Kosher Standard for Food or What is Kosher Food?

Kosher Standard for Food or What is Kosher Food?

The word kosher indicates something proper and acceptable to eat. As per Jewish law, there are some dietary guidelines and any food must follow these rules to be considered Kosher. These guidelines are called standard of Kosher and any food or food business follows that known as Kosher food.

• Meat and dairy products can’t be mixed. From the preparation to consumption, the process must be different. Meat and dairy products can’t be eaten together and utensils to prepare should be separate too.
• Not every meat is eatable and as per Jewish law, the meat is only Kosher if it comes from a permitted species like chicken or beef, but not pork. Meat must come from an animal that has split hooves or cloven such as sheep, lambs, goats, cows, and deer. Birds like turkey, geese, chicken, dove, and quail are also allowed to eat.
• Any animal must be butchered by the laws of Jewish slaughter. The product derived from meat like broth, gravy, and bones can be eaten but before cooking and eating and the blood must be completely drained out from the meat.
• Dairy product which comes from Kosher animals such as milk, cheese, butter, and yogurt can be eaten. And the dairy product should never be mixed with meat products in any form.
• All dairy products must be prepared by using Kosher utensils and equipment only.
• All types of cheese can’t be eaten as few are mixed with meat-based byproducts such as gelatin or other enzymes.
•  As per Kosher standards, fish, and eggs are considered as pareve food and can be cooked and eaten alongside meat or dairy products.
• Any fish which has fins and scales can be eaten such as tuna, mackerel salmon. And all the eggs from only Kosher birds are also considered Kosher.
• Fresh fruits and vegetables are also Kosher food but before consumption, washing is advisable to avoid any insects on it.
• Canned or frozen food is only considered Kosher if it was processed using Kosher equipment and if all the ingredients used for preservatives were Kosher too.
• Grains and flour are considered Kosher and but not all bread made by Kosher flour are eatable as they use some other ingredients like oil and enzymes during the baking process. As per norms, during the baking, all ingredients and equipment should be Kosher and then only the bread can be certified as Kosher.
• All seeds and nuts are Kosher if they are consumed directly. If they are processed like salted nuts or mix with some flavor then must be Kosher certified. Directly extracted oil from any seed or nut is considered Kosher. The process of adding any preservatives in the oil to increase shelf life must go through with Kosher standards.