Rei’ach Nicho’ach: Grillin’, Griddlin’ and Smokin’ K’Halacha

By: Rabbi Zvi Holland

Winter 2026

The intoxicating smell of raw meat sizzling on a grill, accompanied by the smoky pungency of a well-tended fire, is an intensely appealing sensory experience. From the moment the meat hits the heated surface and begins to sear, natural sugars and amino acids in the meat react with each other to trigger the “Maillard reaction” – more commonly known as caramelization – which releases a heady, irresistible aroma and an explosion of flavor. When done well, the barbecuing process produces involuntary gastronomic reactions in all who experience it.

The sensory reactions described above are actually an integral component of korbanos. The Gemara in Zevachim (46b) learns from the word rei’ach that the korbanos must be cooked on the mizbei’ach because precooked meat does not provide the rei’ach experience. Even the cooking technique prescribed for the edible parts of the korban had to be the very best option. This explains why […]

It’s a Strange Bird: An Insider’s Look Into Kosher Egg Laying

By: Rabbi Tzvi Rosen

Winter 2026

The incredible edible egg. Eggs are, indeed, incredible. They can be hard boiled, soft boiled, fried or scrambled and are an essential ingredient in baking. Eggs give challah a shining glow. When my mother a”h was not feeling well – and when all else failed – she drank a gogel mogel, two raw eggs mixed with honey … and it did the trick.

Then there’s the reproductive aspect of eggs: when they hatch into chicks who mature into hens, we are afforded sumptuous varieties of poultry delicacies that are staples of our Shabbos tables. These are all excellent outcomes of Hashem’s incredible creation.

But are all eggs equal? More importantly, are all eggs kosher? As we shall soon explain, the incredible edible egg is, in some cases, incredibly inedible from a kashrus standpoint.

The Kashrus of Eggs

The Shulchan Aruch (Y.D. 86:1) teaches that the simanim for a kosher egg are that its […]

Kitchen Countertops: Scratching Beneath the Surface

By: Rabbi Mordechai Frankel

Winter 2026

“I would like to purchase a countertop which can be kashered for Pesach. What should I buy?”

“I moved into a house, and the previous owner was not Jewish. Can I kasher the countertop?”

The answer to these questions and variations thereof depends on the material from which the countertop is made. We will begin by addressing which materials can be kashered and which cannot; then describe the kashering process; and finally, conclude with guidelines for countertops that cannot be kashered.

Countertop Materials

Kitchen countertops can be made from a host of different materials. Some materials can be kashered, and some cannot. (See the chart in Fig. 1.)

With regard to stone countertops, there are two basic types:

► A natural stone slab – This is one large piece of natural stone. The slab is mined whole and left intact.

► An engineered stone composite – This consists of stone fragments which have been pressed and […]

Hot Sauce on the Front Burner

By: Rabbi Tzvi Rosen

Fall 2025

The global spice trade has thrived for millennia. Whether over land or ancient maritime routes, merchants sold their aromatic wares as they competed to expand their markets. The spice traders who kidnapped Yosef HaTzadik on their way to Mitzrayim attest to the long history of this commodity. But the reference to spices in the Torah goes back even further. We find it by briyas haolam: barasi yetzer hara, barasi Torah tavlin vo – I have created the evil inclination, I have created Torah as a “spice” (i.e., an antidote) to counter it.[1]

The word spice originated from the Latin species, meaning sort or kind (interestingly, the same meaning that species has today) and it referred to an item of special value. Ancient Roman merchants deeply prized Indian black pepper which they considered more precious than gold, terming it “black gold.” This pungent and versatile spice has an estimated heat rating […]

When Milk is Not Milchig: From Bovine to Biotech (Expanded Version)

By: Rabbi Moshe T. Schuchman

Fall 2025

[This is an expanded version of the article that appeared in the Fall 2025 print issue of Kashrus Kurrents.]

Basar b’cholov – the Torah’s prohibition against mixtures of meat and milk and its Rabbinic guardrails – constitutes one of the most fundamental laws of kashrus. Repeated thrice in the Torah, the posuk of lo sevasheil g’di bachaleiv eemo[1] – do not cook a young goat in its mother’s milk – proscribes three distinct actions: (1) cooking meat with milk (bishul);[2] (2) eating the mixture (achilah); and (3) deriving benefit from the mixture (hana’ah).

