Practices - OCR Dietary laws

Judaism’s food laws are known as kashrut. These rules are contained within the mitzvot, mainly in the books of Deuteronomy and Leviticus. Following them shows obedience and self-control.

Food that is allowed is called kosher. Food that is not allowed is called treyfah.

Kosher rules

1. Land animals must have cloven (split) hooves and must chew the cud, meaning that they must eat grass.
2. Seafood must have fins and scales. Eating shellfish is not allowed.
3. It is forbidden to eat birds of prey. Only clean birds, meaning birds that do not consume other animals, can be eaten. Poultry is allowed.
4. Meat and dairy cannot be eaten together, as the Torah says: Do not boil a kid in its mother’s milk (Exodus 23:19). Therefore, Jews who follow these dietary rules cannot eat cheeseburgers, for example. Often this rule is extended further, so that people wait up to six hours after eating meat before they eat dairy.

Treyfah

Food that is not allowed is called treyfah. Examples include shellfish, pork products and food that has not been slaughtered in the correct way, known as shechitah. Animals must be killed by a shochet, a person trained to slaughter animals in a kosher way.

Animals must be specially slaughtered, which means that Jews are not allowed to eat animals that die naturally in their care:

Leviticus additionally explains: And wherever you live, you must not eat the blood of any bird or animal. Anyone who eats blood must be cut off from their people (Leviticus 7:26–7)

Parev

Neutral foods, which can be eaten with either meat or dairy, are called parev. These include vegetables, pasta and rice. As long as these are washed thoroughly before eating, no kosher rules will be broken.

Differences between Orthodox and Reform views

Orthodox Jews keep all the rules of kashrut. Some even have separate utensils and perhaps fridges for the preparation and storage of meat and dairy products. Reform Jews often choose which rules to follow.

Orthodox Jews and food laws

In addition to following the kashrut, Orthodox Jews believe that meat and dairy products cannot be cooked or eaten together. Some Orthodox Jews even have separate kitchens for the preparation of meat and milk. Many Orthodox Jews will not eat food prepared by non-Jews, unless approved by a rabbinical court called a Bet Din, because non-Jews may not have the knowledge and skills required to prevent contamination with non-kosher elements. For instance, fruit and vegetables need to be soaked and washed thoroughly to ensure there are no tiny insects on them. Egg yolks need to be checked for blood spots and discarded if these are present.

Reform Jews and food laws

Although Reform Jews may choose to observe all or some of the kashrut laws, they believe this is down to personal choice. Some Reform Jews take a flexible approach and observe kashrut at home but are less strict elsewhere. Some Reform Jews will eat only vegetarian food when not at home. This avoids issues regarding the mixing of meat with dairy as well as questions relating to the slaughter of animals.