milk has been curdled and strained. It is a byproduct of the manufacturing of cheese or casein and has several commercial uses. Sweet whey is a byproduct resulting from the manufacture of rennet types of hard ...
, have traditionally been considered to fall under the prohibition,
[''Hullin'' 105a] but milk substitutes, created from non-dairy sources, do not. However, the classical rabbis were worried that Jews using artificial milk might be misinterpreted, so they insisted that the milk be clearly marked to indicate its source. In the classical era, the main form of artificial milk was
almond milk
Almond milk is a plant-based milk with a watery texture and nutty flavor manufactured from almonds, although some types or brands are flavored in imitation of cow's milk. It does not contain cholesterol or lactose and is low in saturated fat. ...
, so the classical rabbis imposed the rule that
almond
The almond (''Prunus amygdalus'', syn. ''Prunus dulcis'') is a species of tree native to Iran and surrounding countries, including the Levant. The almond is also the name of the edible and widely cultivated seed of this tree. Within the genus ...
s must be placed around such milk; in the Middle Ages, there was some debate about whether this had to be done during cooking as well as eating, or whether it was sufficient to merely do this during the meal.
The term "bishul"
Although the biblical regulation literally only mentions ''boiling'' (Hebrew: ''bishul'', בישול), there were questions raised in the late Middle Ages about whether this should instead be translated as ''cooking'', and hence be interpreted as a reference to activities like
broiling,
baking
Baking is a method of preparing food that uses dry heat, typically in an oven, but can also be done in hot ashes, or on hot stones. The most common baked item is bread but many other types of foods can be baked. Heat is gradually transferred " ...
,
roasting
Roasting is a cooking method that uses dry heat where hot air covers the food, cooking it evenly on all sides with temperatures of at least from an open flame, oven, or other heat source. Roasting can enhance the flavor through caramelization ...
, and
frying
Frying is the cooking of food in oil or another fat. Similar to sautéing, pan-fried foods are generally turned over once or twice during cooking to make sure that the food is well-made, using tongs or a spatula, while sautéed foods are cooked ...
. Lenient figures like
Jacob of Lissa
Yaakov ben Yaakov Moshe Lorberbaum of Lissa (1760-1832) (known in English as Jacob ben Jacob Moses of Lissa, Jacob Lorberbaum or Jacob Lisser, Hebrew: יעקב בן יעקב משה מליסא) was a rabbi and posek. He is most commonly known as the ...
and Chaim ibn Attar argued that such a prohibition would only be a rabbinic addition, and not the biblical intent, but others like
Abraham Danzig Avraham Danzig (ben Yehiel Michael, 1748—1820; אברהם דנציג) was a rabbi, ''posek'' (legal decisor) and codifier, best known as the author of the works of Jewish law called ''Chayei Adam'' and ''Chochmat Adam''. He is sometimes referred ...
and
Hezekiah da Silva
Rabbi Hezekiah da Silva (also Hezekiah Silva) (1659–1698) () was a Jewish author born in Livorno, Grand Duchy of Tuscany. He was the son-in-law of the dayan Mordechai Rafael Malachi.
Biography
Hezekiah Da Silva was born in 1659 in Livorno, Gr ...
argued that the biblical term itself had this wider meaning.
Though
radiative cooking of meat with dairy produce is not listed by the classical rabbis as being among the biblically prohibited forms of ''cooking'' such mixtures, a controversy remains about using a
microwave oven
A microwave oven (commonly referred to as a microwave) is an electric oven that heats and cooks food by exposing it to electromagnetic radiation in the microwave frequency range. This induces polar molecules in the food to rotate and produce t ...
to cook these mixtures.
Rabbinic additions to the Biblical law
The classical rabbis interpreted to mean that they should (metaphorically) create a protective fence around the biblical laws, and this was one of the three principle teachings of the
Great Assembly
According to Jewish tradition the Men of the Great Assembly ( he, כְּנֶסֶת הַגְּדוֹלָה) or Anshei Knesset HaGedolah (, "The Men of the Great Assembly"), also known as the Great Synagogue, or ''Synod'', was an assembly of 120 sc ...