Conventionally, milk is defined as the mammary gland secretion of a lactating mammal. This definition usually aligns with the halachic parameters of what’s considered milchig for purposes of keeping it separate from meat in a kosher kitchen. But is that always so? Can milk sometimes be pareve?[3]

Certainly, the whitish, liquid derivatives of […]

Heaven Scent: A Discussion of Birchas Harei’ach

By: Rabbi Baruch Beyer

Fall 2025

When Covid-19 turned the world upside down not so long ago, many people sickened with the virus reported a most unusual symptom: they had lost their sense of smell. Suddenly, the world became dull and flat. Food was tasteless. They could not enjoy the aroma of a just-baked challah or the scent of a bouquet of flowers. Upon recovering, survivors gained a newfound appreciation for the blessing of smell and rejoiced in its restoration.

As with all the myriad brachos bequeathed to us by Hakadosh Baruch Hu, the Torah provides us with guidance as to how to properly express our appreciation for each. I thought it would be interesting to investigate the topic of birchas harei’ach, the blessing on scents.

The source of these brachos is a Gemara (Brachos 43b) that asks: what is something that only the neshama derives pleasure from and not the body? The Gemara answers: The sense […]

The Sheitel Controversy

By: Rabbi Mordechai Frankel

Summer 2025

Which pilgrimage site is the most visited around the world? While some may guess the Vatican (approximately 7 million visitors a year) or Mecca (10 million), few would fathom that one of the contenders for the title is a remote Indian temple located on one of the Tirumala hills near the town of Tirupati in the state of Andhra Pradesh.

An estimated 25 million Hindu pilgrims visit the temple each year – an average of 68,500 visitors daily. Although this seems like a huge number of pedestrian traffic, it is worth noting that, as a percentage of the Indian population, this would correspond to approximately 16,500 visitors were the site in the U.S.

What do the visitors do in Tirupati? They wait in line all day to get a glimpse of the avodah zara in the temple for a few fleeting seconds. Another popular activity is tonsuring, the act of shaving […]

The Sheitel Controversy: Links for Additional Reading

By: Rabbi Mordechai Frankel

Summer 2025

As noted in the article, “The Sheitel Controversy,” the author reviewed a wide array of sources that could not be included due to space considerations. Links to many of these sources are presented here for those who wish to delve more deeply into this fascinating topic.

More material can be found at ‫חומר בנושא תקרובת עבודה זרה בפאות Google Drive and קונטרסים – מכון הישכם אוהבים את ה’ לחקר תקרובת העבודה זרה בפאות

Please email the author at [email protected] if you have any additional articles or books on this topic that are available to be uploaded and shared with the public, or if you are the author of an article and would like it to be removed from this page.

DISCLAIMER

► The author takes no responsibility for the appropriateness or accuracy of the material below or its halachic or hashkafic content. ◄

Annotated Summaries of Online Resources

NOTE: Some of the material […]

The Plot Thickens: The Marvel of Collagen

By: Rabbi Avrohom Mushell

Summer 2025

From fruit-on-the-bottom yogurt cups to your Bubby’s famous galarita (a.k.a. p’tcha), collagen – and its modified form, gelatin – seems to be everywhere these days. It is no exaggeration to state that the food and health industries are currently undergoing a veritable collagen craze. In 2023, the collagen market had a value of $5.1 billion, with no signs of slowing down; it is projected to top $7.4 billion by 2030.[1] What exactly is collagen and why is it so popular?

Collagen is a fibrous, insoluble protein found in all living beings. The word collagen comes from the Greek word kolla, meaning glue, which is a fitting term for a substance that makes up a major portion of bone, skin and connective tissue and serves as the glue that holds the body together. There are three main types: type I, found in skin, tendons, bones and ligaments; type II, […]

Gelatin Substitutes

By: Rabbi Avrohom Mushell

Summer 2025

Widely available gelatin substitutes provide kosher consumers with sound alternatives to meat- and fish-based gelatin products. They are also making headway in the field of vitamin and medicinal capsules.

Popular gelatin alternatives that are seaweed-based include:

► Agar Agar/Kanten:Derived from some species of red algae. Has strong setting properties similar to gelatin. Will gel at room temperature. Is more affected by acidity than gelatin and thus can cause fruity desserts to turn watery.

►Carrageenan/Irish Moss: Is a reddish-purple seaweed. Less stiff than Agar Agar. Useful as an emulsifier and a thickener.

Gelatin alternatives that are vegetable-derived and that can be used as stabilizers, emulsifiers, or thickeners include:

► Gellan Gum: Produced by the microbial fermentation of a carbohydrate using the bacterium Sphingomonas elodea. Requires reliable kosher certification to verify that the ingredients used in their processing are all kosher and that the equipment used for their processing are all kosher parve.

