TOPIC

ב”ה

KOSHER — MEAT AND MILK

KOSHER — MEAT AND

MILK

2

ב”הKOSHER — MEAT AND MILK

Where in the Torah does it prohibit eating milk and meat together? How is it derived?

After eating meat, how long must you wait until eating dairy, and how long after dairy can you eat meat? Why are these waiting periods so different?

Why do people who keep kosher have two sets of dishes?

What is the reason for this mitzvah?

What do meat and milk signify according to Kabbalah?

S E C T ION 1 - TA L M U DIC BAC KG R O U N D

The prohibition against eating milk and meat is not stated explicitly in the Torah. Instead it is de-

rived from a phrase repeated across the Torah in identical form three times, “You shall not cook

a kid in its mother’s milk.” This is understood by all Talmudic sages to include three separate

prohibitions: eating, benefiting from, and cooking.

Text 1שמות פרק כג, יט

ראשית בכורי אדמתך תביא בית ה‘ אלקיך לא תבשל גדי בחלב אמו:שמות פרק לד, כו

ראשית בכורי אדמתך תביא בית ה‘ אלקיך לא תבשל גדי בחלב אמו:דברים פרק יד, כא

לא תאכלו כל נבלה לגר אשר בשעריך תתננה ואכלה או מכר לנכרי כי עם קדוש אתה לה‘ אלקיך לא תבשל גדי בחלב אמו:

Shemos 23:19

19. The choicest of the first fruits of your soil

you shall bring to the house of the L-rd, your

G-d. You shall not cook a kid in its mother’s

milk.

Shemos 34:26

26. The choicest of the first fruits of your soil

you shall bring to the house of the L-rd, your

G-d. You shall not cook a kid in its mother’s

milk.”

Devarim 14:21

21. You shall not eat any carcass. You may

give it to the stranger who is in your cities,

that he may eat it, or you may sell it to a

foreigner; for you are a holy people to the

Lord, your G-d. You shall not cook a kid in its

mother’s milk.

What do you think is this verse means, and what would you guess is the reason?

We will soon see how these verses were interpreted by the Oral Tradition.

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ב”ה

Text 2 תלמוד חולין קטו, ב

דבי רבי ישמעאל תנא: ’‘לא תבשל גדי בחלב אמו‘‘ ג‘ פעמים, אחד לאיסור אכילה, ואחד לאיסור הנאה, ואחד לאיסור בשול.

Talmud Chullin 115b

The school of R. Yishmael taught: “You shall not cook a kid in its mother’s milk” is

stated three times: one is a prohibition against eating it, one a prohibition against

deriving benefit from it, and one a prohibition against cooking it.

Text 3 רמבם הלכות מאכלות אסורות, פרק תשיעי

א. בשר בחלב אסור לבשלו ואסור לאכלו מן התורה ואסור בהנאה...

ב. לא שתק הכתוב מלאסור האכילה אלא מפני שאסר הבשול כלומר ואפילו בשולו אסור ואין צריך לומר אכילתו כמו ששתק מלאסור הבת מאחר שאסר בת הבת.

ג. אין אסור מן התורה אלא בשר בהמה טהורה בחלב בהמה טהורה שנאמר לא תבשל גדי בחלב אמו וגדי הוא כולל ולד השור ולד השה ולד העז עד שיפרוט ויאמר גדי עזים

ולא נאמר גדי בחלב אמו אלא שדיבר הכתוב בהווה

אבל בשר בהמה טהורה (שבשלו) בחלב בהמה טמאה או בשר בהמה טמאה (שבשלו) בשר משום אכילתו על חייבין ואין בהנייה ומותרת לבשל מותר טהורה בהמה בחלב

בחלב.

Maimonides Laws of Forbidden Foods, Ch. 9

1. It is forbidden to cook meat and milk together and to partake of them according

to Torah law. It is forbidden to benefit from [such a mixture]…

2. The Torah does not explicitly forbid eating [meat and milk together] only be-

cause it forbade cooking them. This is as if to say: if even cooking is forbidden,

how much more so eating it. [To cite a parallel:] The Torah did not mention the

prohibition against relations with one’s daughter, because it forbade those with the

daughter of one’s daughter.

KOSHER — MEAT AND

MILK

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ב”ה

3. According to Torah law, the prohibition

involves only [a mixture of] meat from a ko-

sher domesticated animal and milk from a

kosher domesticated animal, as implied by

the verse: “Do not cook a kid in its mother’s

milk.” The term “a kid,” גדי, includes the off-

spring of an ox, sheep, and goat unless the

verse states explicitly, ‘a goat-kid,’ גדי עיזים.

The term “a kid in its mother’s milk” [does

not permit meat with other types of milk],

instead, the Torah is just giving a common-

place circumstance.

With regard to the meat of a kosher animal

which was cooked in the milk of a non-ko-

sher animal or the meat of a non-kosher

animal which was cooked in the milk of a ko-

sher animal, by contrast, cooking is permit-

ted, and deriving benefit is permitted. One is

not liable for [transgressing the prohibition

against partaking of] meat and milk if one

partakes of it (although obviously they are

forbidden simply since they are not kosher

in and of themselves).