. Mixing of milk and meat is one area of halacha where a particularly large number of "fences" have been added. Nevertheless, the rabbis of the classical and Middle Ages also introduced a number of leniencies.
Minuscule quantities
The classical rabbis expressed the opinion that each of the food rules could be waived if the portion of food violating the regulations was less than a certain size, known as a ( he, שיעור, lit=size), unless it was still possible to taste or smell it;
[''Yoma'' 73b][''Yoma'' 80a] for the "milk and meat" regulations, this minimal size was a (), literally meaning anything "similar to an olive" in size.
However, the is merely the minimum amount that leads to formal punishment in the classical era, but even "half a is prohibited by the Torah".
Many rabbis followed the premise that "taste is principle" ( he, ta'am k'ikar, script=Latn, ): in the event of an accidental mixing of milk and meat, the food could be eaten if there was no detectable change in taste.
Others argued that forbidden ingredients could constitute up to half of the mixture before being disallowed. Today the rabbis apply the principle of ('nullified in sixty'), that is, permissible so long as forbidden ingredients constitute no more than 1/60 of the whole.
Due to the premise that "taste is principle", (i.e. 'neutral') foods are considered to take on the same "meat/dairy produce" classification as anything they are cooked with.
Physical proximity
Prominent rabbis of the Middle Ages insisted that milk should not be placed on a table where people are eating meat, to avoid accidentally consuming milk while eating meat, and vice versa.
Tzvi Hirsch Spira, an early 20th-century rabbi, argued that when this rule was created, the tables commonly in use were only large enough for one individual; Spira concludes that the rule would not apply if the table being used was large, and the milk was out of reach of the person eating meat (and vice versa).
The rabbis of the Middle Ages discussed the issue of people eating milk and meat at the same table. Jacob ben Asher suggested that each individual should eat from different tablecloths, while Moses Isserles argued that a large and obviously unusual item should be placed between the individuals, as a reminder to avoid sharing the foods. Later rabbinic writers pointed out exceptions to the rule. Chaim ibn Attar, an 18th-century kabbalist, ruled that sitting at the same table as a non-Jew eating non-kosher food was permissible;
Yechiel Michel Epstein
Yechiel Michel ha-Levi Epstein ( he, יחיאל מיכל הלוי אפשטיין)
(24 January 1829 – 25 March 1908), often called "the ''Aruch haShulchan''" after his magnum opus, Aruch HaShulchan, was a Rabbi and ''Posek'' (authority in Jew ...
, a 19th-century rabbi, argued that the risk was sufficiently reduced if individuals sat far enough apart that the only way to share food was to leave the table.
Classification of foods
To prevent the consumption of forbidden mixtures, foods are divided into three categories.
* "meat" (North America) or "meaty" (UK) ( yi, פֿליישיק,
fleishik; he, בשרי, besari)
* "dairy" (North America) or "milky" (UK) ( yi, מילכיק,
milkhik; he, חלבי, halavi)
* (or , ; from the Yiddish word , , meaning 'neutral')
Food in the category includes fish, fruit, vegetables, salt, etc.; among the
Karaites and
Ethiopian Jews
The Beta Israel ( he, בֵּיתֶא יִשְׂרָאֵל, ''Bēteʾ Yīsrāʾēl''; gez, ቤተ እስራኤል, , modern ''Bēte 'Isrā'ēl'', EAE: "Betä Ǝsraʾel", "House of Israel" or "Community of Israel"), also known as Ethiopian Jews ...
it also includes
poultry
Poultry () are domesticated birds kept by humans for their eggs, their meat or their feathers. These birds are most typically members of the superorder Galloanserae (fowl), especially the order Galliformes (which includes chickens, quails, a ...
