Important Appliance Pre-Purchase Advice

When shopping for a new appliance, it is worth considering the different features each one offers and whether they meet your needs regarding Shabbos and Yom Tov use. Here are some suggestions and considerations to help you make the best decision for your needs.

Advice Re: Cooktops

Electric smoothtops may present a problem of kashering for Pesach. Check with your rav.
Electric cooktops may pose a problem with adjusting the temperature on Yom Tov.
Electronic ignition may pose a problem with initiating a flame on Yom Tov.
Some cooktops (gas or electric) have knobs that light up when the burner is turned on, and on some of these cooktops an illuminated ring displays on the knob itself. Some knobs are backlit with a soft glow to indicate an ‘On’ setting, and some knobs offer progressive illumination that adjusts to indicate the burner setting. These types of knobs pose a problem.
Additionally, be aware that some high-end […]

STAR-K Tevilas Keilim Chart

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By: Rabbi Mordechai Frankel

Kashrus Kurrents Summer 2015 | Updated March 2024

(ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED AS: A Practical Guide to Tevilas Keilim)

Download chart

For a summary of the halachos involved, refer to Tevilas Keilim: Basic Guidelines.

UTENSIL
NEED FOR TEVILA – WITH OR WITHOUT A BRACHA

Aluminum Pan, Disposable
Tevila without a bracha if intended to be used only once; tevila with a bracha if intended to be used more than once.[1]

Aluminum Pan, Non-disposable
Tevila with a bracha[2]

Apple Corer (metal)
Tevila with a bracha

Baking/Cookie Sheet
Tevila with a bracha

Barbeque Grill
Racks require tevila with a bracha, other components do not require tevila.

Blech
No tevila

Blender/Mixer
Glass or metal bowl, metal blades and other attachments require tevila with a bracha, other components do not require tevila. Handheld immersion blender requires tevila with a bracha.

Bottle (metal or glass)
Tevila with a bracha. If bought filled with food and subsequently emptied by a Jew, does not require tevila.[3]

Brush (grill, egg yolk, pastry)
No tevila

Cake Plate (metal or glass)
Plate needs tevila with a bracha, cake plate cover does not require tevila.

Can (metal or glass)
Tevila with a bracha. If bought filled with food and subsequently emptied by […]

Money-Saving Tips and Strategies for Passover and Year-Round

When we prepare to celebrate our freedom from Egyptian slavery on Pesach, the last thing we want to do is enslave ourselves to debt in paying for that eight-day celebration! Although the Gemorah states that when Hashem assigns a person’s livelihood on Rosh Hashanah for the coming year, He does not deduct Shabbos and Yom Tov expenses from the sum allocated, it is no mitzvah to spend money for those expenses, needlessly. With a little forethought and planning, you can implement some helpful money saving tips, year-round, in anticipation of Pesach.

Optimally, it would be wise to budget for Pesach, well in advance. Decide how much you will have to spend, and what you might need to cut from your budget to achieve that figure, by asking yourself: How much do I typically spend on groceries, monthly? How much did I spend on Pesach, last year? What are the specifics of […]

Shopping for Passover: What Could Be the Problem?

By: Rabbi Tzvi Rosen

Updated April 2024

As Pesach nears, the grocery bills mount and the bank account dwindles, the Jewish housewife courageously attempts to hold the household budget intact without compromising her strict standard of Pesach kashrus. She asks: Are there products in the marketplace that live up to their claims of fresh, pure, natural, or additive-free that can be purchased worry-free without special Passover certification, or are there legitimate kashrus concerns that would require the product to carry reliable Kosher for Passover (KFP) certification? Let us take a behind-the-scenes look at some of these potential products.

Supermarket Produce

Can the Passover consumer confidently purchase fresh fruits and vegetables without worrying about the wax coatings used to maintain the freshness of the fresh fruit and vegetables? Our research of food grade waxes has shown that soy proteins may be used as a thickener in some waxes. This means that the waxes may contain kitniyos derivative. However, […]

Bracha On Newly Flowering Trees: Birchas Ha’ilanos Guidelines

By: Rabbi Mordechai Frankel

Spring 2009 | Reviewed February 2025

Q: There is a bracha which is recited once a year upon seeing a newly flowering fruit-bearing tree. I have a number of questions regarding Birchas Ha’ilonos:

When is the optimal time to say this bracha? Does the bracha have to be said during the month of Nisan?

What rules apply concerning the location of the person when saying the bracha? How far away can you be from the tree when saying the bracha? Can you be inside a house or other structure? Can you be in a car? Is it necessary to be at a site where there is more than one tree?

What limitations are there regarding the type of tree over which this bracha may be recited? Does the tree need to be fruit bearing? How old should the tree be? Can the tree be […]