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

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 par-
takes of a dairy Yom Tov seudah at mid-
day 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 eat-
ing cheese be-
fore 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 (clean-
ing 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 kinu-
ach 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 behe-
mah or chayah, but for poultry, there is no

need for any cleaning or washing of hands.

The above procedures appear pretty sim-
ple. However, the commentaries of the

Shulchan Aruch add a few noteworthy ca-
veats.

The Shach (s.k.9) quotes the Rif ’s position

that one should always wash his hands af-
ter 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 al-
ways 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.[5]
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 which-
ever order he prefers. The halachah is ac-
cording 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 re-
cord 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 con-
sume 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 wash-
ing 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.)

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.