. The ''
Talmud
The Talmud (; he, , Talmūḏ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the cente ...
'' states that the Biblical prohibition applies only to meat and milk of domesticated kosher mammals; that is, cattle, goats, and sheep. It adds that according to the view of Rabbi Akiva, the Rabbis instituted a protective decree extending the law to the meat and milk of wild kosher mammals, such as deer, as well as the meat of kosher poultry, such as chickens. The follows this approach.
Classical Jewish authorities argue that foods lose status if treated in such a way that they absorb the taste of milk or meat during cooking, soaking, or salting.
Dishes and cooking utensils
![Kosher dishes P7160076](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9e/Kosher_dishes_P7160076.JPG)
Since some cooking vessels and utensils (such as ceramic, metal, plastic and wooden materials) are
porous
Porosity or void fraction is a measure of the void (i.e. "empty") spaces in a material, and is a fraction of the volume of voids over the total volume, between 0 and 1, or as a percentage between 0% and 100%. Strictly speaking, some tests measure ...
, it is possible for them to become infused with the taste of certain foods and transfer this taste to other foods. For example, if a
frying pan
A frying pan, frypan, or skillet is a flat-bottomed pan used for frying, searing, and browning foods. It is typically in diameter with relatively low sides that flare outwards, a long handle, and no lid. Larger pans may have a small grab han ...
is used to fry beef sausage, and is then used a few hours later to fry an
omelette
In cuisine, an omelette (also spelled omelet) is a dish made from beaten eggs, fried with butter or oil in a frying pan (without stirring as in scrambled egg). It is quite common for the omelette to be folded around fillings such as chives, ve ...
with cheese, a slight taste of the sausage might linger.
Samuel ben Meir
Samuel ben Meir (Troyes, c. 1085 – c. 1158), after his death known as "Rashbam", a Hebrew acronym for RAbbi SHmuel Ben Meir, was a leading French Tosafist and grandson of Shlomo Yitzhaki, "Rashi".
Biography
He was born in the vicinity of Troy ...
, brother of
Jacob ben Meir
Jacob ben Meir (1100 – 9 June 1171 (4 Tammuz)), best known as Rabbeinu Tam ( he, רבינו תם), was one of the most renowned Ashkenazi Jewish rabbis and leading French Tosafists, a leading '' halakhic'' authority in his generation, and a g ...
, argued that infused tastes could endure in a cooking vessel or utensil for up to 24 hours; his suggestion led to the principle, known as ''ben yomo'' (Hebrew: ''son of the day'', בן יומו), that vessels and utensils should not be used to cook milk within 24 hours of being used to cook meat (and vice versa). Although, after 24 hours, some residual flavour may still reside in porous cooking vessels and utensils, some rabbis hold the opinion that such residue would become stale and fetid, hence only ''infusing taste for the worse'' (Hebrew: ''nosen taam lifgam'', נותן טעם לפגם), which they do not regard as violating the ban against mixing the tastes of milk and meat.
Since ''parve'' food is reclassified if it takes on the flavour of meat or dairy produce,
Ashkenazi Jews
Ashkenazi Jews ( ; he, יְהוּדֵי אַשְׁכְּנַז, translit=Yehudei Ashkenaz, ; yi, אַשכּנזישע ייִדן, Ashkenazishe Yidn), also known as Ashkenazic Jews or ''Ashkenazim'',, Ashkenazi Hebrew pronunciation: , singu ...
traditionally forbid eating ''parve'' contents of a pot that has been used within 24 hours to cook meat, if the ''parve'' contents would be eaten with dairy produce. Their tradition similarly forbids eating ''parve'' foods with meat if the cooking vessel was used to cook dairy produce within the previous 24 hours. According to
Joseph Caro
Joseph ben Ephraim Karo, also spelled Yosef Caro, or Qaro ( he, יוסף קארו; 1488 – March 24, 1575, 13 Nisan 5335 A.M.), was the author of the last great codification of Jewish law, the '' Beit Yosef'', and its popular analogue, the ''Shu ...
