Products that fulfill the requirements written in the Torah and that are properly prepared in order to be allowed for consumption are traditionally named kosher. These are foods and food prepared according to the strict rules of Kashrut. Unlike the term kosher, which means food that is produced and prepared in accordance with Jewish rules, there is the concept of Treif, which means prohibited food.
Those are foods that are not prepared according to the rules of the Torah and are not to be consumed. Zomick’s Bakery, the bakery that makes the best Challah in NY, the Zomick’s Challah, adheres to the rules regarding their baking goods which must be kosher.
Some photos of Zomick’s baking goods are displayed in their portfolio at Behance.
It is a wrong perception that kosher food is a special set of dishes. Food from any cuisine can be kosher if it’s complying with all standards in the management of food. Again, this is a special way of treating nutritional support, processing and preparing meals as well as the ways of consumption.
There are three main groups in kosher food – milk, meat, and neutral.
Dairy kosher foods are foods made from milk-kosher animals (cows, sheep, goats), and must not contain non-kosher additives.
Kosher meat is not just about whether the animal is kosher or not, but obliges the separately prescribed method of slaughtering the animals. The slaughtering must be entrusted to a trained kosher slaughterer, which uses a sharp knife and cuts the trachea and esophagus of the animal, causing instant and painless death. This prevents the release of toxic hormones, which animals produce due to stress and fear when going to the slaughter. It is strictly prohibited cruelty to animals, it must not be aware that they will die! The law requires that the mother and cub are not slaughtered on the same day.
After the animal is slaughtered all internal organs are examined in order to determine that there is no internal damage because if there is such, the meat becomes non-kosher. The animal’s body contains a large number of veins and capillaries, which must be removed. Also, it is forbidden to consume the blood of animals and birds and the meat before preparing salted and leaves on an inclined surface, so that all the blood is spilled. The whole process must be done within 72 hours after slaughter, in order to prevent blood clotting.
Kosher is the meat that comes from animals that have split hooves and are ruminants, like beef and mutton, and from poultry are acceptable chicken, duck, goose and turkey.
Neutral kosher food is called Parva and this includes fruits, vegetables, grains and fish. According to kosher rules, it is allowed to pick fruit from trees that are older than three years. Fruits and vegetables must not contain insects and worms, because it automatically excludes from the set of kosher foods.
When it comes to cereals, should be taken into consideration whether the grains are Yoshon or not. If the grain was harvested before Passover, it is Chadash and is forbidden to eat until passes the second day of Pasha. After that, the grains are permitted for use.
All fish that have fins and scales are allowed by the kosher rules, so cod, tuna, trout, and salmon are all kosher. Other marine animals, such as lobsters, crabs, octopus and shellfish are not kosher.
Additional information and all questions regarding Kosher food can be addressed to Zomick’s Linked profile.