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Explanation Of Kosher

Category: Misc

Author: The Savvybearcat

Date: 1/1/2007

Rating:

(3.5) by 2 users

Ingredients:

ANNE NEIWIRTH (JKBC80B)

Instructions:

Thanks, everyone for your lovely compliments on my explanation to
Nancy Johnson. And Nancy, if you're reading this, everyone else has
done a super job of filling you in on what "kosher" means. However, I
don't think anyone mentioned the source of "kosher," and that is, of
couse, the Bible. The word kosher, or Kasher, to use a more correct
pronounciation, means "fit" or "proper."

In the Bible, we have laws given to the Jews by God about what foods
we may and may not eat. There has been much speculation down through
the ages about the reason for these laws: health, cleanliness, etc.
But the true reason, our Rabbis tell us, is because we were commanded
by God to follow these laws, and to set us apart as a holy people. In
fact, Nancy, even though only about 10 percent of all Jews observe
the dietary laws, it is probably these same laws that have allowed
the Jews to survive as a people for 4,000 years.

Kosher animals, as the others have mentioned, include cows, lambs,
goats, sheep, deer. A kosher four-legged animal is one that both
chews its cud and has a cloven hoof. Therefore, pig is not a kosher
animal. In the category of fowl, chicken, goose, duck, turkey (there
are a few others as well) are kosher. There is a list of birds in the
Bible that we are forbidden to eat. No reason is given, but the thing
they have in common is that they are birds of prey.

We are permitted to eat fish that have fins and scales, therefore cod,
flounder, salmon, tuna, mahi mahi, mackerel, trout, etc are kosher.
Shrimp, lobster, eel, clam, crab, squid etc. are not. We are not
permitted to eat things that creep or crawl on their bellies, for
instance, reptiles (alligator or lizard or snake), or insects.

Fruits and vegetables are all kosher, as are eggs of kosher animals.
It may interest you to know that Adam and Eve were vegetarians, and
some believe that man was meant to be a vegetarian, in the best of
all possible worlds. It was only after they were thrown out of the
garden of Eden that they were permitted to kill animals for their
food.

Speaking of killing animals, our kosher animals must be ritually
slaughtered in order to be fit for us to eat. It means slaughtering
in a way that caused the animal the least pain; produces the quickest
death, and drains out as much blood as possible. We are not permitted
to eat the blood; it is the life of the animal. That's why kohser
butchers (and in the old days, housewives) soak and salt the meat to
drain out even more blood. Because of the requirements of slaughter,
observant Jews do not hunt, nor will they eat an animal that has been
shot, bludgeoned, or that has died a natural death. Kosher
slaughterhouses employ a Rabbi who oversees the slaughtering process
and who ascertains that it has been done properly. You might imagine
that kosher meat costs more, and it does! Looks like I'm out of room
again...Anne in Balt. MD 3:20 pm