20 May SHAVUOS KASHRUS QUESTIONS WITH RABBI MOSHE ELEFANT FROM THE OU

Is one allowed to
have dairy meals
on Yom Tov?
When the Beis
Hamikdash stood, the
mitzvah of Simchas
Yom Tov (Rejoicing on Yom Tov) was
fulfilled by partaking of the Korban
Shelamim. However, when there is no
Beis Hamikdash, the mitzvah of Simchas
Yom Tov is expressed in alternative forms.
(See Pesachim 109a.)

The Rambam (Hil. Yom Tov 6:18) states
that – in addition to eating the Korban
Shelamim – the mitzvah of Simchas Yom
Tov is fulfilled by men partaking of meat
and wine, women wearing fine clothing
and jewelry, and children partaking
of treats. The Tur (OC 529) quotes the
Rambam’s requirement to eat meat, but
the Beis Yosef and Shulchan Aruch (OC
529:2) have difficulty with the Rambam’s
ruling and opine that there is no mitzvah
to eat meat on Yom Tov in the absence
of the Beis Hamikdash, for the Gemara
(Pesachim 109A) states that once the Beis
Hamikdash was destroyed, simcha is only
with wine. The Beis Yosef explains that
since eating meat for Simchas Yom Tov
is only mandated when one brings and
consumes a Korban Shelamim, and that
in the absence of the Beis Hamikdash,
the mitzvah of eating meat thus should
not pertain. The Bach (ibid. d.h. Kasav
HaRambam) and others disagree and
maintain that one should eat meat, even
though it is not from a Korban Shelamim,
as there is nonetheless a secondary
concept of simcha that is obtained by
eating meat, notwithstanding that it is
not from a Korban and that the simcha
obtained by eating meat is not the
primary Simchas Yom Tov in the absence
of a Korban Shelamim.
The Mishnah Berurah concurs with the
Bach and advises to eat meat on Yom
Tov. (See Biur Halacha ibid. d.h. Keitzad.)
The Bach and Mishnah Berurah hold
that although one technically fulfills the

mitzvah of Simchas Yom Tov even without
eating meat, there is an enhancement of
the mitzvah when meat is consumed.
When applied to Shavuos, one who
follows the Bach and Mishnah Berurah
should ideally eat a meat meal rather than
a dairy meal on Yom Tov day, despite the
fact that he technically fulfills the mitvzah
of Simchas Yom Tov with a dairy seudah.
One who goes according to Beis Yosef
and Shulchan Aruch would be advised
to eat whatever type of meal he most
prefers. According to the Beis Yosef and
Shulchan Aruch, one can lechatchilah eat
poultry as his main course, whereas the
Bach and Mishnah Berurah seem to hold
that beef is preferred, as they note the
idea of simcha being identified with basar,
meaning “meat” proper.
(There is an alternative interpretation of
the Rambam, as submitted by some Torah
authorities, including Rav Chaim Brisker
zt”l, who explain that the Rambam
mandates two levels of Simchas Yom Tov:
an objective one, consisting of eating
Korban Shelamim, as well as a subjective
level, such that all people should
experience the simcha of the festival as
they personally prefer. This is why the
Rambam writes that women should
fulfill the mitzvah of Simchas Yom Tov by
wearing fine clothing and jewelry, and that
children should partake of treats – as this
level of the mitzvah of Simchas Yom Tov
is subjective according to the individual,
and there is no one uniform rule for all
people. This approach maintains that
eating meat is merely an illustration of
that which generally engenders simcha,
but that there no mitzvah to partake of
meat per se according to the Rambam.
Hence, the mitzvah of Simchas Yom Tov
can be fulfilled by engaging in any act that
brings one to simcha, according to this
interpretation of the Rambam, although
one must of course fulfill the mitzvah
of Seudas Yom Tov, irrespective of the
choice of foods he decides to serve.)

Must one wait six hours to eat
meat (for those who wait six
hours after meat to eat dairy)
after eating aged cheese?
One must wait six hours to eat meat after
eating cheese that is aged for six months
or longer. The following are a few of
the more popular aged cheeses that are
aged for six months: Dry Monterey Jack,
Cheddar (Medium, Sharp and Aged),
Marble Cheese, Parmesan, and Picante
Provolone.

Is one allowed to eat meat after
milk?
What is the halacha if one makes Kiddush
and eats dairy foods, planning to later
eat a meat Seudas Yom Tov? What if one
partakes of a dairy Yom Tov seudah at
midday and plans to eat a meat seudah
shlishis later? How does one transition
from milk to meat?
The Gemara in Chullin (105a) quotes Rav
Chisda, who states that one need not wait
at all after eating cheese before consuming
meat. However, if one consumes cheese
and then plans to eat meat (as opposed
to poultry), one must ascertain that his
hands are clean, and he must cleanse and
rinse his mouth. The Gemara’s discussion
there elaborates on what constitutes
proper kinuach (cleaning of the mouth)
and hadachah (rinsing of the mouth).
The Shulchan Aruch (Yoreh Deah 89:2)
invokes the Gemara’s discourse on this
topic.
One must cleanse his mouth (kinuach)
and rinse it (hadachah); kinuach [4]
involves chewing bread, thereby cleansing
the mouth very well. One may perform
kinuach with anything that he desires,
except for flour, dates and vegetables,
since they adhere to the gums and do not
cleanse well. And then one must rinse his
mouth with water or wine. This is only
for basar behemah or chayah, but for
poultry, there is no need for any cleaning
or washing of hands.

