16 Sep SPECIAL KASHRUTH QUESTIONS FOR THE YOMIM NORAIM WITH RABBI MOSHE ELEFANT FROM THE OU
This month
many of the
bakeries sell
raisin challah.
Many local bagel stores
recently stopped selling
cinnamon raisin bagels. Are
raisins kosher to eat?
The OU’s position is that raisins are kosher.
The only issue that comes up with raisins
is that you can find insects in raisins.
The Halacha is very concerned about the
consumption of insects; it can involve 4-5
aveiros every time you ingest one. However,
the halacha is that an insect only becomes
prohibited once it has left the fruit where it
was formed. The Prid Megadim and other
commentators suggest that raisins don’t
have that issue and even if a raisin did have
an insect, it wouldn’t pose a Kashrut issue.
Therefore, the OU does certify raisins.
Since honey is produced
by bees, and bees are not a
kosher species, how can honey
be kosher?
That’s a great question which is in the
Gemarah. The Gemarah says honey must
be Kosher. How do we know this? Because
Eretz Yisroel is called “Eretz Zvas Chalav
U’Dvash.” So, there’s no way that the Torah
would’ve compared Israel to something
that isn’t kosher. But why indeed is it
kosher? The Gemarah says that honey is
not digested by the bee. The bee swallows
the pollen from the flower and secretes it
from its body the same way that it ingested
it. The bee has nothing to do with the
making of the honey; it’s just like a bag
holding the food.
The Question is, can that be applied to
other foods? And that’s a very interesting
question because there’s another very
popular food ingredient called shellac,
which is the secretion of another bug.
The question is, does that have the same
properties as honey? Rav Moshe Feinstein
held that it did and that’s why the OU
certifies shellac for food.
Can one eat Cheerios during
the Aseres Yemei Teshuva (ten
days from Rosh Hashana to
Yom Kippur) or Shabbos and
Yom Tov for those who only
eat Pas Yisroel on those days?
What about other breakfast
cereals? Must they be Pas
Yisroel?
There are differing opinions as to
whether Cheerios is considered pas.
The OU poskim do not consider it pas,
because of the size of the individual
pieces and the manner in which it is
made. Likewise, wheat flake cereals
are not considered “bread-like” and
therefore do not need to be pas Yisroel.
Corn and Rice Cereals are, by definition,
not bread items. For a current OU Pas
Yisroel list please see https://oukosher.
org/blog/articles/pas-yisroel-list-5780/
What foods should one eat at
the seuda ha’mafsekes (last
meal) on Erev Yom Kippur?
Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chaim 608:4)
writes that on Erev Yom Kippur, one
should eat light foods that are easily
digestible, so one will be able to daven on
Yom Kippur with proper concentration.
There is a common custom to dip
challah in honey. Mishnah Berurah
(608:16-18) writes that one should not
overeat. It is proper to serve chicken, red
meat, and especially fatty meat, should
be avoided. Wine and other intoxicating
beverages should not be served. One
should avoid foods that are overly spicy
or vinegary. Sesame should be avoided,
since it can cause reflux. Based on the
Tur (Orach Chaim 604), some have a
minhag to eat fish on erev Yom Kippur.
However, Kitzur Shulchan Aruch (131:12)
writes that it should not be served at the
seuda ha’mafsekes, but rather should be
eaten earlier in the day.
Is one allowed to eat an esrog
and, if yes, can one eat the
esrog on Sukkos itself?
There’s nothing wrong with eating an Esrog.
You can’t eat your esrog on Sukkos because
once the Esrog has been designated for a
mitzvah, you can’t eat it until the Yom Tov
is over. Even an esrog that was bought to
decorate the Sukkah, can’t be used on
Sukkos to eat. If you just want to buy an
esrog as a fruit, that’s fine. You need to make
sure that if the esrog is from Israel, there
are no issues with terumos and masros, but
otherwise you can eat an esrog. Many have
the minhag to eat an esrog on Tu B’shvat
and pray for a nice Esrog for the next year.
What needs to be toiveled? Is
there a general rule?
The Halacha is that Kli Seuda, utensils used
for food, need to be toiveled. Deoraisa,
only something made of metal needs to
be toiveled so pots, pans etc. Glass needs
to be toiveled Derabanan. Earthenware
poses a problem. Earthenware doesn’t have
to be toiveled however, glazed earthenware
is often glazed in glass. If it’s a thin layer,
it’s not as big of a question as with a thick
layer. I learned from my Rebbeim to toivel
glazed china but everyone should ask their