► Guar Gum: A […]

Kashrus With a Lot of Gall: The Nut That Isn’t

By: Rabbi Tzvi Rosen

Summer 2025

Every year at the STAR-K Chanuka mesiba, Rav Moshe Heinemann shlit”a, STAR-K’s Rabbinic Administrator, rises to address the assembled. His annual message consists of a brief Chanuka dvar Torah, expressions of hakaras hatov to the entire staff, and a reiteration of the uncompromising principles of emes and shalom by which STAR-K is governed.

This year, he added the following to his divrei chizuk: “Good kashrus requires a clear understanding of products, process, and all the source materials that go into a certified product. What are they?

“Take nuts, for example. Hazelnuts, also known as filberts, are classical tree nuts. The bracha for all nuts grown on a tree is Borei Pri Ha’eitz.

“Peanuts, unlike their other shelled counterparts, grow in the ground. The bracha for peanuts is Borei Pri Ha’adama.

“Doughnuts,” he quipped, “are Borei Minei Mezonos. And what bracha do you make on a gallnut? None!”

“What is a gallnut? A gallnut is […]

Torah, Science & Kashrus in the Classroom

By: Rabbi Dovid Heber

Spring 2025

Over the years, I have been invited on multiple occasions to speak at various girls’ high schools in Lakewood about the impact of astronomy on the Jewish calendar and halachic zmanim. The inherent message I have aimed to give over is that one needs a basic understanding of math and science to fully comprehend certain halachic issues.

For example, the earth’s rotation on its axis is the basis of zmanei hayom (halachic times of the day) that are so much a part of our lives with regard to davening times and knowing when Shabbos and Yom Tov begin and end. One needs to know how the moon rotates around the earth to better understand Rosh Chodesh and the Jewish calendar. Indeed, Chazal had keen insights into scientific topics that were discovered hundreds of years later by researchers.

Investigating how a product is manufactured and analyzing the composition of the raw materials […]

Vinegar: Doing Kashrus Tastefully

By: Rabbi Tzvi Rosen

Spring 2025

Vinegar has a long and storied history and plays a highly-prized role in every aspect of modern life – whether as a nutrient, flavorant, preservative or household cleanser. The name vinegar is derived from the French “vin aigre, which literally means sour wine. According to legend, its discovery is credited to a neglected barrel of wine that had been left in storage and allowed to ferment and become sour.

We find several references to vinegar in both Tanach and the Gemara. A nazir is forbidden to consume anything derived from grapes, which includes wine vinegar;[1] Dovid Hamelech accuses his tormentors metaphorically of giving him vinegar to quench his thirst;[2] Boaz’s workers dip their bread in vinegar;[3] and Mar Ukva refers to himself as “Chometz ben Yayin” – Vinegar, the son of Wine – when comparing himself to his father’s degree of piety.[4]

Vinegar […]

Tevila Exemption for Appliances with Electronic Components

By: Rabbi Zvi Holland

Spring 2025

For many years, Rav Moshe Heinemann shlit”a instructed STAR-K to advise consumers that electric appliances which require tevila – such as toasters, waffle makers and hot water kettles – can be toveled and left to dry for three days. I have given this advice probably thousands of times and never once had a call back that the appliance was ruined.

There are, however, appliances that have both electric and electronic components. Electric devices convert electrical energy into other forms of energy, while electronic devices control the flow of electrons to perform tasks. Once exposed to water, damage to electronics begins within seconds – and the longer the exposure, the worse the damage.

Printed circuit boards consist of a laminate containing fiberglass and copper-clad epoxy, which forms the circuit’s wiring. This creates the perfect environment for galvanic or two-metal corrosion. Water contains minerals such as calcium, magnesium, potassium and salt, which accelerate […]

The Mitzvah of Tevilas Keilim

By: Rabbi Moshe Heinemann

Spring 2025

We are an Am Kadosh, a Holy People, who are mandated by Hashem to imbue all aspects of our lives with holiness. We elevate even the mundane activity of eating and vest it with special kedusha (sanctity): the food on our plates must be kosher and the table on which we eat is likened to the holy mizbe’ach. The plates themselves, and all keilim (vessels and utensils) used to prepare our food, must likewise be infused with kedusha.