The above procedures appear pretty
simple. However, the commentaries of
the Shulchan Aruch add a few noteworthy
caveats.
The Shach (s.k.9) quotes the Rif ’s position
that one should always wash his hands
after eating cheese before partaking of
meat and not rely on visual inspection
of the hands, as one cannot really tell
if his hands are truly free of residue by
merely looking at them; the Shach further
quotes the Iturei Zahav, who states that
this is the common custom. In practice,
one should conduct himself according to

this position and always be sure to wash
his hands after eating dairy foods before
consuming meat.
The Be’er Hetev (s.k.5) notes that the Pri
Chodosh maintains that one need not
wash his hands before meat if he ate cheese
with a fork; it appears that the Be’er Hetev
rules this way as a matter of practical
halachah. The Aruch HaShulchan (89:8)
concurs with the Pri Chodosh in this
matter, and this is the accepted halachah.
Although the Shulchan Aruch rules that
one must first perform kinuach and then
do hadachah, the Shach (s.k.13) and
Be’er Hetev (s.k.7) contend that the order
does not matter. The Shach invokes the
position of the Beis Yosef (Tur 89:11)
that one may perform kinuach and
hadachah in whichever order he prefers.
The halachah is according to the Shach on
this point, and one may perform kinuach
and hadachah in the order of preference
or convenience.
Once one has finished eating dairy
food and has performed kinuach and
hadachah and has cleansed his hands,
may he eat meat right away? The Gemara
does not stipulate any waiting period.
In fact, the Shulchan Aruch (YD 89:2)
notes that one may eat meat miyad –
immediately – and the Rif, Rambam and
Tur also do not record any requirement
for a waiting period. However, the Zohar
in Parshas Mishpatim (155a) indicates
that one must recite the bracha acharonah
after a dairy meal and then wait before
being permitted to consume meat. Many
conduct themselves as such and wait
half an hour or an hour in light of the

Zohar’s position, although the bottom-
line halachah is not to require any such

waiting period.
The above pertains only to one who ate a
dairy meal and then wishes to eat ”meat”
in the true sense of the word, such as
beef, veal or venison. Poultry requires
no washing of hands nor cleansing and
rinsing of the mouth when eaten after
dairy foods.Seudas Yom Tov, irrespective
of the choice of foods he decides to serve.)

Why do we
eat dairy on
Shavuos?
The Rama on Orach
Chaim 494:3 quotes
a widespread minhag to eat dairy
foods on Shavuos. The Mishnah
Berurah (ibid. s.k.12) proffers the
famous explanation for this custom:
Bnei Yisroel, upon receiving the
Torah on Shavuos, were unable to eat
meat right after the Torah was given.
There was no time to prepare and
check shechitah knives, remove blood
and cheilev (non- kosher fats) from
meat, and kasher utensils needed to
cook and prepare hot meat. Thus, it
was necessary on that first Shavuos
to consume cold dairy foods. We
therefore commemorate this event
by also partaking of dairy dishes on
Shavuos.
The Rama himself offers another
rationale for eating dairy food on
Shavuos: The Korban Shtei HaLechem

is commanded to be brought on
Shavuos; we therefore eat both dairy
and meat foods on Shavuos, as this will
require us to have two different breads
(because we cannot eat the same bread
with dairy and meat foods); the two
breads necessitated by serving dairy
and meat dishes, served on the table,
which symbolizes the mizbayach
commemorate the Korban Sh’tei
HaLechem. (MB ibid s.k.14)
There are some other, less-known
explanations as to why we eat dairy
foods on Shavuos:
• Moshe Rabbeinu was taken out of
the Nile on Shavuos and was thereafter
brought to be nursed, and he refused
to drink milk from non-Jewish
women. • The gematria of chalav is
40, corresponding to the forty days
that Moshe was on Har Sinai. • One of
the names of Har Sinai is Gavnunim,
similar to the word gevinah – cheese.
• The Chok Yaakov (OC 494:9) quotes
the Kol Bo (s. 52) that the minhag is to

eat both honey and
milk on Shavuos,
as the Torah is
compared to honey
and milk (Shir
HaShirim 4:11).
The custom of
eating dairy foods
on Shavuos,
however, remains
cryptic and is not
mentioned by
many halachic
sources, and that
is why there are
so many possible explanations. (Note
that the Rama explains the basis for
the custom with a partial conjecture,
“and it seems to me that the reason
is…”, rather than stating a definitive
rationale, as this minhag is of unclear
background.)
The most common methods whereby
people fulfill the custom to eat dairy
foods on Shavuos are by having dairy

Yom Tov meals or by serving dairy
Mezonos foods after making Kiddush
on Shavuos morning (and consuming
a regular Yom Tov seudah later). This
latter method is suggested by the
Darchei Teshuva (YD 89, s.k. 19) as
the ideal way to fulfill the minhag of
eating dairy foods on Shavuos while
partaking of a most proper Seudas
Yom Tov. Each of these approaches
requires a bit of halachic analysis.