The Rambam argues that once the Torah forbids cooking, and there are two extra identical verses, it is obvious that they are coming to forbid eating and benefiting too which are more basic than cooking. After all, there are many other foods prohibited to eat (like un-slaughtered meat, pork, shrimp) which a Jew can still cook for a non-Jew.

Why does the Torah talk specifically about a baby goat and its mother’s milk? According to Rambam, it is merely choosing the most practical case: if you own a young goat, chances are you own its mother too, which gives milk.

Another interesting point: this unique prohibition against even cooking only

applies to meat and milk that are both from a kosher animal. While you cannot eat ham with cheese because the ham is not kosher, there is no prohibition against cooking them together.

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ב”ה

Text 4תלמוד חולין קה, א

אמר רב חסדא: אכל בשר, אסור לאכול גבינה. גבינה, מותר לאכול בשר.

אמר ליה רב אחא בר יוסף לרב חסדא: בשר שבין השינים מהו? קרי עליה, (במדבר יא, לג) ’‘הבשר עודנו בין שיניהם‘‘.

אמר מר עוקבא: אנא להא מלתא חלא בר חמרא לגבי אבא. דאילו אבא, כי הוה אכיל בשרא האידנא, לא הוה אכל גבינה עד למחר עד השתא. ואילו אנא, בהא סעודתא הוא

דלא אכילנא, לסעודתא אחריתא, אכילנא.

Talmud Chullin

Rav Chisda stated: One who ate meat

is forbidden to eat cheese. One who ate

cheese may eat meat.

R. Acha b. Yoseph asked R. Chisda: What

about the flesh that is between the teeth?

(Is it considered meat, and must it be re-

moved before one eats cheese, or is it in-

significant?) He quoted [in reply] the verse

(Bamidbar 11:33): “While the flesh was yet

between their teeth.” (This shows that it is

still called “meat” and must be removed.)

Mar Ukva said: In this manner I resemble

‘vinegar the son of wine’ when compared

to my father. Father would wait twenty-

four hours after eating meat, before par-

taking of cheese. But I, although I would

not eat cheese in the same meal as meat, I

would eat [cheese] in the next meal.

This Talmudic passage states that while you must wait after eating meat, you do not have to wait after eating cheese.

Later, in sources 8 and 10, we will see that we, too, follow the example of Mar Ukva who waited the time period between meals, and we will define exactly how long that is.

Also, since meat between the teeth is still called meat, even if one chews meat to soften for a baby and doesn’t swallow it, he still must wait.

Summary: The Torah writes three times, “You shall not cook a kid in its mother’s

milk.” The Talmud, and all later commentaries, define this as a threefold prohibi-

tion: not to eat, not to cook, and not to benefit. They also understand that this is not

limited to a baby and its mother’s milk, nor is it limited to a goat; rather it includes

all domestic kosher animals. The Talmud also adds that one must wait a period of

time after eating meat, “until the next meal.”

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MILK

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ב”ה

S E C T ION 2 - C ODE OF J E W I S H L AW

This is a basic guide to keeping the mitzvah of not mixing milk and meat.

Text 5 קיצור שולחן ערוך סימן מו, סעיף ה‘-י‘‘א

ה. בשר בחלב אסור באכילה ובבשול ובהנאה, ולכן אם נאסר איזה דבר מתערבת בשר בחלב, צריכין לעשות שאלה מה לעשות בו...

Kitzur Shulchan Aruch Chapter 46, Laws 5-11

5. Meat and milk together are prohib-

ited to eat, cook, and benefit from.

Therefore, if anything (i.e., a pot, dish,

or food) becomes forbidden because of

a mixture of milk and meat, a rabbi must

be consulted.

Even if a pot is clean, if meat was cooked in it previously, it is deemed “fleishig” or a “meaty pot” since pots, pans, and dishes absorb their contents to some extent when heat is applied.

Text 6על לאכל להם אסור זה, על זה מקפידים הם אפלו זה, את זה המכירים ישראלים שני שלחן אחד זה בשר וזה מאכל חלב, עד שיעשו איזה הכר, כגון, שיאכל כל אחד על מפה

שלו, או שיניחו על השלחן בין המאכלים איזה דבר שאין דרכו להיות שם.

ויהיו זהירים שלא לשתות מכלי אחד, מפני שהמאכל נדבק בכלי.

Kitzur Shulchan Aruch

6. Two Jews who know each other, even

if they are not friends, should not eat

at the same table if one is eating meat

and the other dairy (because they may

come to share food), unless they make

a distinction - e.g., each will eat on his

own placemat, or if they place an unu-

sual article on the table (as a separator)

between the food.

They should also take care not to drink

from the same cup because (bits of)

food may become stuck to the contain-

er.

An interesting side point from this law: we suspect that two Jews, even if they don’t consider themselves friends, will come to share their food with each other, since Jews share! They therefore need a physical reminder to separate them.