, the
Sephardic
Sephardic (or Sephardi) Jews (, ; lad, Djudíos Sefardíes), also ''Sepharadim'' , Modern Hebrew: ''Sfaradim'', Tiberian Hebrew, Tiberian: Səp̄āraddîm, also , ''Ye'hude Sepharad'', lit. "The Jews of Spain", es, Judíos sefardíes (or ), ...
tradition was more lenient about such things, but
Moses Isserles
). He is not to be confused with Meir Abulafia, known as "Ramah" ( he, רמ״ה, italic=no, links=no), nor with Menahem Azariah da Fano, known as "Rema MiPano" ( he, רמ״ע מפאנו, italic=no, links=no).
Rabbi Moses Isserles ( he, משה ...
argued that such leniency was unreliable.
In light of these issues, kashrut-observant Jews can take the precaution of maintaining two distinct sets of
crockery
Tableware is any dish or dishware used for setting a table, serving food, and dining. It includes cutlery, glassware, serving dishes, and other items for practical as well as decorative purposes. The quality, nature, variety and number of obj ...
and
cutlery
Cutlery (also referred to as silverware, flatware, or tableware), includes any hand implement used in preparing, serving, and especially eating food in Western culture. A person who makes or sells cutlery is called a cutler. The city of Sheffie ...
; one set (known in Yiddish as ''milchig'' and in Hebrew as ''halavi'') is for food containing dairy produce, while the other (known in Yiddish as ''fleishig''/''fleishedik'' and in Hebrew as ''besari'') is for food containing meat.
Shelomo Dov Goitein
Shelomo Dov Goitein (April 3, 1900 – February 6, 1985) was a German-Jewish ethnographer, historian and Arabist known for his research on Jewish life in the Islamic Middle Ages, and particularly on the Cairo Geniza.
Biography
Shelomo Dov (Fri ...
writes, “the dichotomy of the kitchen into a meat and a milk section, so basic in an observant Jewish household, is … never mentioned in the
Geniza." Goitein believed that in the early Middle Ages Jewish families kept only one set of cutlery and cooking ware. According to
David C. Kraemer David Charles Kraemer is a professor of Talmud and Rabbinics and the Joseph J. and Dora Abbell Librarian at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America. As director of the Library, Kraemer "oversees the most extensive collection of Judaica—rare and ...
the practice of keeping separate sets of dishes developed only in the late 14th or 15th centuries. In earlier times, the household's one set of cooking ware was ''kashered'' between dairy and meat (and vice versa). Alternatively, users waited overnight for the meat or dairy gravy absorbed in a pot’s walls to become insignificant (''
lifgam'') before using the pot for the other species (meat or dairy).
Problem of sequential foods
Rashi
Shlomo Yitzchaki ( he, רבי שלמה יצחקי; la, Salomon Isaacides; french: Salomon de Troyes, 22 February 1040 – 13 July 1105), today generally known by the acronym Rashi (see below), was a medieval French rabbi and author of a compre ...
stated that meat leaves a fatty residue in the throat and on the palate and
Maimonides
Musa ibn Maimon (1138–1204), commonly known as Maimonides (); la, Moses Maimonides and also referred to by the acronym Rambam ( he, רמב״ם), was a Sephardic Jewish philosopher who became one of the most prolific and influential Torah ...
noted that meat stuck between the teeth might not degrade for several hours. Feivel Cohen maintained that hard cheese leaves a lingering taste in the mouth. Generally, rabbinic literature considers the collective impact of each of these issues.
Eating dairy after meat
The Talmud reports that
Mar Ukva
Mar Ukva [Mar Ukva , מר עוקבא](_blank)
Sages of the Talmud (or Mar Ukba; ot ...