Just as an aino Yehudi must tovel in a mikvah in order to become Jewish, so too must keilim acquired from an aino Yehudi undergo tevila in a mikvah before being used by a Jew. This is the mitzva of tevilas keilim.

If a kli requires tevila, it may not be used even once before it is toveled. If a kli was used numerous times without tevila, one is still required to immerse […]

Eretz Tzvi: Halachos of Visiting Eretz Yisroel

By: Rabbi Zvi Goldberg

Kashrus Kurrents Winter 2025 Issue | Updated January 2026

Eretz Yisroel is also called Eretz Tzvi. Chazal explain that, like the skin of a tzvi (a deer), which stretches beyond its natural state, the Land of Israel likewise expands to accommodate its inhabitants.[1] The Talmud states that anyone who walks four amos in Eretz Yisroel merits a place in the World to Come.[2] From here, some poskim derive that one fulfills a mitzvah merely by visiting Eretz Yisroel, even if one intends to stay for just a short while.[3]

Anyone planning a trip should be mindful of several pertinent halachos. We will review some of these below.

Scheduling the Flight

Do not plan to land too close to Shabbos; a flight landing on Friday morning is halachically acceptable.[4]

Try to avoid leaving Israel on a fast day, as the fast will be extended and you will not […]

The Mitzvah of Pidyon Haben: A Brief Overview

By: Rabbi Mordechai Frankel

Winter 2025

Mazel tov, you are the new parents of a baby boy! If the baby is the bechor of his mother – meaning that he is his mother’s first child – he will need to be redeemed by a kohen. The Torah tells us that Hashem slew every firstborn male in Mitzrayim, passing over the houses of the Bnei Yisrael. As a result, firstborn males acquired a measure of kedusha and must be redeemed by a kohen. The halachos of pidyon haben are somewhat complex and you may not have the time to familiarize yourself with them. Here, then, is a brief primer according to Ashkenazi custom.[1]

When Is a Pidyon Not Required?

If the baby is not his mother’s first child, even if he is his father’s first child

If the father is a kohen or levi, or if the mother is the daughter of a kohen or levi[...] Read More

Destination Simcha: From Meat Board to Surfboard

By: Rabbi Tzvi Rosen

Winter 2025

Forty years ago, the Lakeshore Hebrew Day School of New Orleans celebrated its 10th Anniversary Dinner in one of the premier hotels in the Vieux Carré, under the supervision of the local Orthodox rabbi. The day school then housed the New Orleans Kollel, of which I was a member. The event was so special that my Rosh Yeshiva, Rav Henoch Leibowitz ztz”l, was brought in as the guest speaker.

Before the event, we met extensively with the hotel chef, the pastry chef, and the food and beverage director to ensure that – even though the hotel was kosher certified – there would be no kashrus hiccups. When the big day arrived, I came with a crew made up of the chevrei hakollel to supervise the cooking for the event. Imagine our alarm when the chef showed us the “kosher” soup kettle – gleaming on the inside but encrusted with crawfish […]

The Perils of Partnering with a Party Planner

By: Rabbi Sholom Tendler

Winter 2025

[Sidebar to “Destination Simcha: From Meat Board to Surfboard.”]

For many people, juggling and coordinating all the details involved in planning a simcha – from booking the hall, arranging the décor, designing the invitations, planning the menu, ordering the food, to running random errands – is simply … overwhelming. Enter the party planner. This increasingly popular option has been gaining traction over the last few years, but not without its perils.

Party planners offer concierge services to help alleviate much of the stress involved in planning a simcha. They are typically more affordable than a full-service caterer who is under a hashgacha. Party planners work within your budget to offer any number of services at different tiers: they may handle the décor and design but may leave it to you to bring in your own food, or they can coordinate everything from “soup to nuts.” This is when the problems […]

From Dregs to Riches

By: Rabbi Tzvi Rosen

Fall 2024

In medieval folklore, alchemists were supposedly able to transform lead into gold. Their craft was the stuff of fantasy. But in contemporary life, through the wonders of kosher food science, we are witness to a veritable world of transformation. An impressive example of chemical transformation that would make an alchemist envious is the production of silica gel.

The Chemical Transformation of Sand

Silica gel is a desiccant. It is a highly versatile industrial product, used to absorb moisture in toothpaste, paint and telephone wires, among a myriad of other uses. Granules of silica gel fill the little white packets marked “do not swallow” in your shoe boxes. Kosher food applications include silica gel in spices as an anti-caking agent or as an absorbent in an oil refinery.

