The term “kosher” is used in everyday speech even by non-Jews - the influence of good Russian films like “Liquidation” affects it. It should be noted that this word is used by non-Jewish Russians quite correctly: they mean “right” food. Although for Jews, kosher foods are more likely to be eaten, approved by the rabbi.
However, if you ask an ordinary person of a different faith what kosher is, you will most often get the answer that everything except pork. And this will be a very erroneous opinion.
Basic kosher conditions
First of all, kosher products are not only food of the right origin, but also a way of cooking and eating. A categorical condition is separate dishes, sinks and tables for dairy products and any meat. If potentially kosher beef was put in a container where theoretically kosher cheese was lying, it becomes clubs. Moreover, a Jew, eating something dairy, must pause for two hours before meat dishes . And if he had the first meat, then he should wait as long as six hours before eating milk.
Even a kosher product can be considered as a club product if any physical defects are found: deformation of the internal organs of the animal, revealed during cutting, blood clots in the egg.
All potentially kosher foods are naturally grown. That is, there should not be any artificial additives in the fattening of the animal; even if it was sick and he was given antibiotics - it is rejected. Hydroponics and chemical fertilizers when growing vegetables also automatically transfer them to the category of clubs. Such stringent requirements have made kosher products popular among non-Jews: they guarantee the naturalness and quality of food.
Basar: kosher meat
The most stringent rules exist for slaughtered animals. Kosher meat products - derived from ruminant livestock with cloven hooves. Based on these signs, the pig is tufted: its hooves are bifurcated, but it is not herbivorous. For example, the camel has the opposite situation: he chews gum, but has an undifferentiated hoof. However, compliance with these rules is not enough. The animal must be slaughtered very quickly, as humanely as possible, by a special kosher butcher. Blood flows from the animal, and the meat is salted out to kill possible infections. And another feature: kosher meat products - this is only the front of the carcass. The back even from the “right” animal is already considered club.
The situation is no less strict with the bird. In theory, game can also be used, but it must be captured alive and put to death by the rules of the same kosher butcher. Therefore, bird kosher products are mainly turkey, goose, chickens, that is, domesticated bird.
With marine life is even more difficult. Fish with scales and fins are allowed. Partial “scratchiness” is in question: orthodox people don’t even use mirror carp and swordfish. The prohibition on eating predators also applies to fish. And all kinds of mollusks and crustaceans in general cannot be food (in any case, kosher): they have neither fins nor scales.
Freebies: Dairy Products
It is much easier with them. If the animal that produced the milk is “pure,” then the product is considered kosher. That is, camel milk immediately drops out of the list, and goat and cow milk are always welcome. The main thing is that the animal that was milked was healthy and did not have unnatural components in its diet. And, of course, milk should not come into contact with anything club and be poured only into the dishes intended for it - otherwise it becomes defiled and cannot be used as kosher.
Parve: other kosher products
These include everything that is not meat and milk: fruits, cereals, water (and other drinks), vegetables, eggs. However, there are certain conditions:
- fruits and vegetables should not be worms;
- the land on which they were grown should not be fertilized with manure of "unclean" animals and chemical fertilizers;
- the eggs should have a pronounced unevenness of the ends: one is necessarily more round, and the other is pointed. This is because eggs with identical ends are usually carried by predator birds;
- water should not stand open at night. At night, snakes are activated, which can drink from a cup, and a person recovers. It is clear that in many countries there is no such danger, but the Jews still abide by this rule.
Kosher products not in Israel
Jews live all over the world. Accordingly, they should be able to buy the right food. Kosher products in Moscow, for example, can be bought in the ABC of Taste, Auchan and The Seventh Continent, but you will have to wander around and look for the department you need. So knowledgeable Jews go to Pardes near the Jewish Center or to the synagogue on Bolshaya Bronnaya - there is the largest store, and even a kosher restaurant. You can also go to the "Kosher Market" on Trifonovskaya.
Kosher products in Ukraine are becoming more accessible and popular. The list approved by the rabbinate is constantly expanding. In Kiev, for example, you can buy permitted food at the synagogues - near the Brodsky synagogue and the Bleich synagogue (located on Podil). There is another kosher store on Shota Rustaveli Street . And in the supermarket chains “Buffet” and “Silpo” special departments are opened.
To be sure of the correct purchase, look for kosher signs on food. They are the words “Kosher”, the letters “K”, “O” or “OU”. However, these signs are not valid without the mark of the rabbi who controlled the production.