, a respected rabbi, would not eat dairy after eating meat at the same meal, and had a father who would wait an entire day after eating meat before eating dairy produce.
Jacob ben Meir speculated that Mar Ukva's behaviour was merely a personal choice, rather than an example he expected others to follow, but prominent rabbis of the Middle Ages argued that Mar Ukva's practice must be treated as a minimum standard of behaviour.
Maimonides argued that time was required between meat and dairy produce because meat can become stuck in the teeth, a problem he suggested would last for ''about six hours'' after eating it; this interpretation was shared by
Solomon ben Aderet
Shlomo ben Avraham ibn Aderet ( he, שלמה בן אברהם אבן אדרת or Solomon son of Abraham son of Aderet) (1235 – 1310) was a medieval rabbi, halakhist, and Talmudist. He is widely known as the Rashba (Hebrew: ), the Hebrew acronym ...
, a prominent pupil of his, and
Asher ben Jehiel
Asher ben Jehiel ( he, אשר בן יחיאל, or Asher ben Yechiel, sometimes Asheri) (1250 or 1259 – 1327) was an eminent rabbi and Talmudist best known for his abstract of Talmudic law. He is often referred to as Rabbenu Asher, “our Rabb ...
, who gained entry to the
rabbi
A rabbi () is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi – known as ''semikha'' – following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of ...
nate by Solomon ben Aderet's approval, as well as by the later
Shulchan Aruch
The ''Shulchan Aruch'' ( he, שֻׁלְחָן עָרוּך , literally: "Set Table"), sometimes dubbed in English as the Code of Jewish Law, is the most widely consulted of the various legal codes in Judaism. It was authored in Safed (today in Is ...
. By contrast,
tosafists
Tosafists were rabbis of France and Germany, who lived from the 12th to the mid-15th centuries, in the period of Rishonim. The Tosafists composed critical and explanatory glosses (questions, notes, interpretations, rulings and sources) on the Tal ...
argued that the key detail was just the avoidance of dairy produce appearing at the same meal as meat. Therefore, it was sufficient to just wait until a ''new meal''—which to them simply meant clearing the table, reciting
a particular blessing, and cleaning their mouths. Some later rabbinic writers, like
Moses Isserles
). He is not to be confused with Meir Abulafia, known as "Ramah" ( he, רמ״ה, italic=no, links=no), nor with Menahem Azariah da Fano, known as "Rema MiPano" ( he, רמ״ע מפאנו, italic=no, links=no).
Rabbi Moses Isserles ( he, משה ...
, and significant texts, like the ''
Zohar
The ''Zohar'' ( he, , ''Zōhar'', lit. "Splendor" or "Radiance") is a foundational work in the literature of Jewish mystical thought known as Kabbalah. It is a group of books including commentary on the mystical aspects of the Torah (the five ...
'' (as noted by
Vilna Gaon
Elijah ben Solomon Zalman, ( he , ר' אליהו בן שלמה זלמן ''Rabbi Eliyahu ben Shlomo Zalman'') known as the Vilna Gaon (Yiddish: דער װילנער גאון ''Der Vilner Gaon'', pl, Gaon z Wilna, lt, Vilniaus Gaonas) or Elijah of ...
and
Daniel Josiah Pinto), argued that a meal still did not qualify as ''new'' unless at least an hour had passed since the previous meal.
Since most Orthodox
Sephardi Jews
Sephardic (or Sephardi) Jews (, ; lad, Djudíos Sefardíes), also ''Sepharadim'' , Modern Hebrew: ''Sfaradim'', Tiberian: Səp̄āraddîm, also , ''Ye'hude Sepharad'', lit. "The Jews of Spain", es, Judíos sefardíes (or ), pt, Judeus sefar ...
consider the Shulchan Aruch authoritative, they regard its suggestion of waiting six hours mandatory.