Chemically, the basic raw material for silica gel is sodium silicate. More simply, we know it as sand. When sodium silicate is mixed with sulfuric […]

West Meets East: The Beauty of Sephardi Minhagim

By: Rabbi Emanuel Goldfeiz

Fall 2024

True to Hashem’s promise, the children of Avraham, Yitzchak and Yaakov are today scattered in countries across the globe, upholding the teachings of the Avot and perpetuating our beautiful mesorah, each according to his own traditions.

A Brief History

Until the 1970s, American Jewry – then comprised mainly of Ashkenazim – was largely unfamiliar with the minhagim of Sephardi Jews[1] and the Bnei Edot Hamizrach.[2] That changed after 1976, when Rabbi Herman Neuberger zt”l embarked on a daring mission to travel to Iran and bring a small group of young Iranian bochurim to Baltimore to learn at Ner Israel. Iranian Jewry in those days had few opportunities to study Torah. This took place during the reign of the westernized, secular leader Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi. Rabbi Neuberger’s plan was that once they earned semicha, the newly ordained rabbis would return to Iran to teach.

Hashem had other plans. […]

A Higher Calling: Maintaining Kedushas Kehuna on Land, Air and Sea

By: Rabbi Mordechai Frankel

Fall 2024

The Torah tells us that Ahron and his sons were appointed by Hashem to serve as the first kohanim. The status of kehuna passes from father to son, in that a son of a male kohen is also a kohen. The kohanim were ordained to serve in the Beis Hamikdash and commanded to fulfill specific mitzvos.[1]

Among these is the obligation for male kohanim to preserve their kedusha and to prohibit becoming tamei meis – that is, becoming defiled through contact or exposure to a dead body.[2] Even though we no longer have a Beis Hamikdash, kohanim in our time are still required to observe all the halachos of tumas meis, both in and outside of Eretz Yisroel.[3] A kohen is restricted from becoming tamei even from an akum meis (the body of a deceased aino Yehudi).[4] At times of significant need, […]

Going Up: All About Shabbos Elevators

By: Rabbi Mordechai Frankel

Summer 2024

Historians claim that two hundred and twenty-four slaves were needed to operate the pulleys of the elevator system in the Colosseum of Rome. Thankfully, technology has come a long way since then. Modern elevators run on electricity which has necessitated the development of a Sabbath Mode. In Sabbath Mode, an elevator cab moves continuously up and down the elevator shaft, stopping at every floor. However, as will be explained, not all Sabbath Modes are the same.

Physics 101: How Elevators Work

There are two basic types of elevators in common use today: hydraulic and traction.

Hydraulic-Type Elevators

Hydraulics make use of the principle that liquid moved with low force over a large distance can be converted to movement with high force over a short distance. Take, for instance, a simple hydraulic jack (see Fig. 1). If the piston on the right has a surface area ten times that of the piston on […]

Warming Up: Do’s and Don’ts of Slow Cookers and Hot Plates on Shabbos

By: Rabbi Yaakov Heinemann

Summer 2024

Slow cookers and hot plates are the workhorses of many kosher kitchens as they enable the Sabbath-observant hostess to serve piping hot dishes to her family and guests to enhance the Shabbos seuda. In recognition of their importance in a Jewish home, it behooves us to review the halachos involving these appliances about which many users might not be aware.

This article will try to clarify the potential issues and how to address them in a practical way.

Slow Cookers

There are two basic types of electric slow cookers: an insert type (often referred to as a Crockpot®), in which a stoneware vessel sits inside a heated base; and a flatbed type, in which a metal pot sits atop a griddle base. Halachic issues involving their use include hatmana, shehiya and chazara. These will be explained below. (There are some more expensive models equipped with variable thermostats which make their usage on […]

Keeping Your Cool: Using a Refrigerator on Shabbos

By: Rabbi Chananya Jacobson

Summer 2024 | Updated February 2025

As electricity began to be used as an energy source in the late 1800s and early 1900s, poskim considered how to view electricity from a halachic perspective. The posek hador, Rav Chaim Ozer Grodzinski zt”l, ruled that electric incandescent lighting is considered fire and, to reinforce this psak, he himself would recite Borei Meorei Haesh on an unfrosted incandescent light bulb. While this psak rapidly gained universal acceptance,[1] it only covered incandescent light bulbs, which are very similar to fire in that they generate both light and heat. What about the many other applications of electric power which do not share these characteristics?

