KLBD Kashrut Division London Beth Din

MEAT, DAIRY AND PAREVE
Keeping kosher is an intrinsic part of the daily life of a Jew. Understanding the fundamentals of Kosher is basic to the functioning of the Jewish home. Kosher foods are divided into three categories: meat, dairy and pareve. One of the basic tenets of Kosher is the total separation of meat and dairy products. Meat and dairy may not be cooked or eaten together. To ensure this separation the kosher kitchen contains separate sets of dishes, utensils and cookware, and separate preparation areas for meat and dairy. The third category, pareve, is comprised of foods which are neither meat nor dairy and may therefore be eaten with either.

PAREVE IN JEWISH LAW
Foods that are neither meat nor dairy are called pareve. (sometimes spelt as parev or parve). This means that they contain no meat or dairy derivatives, and have not been cooked or mixed with any meat or dairy foods. Eggs, fish, fruit, vegetables, grains, and juices in their natural, unprocessed state are common pareve foods. Other pareve foods include pasta, soft drinks, coffee and tea, and many types of candy and snacks. Although pareve foods present fewer kosher complexities than either meat or dairy foods, certain points must be kept in mind:

Pareve foods may lose their pareve status if processed on dairy equipment or when additives are used. The label may give no indication of this processing. Chocolate, cookies and other snacks should not be used with meat or meaty foods unless they are certified pareve. For most companies, producing a pareve product is the ideal port of entry into the kosher market, and potentially the largest sales prospect.

PASSOVER
The festival of Passover (Pesach in Hebrew) is celebrated each year by the Jewish people for 8 days commemorating the Exodus out of Egypt 3000 years ago. It can fall during the months of March, April and May. It varies from year to year because the Jewish calendar is calculated by the lunar months. The main custom of Passover is that the Jewish people are not allowed to eat anything leaven made from the 5 grains- wheat, barley, oat, spelt and rye. Jews will not be able to use any pots or pans or any utensils that have had been used for grains.

In order to make sure that the Jews may not come to eat any grain products by accident, any seed that looks like grain is also not allowed to be eaten. This includes corn, maize, soybean, rapeseed, peanuts etc. Therefore any of this products or derivatives are not kosher for Passover

However in Middle Eastern communities, corn, soy, rapeseed, peanuts and beans are allowed for Passover and they are called Kosher for Passover Kitniyot. The word Kitniyot means legumes which differentiate it from the normal Kosher for Passover which contain no legumes at all. In Kosher certification of products therefore the terms used are Kosher for Passover and Kosher for Passover Kitniyot.

INSECTS
Whereas eating pork involves a single transgression, eating a fly, worm or other kind of creepy-crawly involves several. Insects are banned, so fruit and vegetables liable to insect infestation have to be thoroughly scrutinised and cleansed.

MEAT & MILK
Central to maintaining a kosher lifestyle is the separation of meat from milk. The prohibitions against mixing them are very strict, in some respects more so than other kosher laws. Jews not only avoid mixing meat and milk at the table, but also abstain from eating dairy foods after meat until some time has elapsed.

MEAT
The basic rules about which animals, birds and fish are kosher are set out in Leviticus chapter 11. As for red meat, the animals must have cloven hooves and chew the cud - such as goats, sheep, cattle and deer. Kosher meat and poultry must be prepared under stringent regulations that involves a number of steps until it is ready for use by the kosher consumer.
By default the meat found in supermarkets and butchers will be considered not kosher unless it has a kosher seal on it. Generally products in the general market containing any form of animal based ingredients can be considered not kosher unless it is strictly supervised by a reputable kosher certification agency.

BIRDS
The Torah lists only the birds which are forbidden to eat, such as ostriches, owls and vultures. We cannot be sure however of the true identity of the species listed. But by tradition, Jews can eat poultry such as duck, chicken, goose and turkey, and also pigeon, pheasant and partridge.

FISH
To comply with kosher requirements, a fish must have fins and easily detached scales. The scales of a sturgeon are extremely hard to remove - hence it is non-kosher, as is its precious roe caviar. All shellfish, eels, shark, monkfish, huss and catfish fail the kosher test. Fresh or frozen fish should be bought with the skin attached so the scales can be checked.

MILK AND CHEESE
Only milk that comes from a kosher animal is considered Kosher. Normally milk does need some supervision to guarantee its origin (as all milk looks alike). In countries where the source of milk offered for sale is guaranteed by civil law (such as the UK, EU, USA etc), some authorities rule that all milk is guaranteed as Kosher and need not be supervised. Some communities still require their milk be fully supervised and it is known as Cholov Yisroel or loosely known as Supervised Kosher Milk.
When it comes to cheese, though, the rules are tighter. All cheese must be rabinically supervised. This is because the curdling agent, the rennet, is often derived from an animal source - usually a calf's stomach. Therefore vegetarian cheeses cannot be eaten, unless they have kosher certification.

WINE
Wine and Grape juice likewise must come only from a rabbinically approved source - but not for the same reason as cheese. The Sages put a ban on non-approved wine as originally wine was used for idol-worship. The decree was enacted to ensure no benefit was derived from such wine.