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Text 7ח. נוהגין לרשם את הסכין המיחד למאכלי חלב, וכן כל כלי חלב שלא יבאו לידי חלוף.

Kitzur Shulchan Aruch

8. It is customary to mark the knives

used for milk products and, similarly,

other utensils used for dairy, so they do

not get interchanged (with those used

for meat).

Even a knife can become meat or dairy. A kosher home requires two sets of dishes.

Text 8ט. אכל בשר או אפלו רק תבשיל של בשר, לא יאכל מאכלי חלב עד שישהה שש שעות. בין בשר מצא אם כשעור, ששהה פי על- ואף- להמתין. כן גם צריך לתינוק, והלועס דהינו וידיחו, פיו את יקנח רק כך, אחר להמתין צריך אינו אבל להסירו. צריך השנים,

שיאכל מעט פת ויקנח בו פיו, וגם מדיחו במים או בשאר משקה.

9. One who ate meat, or even just a food

cooked with meat derivatives, should

not eat dairy products until six hours

have passed.

One who chews (meat) for a baby (with-

out swallowing) must also wait. Even af-

ter this period, if (you still feel particles

of) meat between your teeth, you must

remove them before dairy can be eat-

en. However, one doesn’t need to wait

(any longer) afterwards, just clean the

mouth and rinse it. This can be done by

eating some bread to clean the mouth,

and washing it down with water or any

other beverage.

The reason you must wait after meat is because meat is fatty, and the taste may linger in one’s mouth for a long time. With the passing of six hours, however, the taste dissipates.

The Talmud told us (source 4 above) that Mar Ukva would wait, after eating meat, until his next meal before eating dairy products. Most commentaries understand this to mean that he would wait six hours, as written here. In those days they ate only two meals a day, and this was the average amount of time between the morning meal and the evening meal.

There are minority opinions that hold that it’s sufficient to wait one hour or three hours. If one belongs to a community that follows those opinions (German and Dutch), he may rely on those leniencies. Otherwise, one should wait a full six hours.

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MILK

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Text 9י. אם לא היה בתבשיל לא בשר ולא שמן של בשר, אלא שנתבשל בקדרה של בשר, אפלו

לא היתה מודחת יפה, מתר לאכל אחריו [מאכלי] חלב.

Kitzur Shulchan Aruch

10. If you did not eat meat, but your

food was cooked in a “fleishig pot” i.e.

a pot used for meat, even if the pot was

not thoroughly clean, you may eat dairy

afterwards (without waiting. Similarly,

after eating meat, one may eat food that

has been cooked in a dairy pot.).

Although a pot may have been deemed “fleishig” or “meaty” since it was used to cook meat in the past, if you cook in it a “parve” or “neutral” food, you do not have to wait six hours.

Text 10יא. אכל גבינה, מתר לאכול אחריה בשר מיד בסעודה אחרת, ובלבד שיבדק ידיו אם אין

שום דבר מהגבינה נדבק בהם, או ירחצם במים, וגם ינקר שניו וידיח פיו.

ואם היתה הגבינה קשה, דהינו שהעמדה בקבה, וישנה ששה חדשים או שהיא מתלעת, אם רוצה לאכול אחר כך מאכלי בשר, צריך גם כן להמתין שש שעות.

Kitzur Shulchan Aruch

11. If you ate dairy products, one can eat

meat immediately as part of another

meal, as long as you check your hands

that no cheese is stuck to them, or you

wash them with water, and also rinse

your teeth and mouth.

After eating “hard cheese,” i.e., cheese

that has been aged for six months or is

very strong tasting, you must wait six

hours before eating meat foods.

Although the Talmud (above source 4) and Code of Jewish Law here say that no wait is necessary after dairy, the Zohar states that “one should not eat milk and meat in the same hour.”

For this reason, it is the Chabad custom to refrain from eating meat for a full hour after eating dairy. One who does this need not eat or drink something else in between.

Many other communities have a custom of waiting only a half hour before eating meat. They understand the Zohar to mean a time period, not a literal hour.

Two examples of “hard cheese” are Swiss cheese and Parmesan cheese.

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Text 11עם שאכל פת שיורי השלחן מעל לבער צריך בשר, לאכול ורוצה גבינה שאכל מי יב.

הגבינה. ואסור לאכול גבינה על מפה שאכלו בשר. וכן להפוך.

10. Kitzur Shulchan Aruch

12. If you ate cheese and now want to

eat meat, remove all the bread used

with dairy from the table. It is forbid-

den to eat cheese on the (same) table-

cloth upon which you ate meat, and

vice versa.

Summary: This mitzvah includes cooking and serving meat and milk with the same

pots and dishes. If two people are eating meat and milk at the same table, a separa-

tion should be made at the table to remind us not to share. The Talmudic statement

of Mar Ukva was understood to mean to wait six hours after eating meat. The reason

is because the meat lingers in one’s mouth and stomach, and we do not want to mix

the tastes. Although the Talmud and Code of Jewish Law do not require any wait af-

ter dairy, based on the Zohar, some wait a half hour, or an hour. Some cheeses also

require six hours.

A PROJECT OF: