All Things Being Kosher

I was watching television tonight and caught a commercial that caused me to stop and ponder. It was a new hot dog weenie that was labeled kosher. Now when I think of kosher, I think pickle. I love kosher pickles and I guess I never really wondered what kosher meant. I actually thought there was a seasoning that made it kosher. Looking at the list of ingredients, there is no kosher listed. So I decided to look kosher up and entered a world of religion and belief. I am not getting into that today, but I will tell you there are a lot of kosher foods out there. Now, what makes it kosher?

What I found was handling techniques and ingredients, bound by a strong sense of religious beliefs. Lets take the kosher pickle industry for instance. A pickle is kosher if it meets Jewish dietary laws. The primary issue with being kosher is the use of animal products at some pickling and canning facilities. A pickle is made by brining in a solution of salt and water. Brine (salt) may be emulsified with polysorbates, which are made from animal fat. Now if that fat is from a cow, that is okay. If that fat is from a pig it isn't. Pigs are a forbidden animal.

The interesting part to me is to be certified, the pickle facility should be inspected by a Rabbi and blessed. I found other websites that said they didn't have to be blessed. So why don't they just call them Jewish pickles?

All fruits and vegetables are kosher. They are in their natural state and are listed as kosher (approved) in Jewish law. That is as long as they don't have bugs on them. I don't know about you but I try to get all the bugs off my fruits and veggies. The exception is grapes products. Grapes in their natural form is kosher, but not in jams, jellies, etc.. . That is unless it has a kosher mark on it.

I found a website from Hershey that listed their products that were kosher.

*5th Avenue Candy Bar

*Almond Joy

*Hershey Bliss

*Hershey Kisses

*Hershey Miniatures

You can go to the Hershey website and get the full listing of kosher foods.

General Rules
Although the details of Kashrut are extensive, the laws all derive from a few fairly simple, straightforward rules listed here:

1.Certain animals must not be eaten at all. This restriction includes the flesh, organs, eggs and milk of forbidden animals.

2.Of the animals that may be eaten, the birds and mammals must be killed in accordance of Jewish law.

3.All blood must be drained from the meat or broiled out before it is eaten.

4.Certain part(s) of permitted animals may not be eaten.

5.Fruits and vegetables are permitted, but they must be inspected for bugs.

6.Meat (the flesh of birds and mammals) must not be eaten with dairy. Fish, eggs, fruits, vegetables and grains can be eaten with either meat or dairy. (According to some views, fish must not be eaten with meat).

7.Utensils that have come into contact with meat must not be used with dairy, and vice versa.Utensils that have come into contact with non-kosher food must not be used with kosher food. This applies only when the contact occurred while the food was hot.

8.Grape products made by non-Jews must not be eaten.

9.There are a few other rules that are not universal.



Kosher meats are bison, deer, cattle, goats, and sheep. Non-kosher meats are camel, rock badger, rabbit, and pig. Fowl allowed is chicken, duck, geese and turkey. Allowed fish must have scales and fins. Non allowed would be shell fish. No Bugs or winged swarming things are allowed. Darn. There goes my dinner plans.I had my heart set on a glazed camel rump with a side of winged swarming things.

Some cereals made the kosher lists I see commonly at the store. Raisin Bran made the list as well as Cranberry Almond Clusters. More cereals may be kosher and just not listed. I was very surprised to find alot of foods I eat are kosher, but it doesn't stop there. You cannot mix meat and dairy in a meal. It is okay to have dairy and vegetables and fruits, or meat, vegetables, and fruit. As long as the foods were prepared by following the Jewish law. I thought I was having a hard time just getting the suggested servings of all food groups worked into my meals.

So next time you see kosher on the packaging in the store, you and I both will have more understanding and perhaps a little more respect for the term. I for one will never eat another pickle without thinking about the origin of the word kosher. Hope you enjoyed the blog and learned as much as I did. Leave a comment if you like. See ya next time.

Toothless Fairy