Appliances

Tag Archives: Appliances

Handling With Care: Boneh in the Kitchen

By: Rabbi Chananya Jacobson

Spring 2026

Boneh, the melacha of building, is not just for the lumberyard. It has many applications in the kitchen. Cheesemaking and churning butter are boneh.[1] Shaping egg salad and smoothing chopped liver can be boneh as well.[2] It can even apply to household appliances: according to some poskim, attaching a magnet to a refrigerator on Shabbos with the intention of leaving it there long-term is prohibited because of boneh.[3]

Recently, STAR-K certified a line of Gaggenau ovens without handles. Instead, they open electronically at the push of a button. In Sabbath Mode, this feature is deactivated and the door must be opened without mechanical assistance. The manufacturer offers a detachable handle to make opening the oven easier.

If these handles snap or suction into place, they should not be attached on Shabbos, as a semi-permanent attachment may violate the prohibition of boneh. (They should also […]

Sabbath Mode and Sabbath Compliant Appliances

Updated January 2023

Appliance manufacturers, with the aid of modern technology, have designed kitchen appliances to be safer and more efficient while incorporating various features to enhance operation. However, the integration of this technology may pose a challenge to their proper use on Shabbos and Yom Tov.

THE INTRODUCTION OF SABBATH MODE

In 1997, a historic technological project was launched between a major appliance manufacturer and a kosher certification agency. Whirlpool Corporation (manufacturer of KitchenAid) approached STAR-K to help modify their ovens for use on Shabbos and Yom Tov. Prior to that time, many of their appliances did not conform to halachic guidelines.

Following some adjustments, a successful mode was developed. Whirlpool called this “Sabbath Mode” and was awarded a patent in 1998 for this concept.

STAR-K kosher certification on appliances falls into one of two categories:

1. Sabbath Mode Appliances – these are models that have unique software/hardware specifically […]