Electricity and Halacha

There are two basic approaches to this issue. The Chazon Ish writes that activating any electric device is boneh (building), since the completion of a circuit involves attaching two parts and bringing the electrical device “to life.”[2]

Other […]

For Good Measure: Baking with Gluten-Free Blends, Whole Wheat Flour, Sourdough and at Challah Bakes

By: Rabbi Dovid Heber

Spring 2024

[For a related article on the general laws of hafrashas challah, click here.]

Once upon a time, baking a loaf of bread was simple. Today, when gluten-free blends and processed whole wheat flour are found in many homes, that is no longer the case. Baking with sourdough starters and group baking at “challah bakes” have also become popular. The halachos involved are complex and bear examination.

Let’s begin with a review of the measurements necessary for mitzvos related to regular wheat flour.[1]

Mitzvos Involving Wheat Flour

► Separating Challah (hafrashas challah) Without a Bracha – One should separate challah without a bracha when kneading a dough that contains at least 8 ⅔ cups of wheat flour (on average 2.6 lbs.).[2]

► Separating Challah With a Bracha – There are differences of opinion as to how much flour is needed to recite a bracha. Some individuals do so when kneading at least 12 ¼ cups of flour (slightly more […]

Producción de Carne Kasher: Shechita Flies South

By: Rabbi Zvi Holland

Spring 2024

From time immemorial, no matter where in the far-flung Diaspora, the presence of a Jewish community has always meant that there was shechita in proximity. The position of community shochet was one of a klei kodesh and the shochtim of a community were subject to the supreme jurisdiction of the local rav and/or Beis Din.

Here, in the U.S., it was no different. On November 15, 1660, a man named Asser (Asher) Levy acquired a license to serve as the first kosher butcher in the small Dutch-controlled hamlet of Nieuw Amsterdam – now better known as New York City.[1] Ever since, maintaining a reliable supply of kosher beef has been an integral part of Jewish communal life in the U.S. Previous Kashrus Kurrents articles have offered a glimpse into the challenges shechita has faced on these shores and the changes to the way kosher meat is supplied […]

Acids in Digestion

By: Rabbi Tzvi Rosen

Spring 2024

When my father z”l went to pharmacy school at George Washington University, his course of study had a heavy concentration of chemistry. His background in chemistry proved extremely useful in his forty-year career as an examiner in the U.S. Patent Office. On his workbench, he had shoe boxes with all his pharmacological paraphernalia: Bunsen burners, beakers, and little vials of litmus paper. As a child, I remember my fascination with watching the red litmus paper turn blue when dipped into a base and the blue litmus paper turn red when dipped into an acid. These were literal litmus tests, a term which over time has crept into everyday language to denote a means of determining an outcome.

Although the world of industrial kashrus may not require the deep analysis found in chemistry textbooks, it behooves kashrus administrators and mashgichim to have a working knowledge of chemical compositions and formulations. Solid […]

Yoshon: To Keep or Not to Keep

By: Rabbi Mordechai Frankel

Winter 2024

The Gemara seems to conclude that the prohibition on the consumption of chodosh applies worldwide.[1] However, many shomrei mitzvos outside Eretz Yisrael do not restrict themselves to eating only yoshon grain. Various reasons have been proposed:

► The Rema says that people rely on the fact that for any particular product that are two uncertainties. It is possible that there the food was made from a previous year’s wheat crop and is yoshon. It is also possible that this year’s crop took root before 16 Nissan and is yoshon. As there are two areas of doubt – a sfek sfeika – one can be lenient.[2] Others disagree and maintain that there is only one uncertainty here, whether the grain is chodosh or yoshon, and one should be stringent.[3]

► The Bach says that the prohibition does not apply to grain produced in a field owned […]

What’s “New” in Chodosh

By: Rabbi Sholom Tendler

Winter 2024

The Torah states[1] that chodosh (new) crops of the five grains may not be eaten until after the second day of Pesach (outside of Israel, not until the third day).[2] Thus, grain harvested in the summer of 2023 would not be allowed until Pesach 2024. On the other hand, yoshon (old) crops, which were harvested in the summer of 2022, became permitted after Pesach 2023. Grain planted at least two weeks or more before Pesach are permitted upon harvest, since they took root before Pesach.[3]

Outside of Israel, there are various customs based on numerous sources as to whether or not one needs to be stringent about using only yoshon products (see Rabbi Mordechai Frankel’s article in this issue). Each person should consult their rav for guidance. In Israel, however, these leniencies do not apply. Therefore, any product from Israel bearing a reliable kosher […]