Ashkenazi Jews
Ashkenazi Jews ( ; he, יְהוּדֵי אַשְׁכְּנַז, translit=Yehudei Ashkenaz, ; yi, אַשכּנזישע ייִדן, Ashkenazishe Yidn), also known as Ashkenazic Jews or ''Ashkenazim'',, Ashkenazi Hebrew pronunciation: , singu ...
, however, have various customs. Orthodox Jews of Eastern European background who follow
Minhag Polin
Minhag Polin/Minhag Lita (Polish/Lithuanian/Prague rite) is the Ashkenazi minhag of the Polish Jews, the Polish/Lithuanian or Eastern branch of Nusach Ashkenaz, used in Eastern Europe, the United States and by some Israeli Ashkenazim, particularly ...
usually wait for six hours, although those of
German ancestry
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, pop1 = 72,650,269
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, pop2 = 534,000
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, pop3 = 157,000
3,322,405
, region4 =
, pop4 = ...
who follow
Minhag Ashkenaz
Minhag Ashkenaz is the minhag of the Ashkenazi Jews, Ashkenazi History of the Jews in Germany, German Jews. Minhag Ashkenaz was common in Germany, Austria, the Czech lands, and elsewhere in Western Europe, in contrast to the Minhag Polin of the Ea ...
traditionally wait for only three hours, and those of
Dutch ancestry have a tradition of waiting only for the one hour. The medieval tosafists stated that the practice does not apply to infants, but 18th and 19th-century rabbis, such as Abraham Danzig and Yechiel Michel Epstein, criticised those who followed lenient practices that were not traditional in their region. In the 20th century, many rabbis were in favor of leniency. Moses Stern ruled that all young children were excluded from these strictures,
Obadiah Joseph made an exception for the ill, and
Joseph Chaim Sonnenfeld exempted nursing women.
Eating meat after dairy
It has traditionally been considered less problematic to eat dairy products before meat, on the assumption that dairy products leave neither fatty residue in the throat, nor fragments between the teeth. Many 20th century Orthodox rabbis say that washing the mouth out between eating dairy and meat is sufficient. Some argue that there should also be recitation of a closing blessing before the meat is eaten, and others view this as unnecessary.
Ashkenazi
Ashkenazi Jews ( ; he, יְהוּדֵי אַשְׁכְּנַז, translit=Yehudei Ashkenaz, ; yi, אַשכּנזישע ייִדן, Ashkenazishe Yidn), also known as Ashkenazic Jews or ''Ashkenazim'',, Ashkenazi Hebrew pronunciation: , singu ...
Jews following
kabbalistic
Kabbalah ( he, קַבָּלָה ''Qabbālā'', literally "reception, tradition") is an esoteric method, discipline and Jewish theology, school of thought in Jewish mysticism. A traditional Kabbalist is called a Mekubbal ( ''Məqūbbāl'' "rece ...
traditions, based on the ''
Zohar
The ''Zohar'' ( he, , ''Zōhar'', lit. "Splendor" or "Radiance") is a foundational work in the literature of Jewish mystical thought known as Kabbalah. It is a group of books including commentary on the mystical aspects of the Torah (the five ...
'', additionally ensure that about half an hour passes after consuming dairy produce before eating meat.
Some rabbis of the Middle Ages argued that after eating solid dairy products such as cheese, the hands should be washed. Shabbatai ben Meir even argues that this is necessary if utensils such as forks were used and the cheese never touched by hands. Other rabbis of that time, like
Joseph Caro
Joseph ben Ephraim Karo, also spelled Yosef Caro, or Qaro ( he, יוסף קארו; 1488 – March 24, 1575, 13 Nisan 5335 A.M.), was the author of the last great codification of Jewish law, the '' Beit Yosef'', and its popular analogue, the ''Shu ...
, thought that if it was possible to visually verify that hands were clean, then they need not be washed; Tzvi Hirsch Spira argued that washing the hands should also be practiced for milk.
