Kosher

For the devout Jew all of life is dedicated to God and there are a strict set of rules to follow. This is true for food, Jews are allowed to eat certain foods known as kosher. Forbidden foods are known as treyfah.

"These are the animals which you are permitted to eat ... anything which has a completely split hoof and chews the cud, this you may eat ..."

(Leviticus 11:2-3)

All plants are kosher, but not all animals, birds or fish. Animals must not only fit the criteria in Leviticus but must also be killed in a special manner and have all the blood removed before the meat can be eaten by Jews.

Kosher animals

There are two things that tell if an animal is kosher. Firstly its hooves are completely parted at the bottom to form two horny pads, and secondly if it chews the cud. Cows, sheep, goats and deer are the common animals that have both these features and so these are kosher. Pigs, whilst they do have split hooves do not chew the cud are so are not kosher, likewise camels while they chew the cud only have partially split hooves and so are also not kosher.

Cow/Sheep	Camel	Horse
Split hoof	Partially split hoof	Non split hoof

Kosher Poultry

There are no ways to recognise kosher birds. The bible gives a long list of birds that are not kosher. The Jews could thus eat any bird that is not on this list but in practice most only eat chicken, turkey and duck. Even these may be declared treyfah if they have defective internal organs.

Lev. 11:13-19: "These you shall regard as detestable among the birds. They shall not be eaten; they are an abomination: the eagle, the vulture, the osprey, the buzzard, the kite of any kind; every raven of any kind; the ostrich, the nighthawk, the sea gull, the hawk of any kind; the little owl, the cormorant, the great owl, the water hen, the desert owl, the carrion vulture, the stork, the heron of any kind, the hoopoe, and the bat."

Killing animals and birds (Shechitah)

Jews may only eat animals and birds that have been killed by Shechitah. Shechitah is killing the animals by slitting the throat with a very sharp knife. This has been shown to be painless to the animals, as causing pain to living things is against Jewish law. The theory is that the shape knife cuts the carotid so that the animal loses consciousness before they are able to feel pain. By the time it is possible for the animal to feel pain it is already dead. The animal must then have all the bood drained from them.

All Vegetables and fruit are kosher, but they must be carefully checked for non-kosher foods like insects.

All dairy products are kosher (Must be bloodless), but it must be checked that the product does not contain any meat based products (for example many cheeses contain rennet which is made from the stomach of pigs or cows and thus breaks two of the kosher rules (i) that meat and diary must be separate and (ii) that products from the pig are treyfah). Also the kosher Jew must to sure that the milk is only from kosher animals (some farmers made a practice of topping up cow's milk with pig's milk - this would make the milk treyfah)

All shellfish is treyfah

Keeping a kosher kitchen

Based on the verse "You must not cook a young goat in its mother's milk" (Exodus 23:19 et al), Jews who keep kosher kitchens do not eat meat and dairy foods together. Separate sets of crockery, cutlery and cooking utensils are used, and in an orthodox home these will be cleaned in separate sinks and kept in separate cupboards. Often to help they will be different colours. After eating meat strict Jews will wait several hours before eating dairy products.

Foods which contain neither meat nor milk, fruit and vegetables, may be eaten with either meat or vegetables. These foods are known as parev or parve.

Buying kosher foods may cause problems for Jews who live outside of large communities. Food which is kosher will often carry a label known as a hechsher most of the large supermarkets will now carry a range of kosher foods, but for some Jews a trip to London or Nottingham to stock up is the only 'safe" way for them to shop.