guidelines and a handy chart.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\nIn His infinite wisdom, Hashem Yisborach has spiritually elevated the mundane activity of eating and has vested it with special sanctity (kedusha)<\/em>. The food we eat must be kosher, the table upon which we eat our meals represents the holy altar (the mizbe’ach<\/em>). Similarly, the vessels and utensils (keilim) <\/i>used for preparing food and for dining must be given special holiness. When these dishes and\/or utensils have been previously owned by an aino Yehudi<\/i>, we have to immerse these keilim<\/em> in a mikvah<\/em> before their first use.<\/p>\n\n\n\nKeilim<\/em> (vessels\/utensils) can be categorized into three halachic<\/em> groupings: <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n- utensils requiring tevila<\/em> (immersion) with a bracha <\/li>\n\n\n\n
- utensils requiring tevila<\/em> without a bracha <\/li>\n\n\n\n
- utensils not requiring tevila<\/em> at all <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
Utensils require tevila<\/em> with a bracha when they have direct <\/em>contact with food during preparation or meal time, and when they are made either from metal <\/em>\u2013 such as aluminum, brass, copper, gold, iron, lead, silver, silverplate, steel or tin \u2013 or glass <\/em>\u2013 such as Pyrex, Duralex or Corelle. (Corelle, a form of glass, should not be confused with CorningWare, a form of earthenware, which will be discussed later below.)<\/p>\n\n\n\nUtensils do not require tevila<\/em>, even if they come into direct contact with food during preparation or meal time, if they are made from bone, non-glazed earthenware (e.g., a flower pot with a dull finish), paper, plastic, stone, Styrofoam or wood. Other items not requiring tevila<\/em> include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
\n- Utensils made from metal or glass whose intended purpose is not for food usage (e.g., an arts and crafts knife). Even if the knife was to be occasionally used for food preparation, tevila<\/em> would not be required.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Metal or glass utensils that do not come into direct contact with the food (e.g., the metal shell of a removable crockpot, can opener, or cork screw).<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Utensils which are made by a Jewish craftsman (observant or non-observant) who owns his company or business and are sold directly to a Jewish customer.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Empty metal cans that previously held food (e.g., canned vegetables), can be used for cooking food without tevila<\/em>. One does not have to immerse the can, because the Yehudi who opened the can to remove the original contents has now created a “new” utensil.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Storage utensils that are not brought to the table (e.g., glass spaghetti\/pasta sauce containers or ceramic cookie jars).<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Food sold in glass jars (e.g., mayonnaise or fruit juice). When emptied, the glass jar does not require tevila<\/em> before using, due to the fact that it is secondary to its contents. If a deposit is required on the bottle, the glass has individuality in its own right and would require tevila<\/em> before reuse. In the event that the jar or the bottle is fancy and important in its own right, tevila<\/em> would be required. A competent halachic<\/em> authority should determine whether or not a bracha is required prior to tevila<\/em>. <\/li>\n\n\n\n
- One should not assume that Jewish merchants immerse the jars or fancy trays that they use to package loose or bulk food items.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Utensils used exclusively with raw, non-edible food (e.g., cookie cutters or a metal tenderizer hammer) do not need tevila<\/em>. <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n
As noted above, utensils require tevila<\/em> without a bracha when the dishes or vessels are made from glazed china, bone china, stoneware, CorningWare or porcelain enamel. Other vessels requiring tevila<\/em> without a bracha include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n- Utensils made from a combination of materials (e.g., metal pots coated with Teflon or enamel).<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Utensils used for raw ingredients but which could also be used for edible foods (e.g., the beater used in a mixer)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Metal utensils used for food storage that remain in the kitchen or pantry and are not brought to the table (e.g., metal flour or sugar canisters).<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Disposable aluminum pans and containers used for cooking and baking require tevila<\/em> with a bracha if they are to be used more than once. If they are to be discarded after one use, a competent Rabbinic authority should be consulted. <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n