Jacob ben Asher thought that washing the mouth was not sufficient to remove all residue of cheese, and suggested that eating some additional solid food is required to clean the mouth. Hard and aged cheese has long been rabbinically considered to need extra precaution, on the basis that it might have a much stronger and longer lasting taste; the risk of it leaving a fattier residue has more recently been raised as a concern. According to these rabbinic opinions, the same precautions (including a pause of up to six hours) apply to eating hard cheese before meat as apply to eating meat in a meal when the meat is eaten first.
Judah ben Simeon, a 17th-century
physician
A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...
in
Frankfurt
Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...
, argued that hard cheese is not problematic if melted.
Binyomin Forst argues that leniency is proper only for cooked cheese dishes and not dishes topped with cheese.
Non-Rabbinic movements
The
Karaites, completely rejecting the
Talmud
The Talmud (; he, , Talmūḏ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the cente ...
, where the stringency of the law is strongest, have few qualms about the general mixing of meat and milk. It is only the cooking of an animal in the milk of its actual mother that is banned.
While it is generally banned for the
Beta Israel
The Beta Israel ( he, בֵּיתֶא יִשְׂרָאֵל, ''Bēteʾ Yīsrāʾēl''; gez, ቤተ እስራኤል, , modern ''Bēte 'Isrā'ēl'', EAE: "Betä Ǝsraʾel", "House of Israel" or "Community of Israel"), also known as Ethiopian Jews ...
community of
Ethiopia
Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...
to prepare general mixtures of meat and milk, poultry is not included in this prohibition. However, since the movement of almost the entire Beta Israel community to Israel in the 1990s, the community has generally abandoned its old traditions and adopted the broad meat and milk ban followed by Rabbinical Judaism.
Samaritanism
In , the Samaritan Pentateuch adds the following passage after the prohibition:
י עשה זאת כזבח שכח ועברה היא לאלהי יעקבwhich translates, "For he who does such as that is like a forbidden offering. And this is a transgression to God of Jacob".
[''The Israelite Samaritan Version of the Torah'', Benyamim Tsedaka]
Effects in Jewish cuisine
These restrictions remove certain dishes from Jewish cuisine, and induce alterations in others.
For example, while the Arab
shawarma
Shawarma (; ar, شاورما) is a popular Middle Eastern dish that originated in the Ottoman Empire, consisting of meat cut into thin slices, stacked in a cone-like shape, and roasted on a slowly-turning vertical rotisserie or spit. Traditiona ...
has lamb or beef with a yogurt sauce,
in Israel, most shawarma is made with dark meat
turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
and is commonly served with
tahini
Tahini () or tahina (, ) is a Middle Eastern condiment made from toasted ground hulled sesame. It is served by itself (as a dip) or as a major ingredient in hummus, baba ghanoush, and halva.
Tahini is used in the cuisines of the Levant and E ...
sauce.
Another effect is
Jewish American Chinese restaurant patronage
The Jewish-American patronage of Chinese restaurants became prominent in the 20th century, especially among Jewish New Yorkers. It has received attention as a paradoxical form of assimilation by embracing an unfamiliar cuisine that eased the co ...
, specially among
New York Jew
Jews in New York City comprise approximately 9 percent of the New York City, city's population, making the Jewish community the largest in the world outside of Israel. , 1.6 million Jews lived in the five boroughs of New York City, boroughs of ...
s, who can choose among several Chinese
restaurants that follow kosher rules.
See also
*
Kil'ayim, other forbidden mixtures in Jewish law
*
References
External links
Milk and meat in the ''Torah ''and the Code of Maimonides (''Mishneh Torah'')* Eran Viezel, and Nir Avieli, ‘Why Are Jews Forbidden to Eat Meat and Milk Together? The Function of Eating Restrictions in Human Societies,’ Journal of Theological Studies 72 (2021), pp. 580-619
{{Diets
Kashrut
Negative Mitzvoth
Milk
Kosher dairy
Kosher meat