Sticking to a strict Jewish diet is not always easy, particularly if you live in a state or town without access to fresh Jewish foods. One of the most important differences between the standard US diet and a kosher diet is in the preparation and cooking of meat dishes...

Sticking to a strict Jewish diet is not always easy, particularly if you live in a state or town without access to fresh Jewish foods. One of the most important differences between the standard US diet and a kosher diet is in the preparation and cooking of meat dishes. A strict Jewish diet will set you apart from neighbours and may make it difficult to shop at local stores. This is due to the strict requirements regarding the preparation and eating of meats. In order to understand more about kosher meat, there are some basics that you should know.

Kosher and non-kosher meats

The rules to determine whether a meat is kosher or not applynot only to mammals, but also to fish and birds. In the past, there were also permits for eating some types of 'winged swarming things', or insects, but since there is now disagreement about which types of insect were permitted, most Jewish people tend to avoid eating insects altogether. With mammals, animals which have cloven hooves and that chew their cud may be eaten. The Torah defines this with greater clarity when it describes the hare, the pig, the camel and the rock badger as non-kosher. Cattle, bison, deer, goats and sheep are all permitted.

For birds, there is a list of fowl which are not kosher, although there is debate about why they are forbidden. Birds of prey are definitively listed as non-kosher, while geese, chicken and ducks are allowed. Turkeys may or may not be eaten, depending upon whether the silence of the Torah on this issue is taken as allowing turkey, or forbidding them as not specifically named as Kosher.

Fish may be eaten by those observing strict kosher laws as long as they have scales and fins. This allows common fish such as tuna, salmon and herring to be eaten. Shellfish are not kosher, as they don't meet the requirements of the Torah, and so crabs, lobsters, shrimp, clams, mussels and oysters are not eaten.

Preparation and cooking of meats

In order to ensure that meats are completely kosher, it is necessary to observe rules regarding the slaughtering and cooking of the meat. Mammals and birds must be slaughtered by a shochet, a qualified Jewish slaughterman. The blood must be drained from the body, since the Torah forbids the consumption of blood. The sciatic nerve must be removed, along with connected blood vessels, and many Jewish people do not eat the hindquarters where this nerve lies.

Meat must also be prepared in a certain way, with specific prohibition about using meat and dairy in the same dish. Dairy and poultry dishes are also forbidden. This prohibition also extends to cooking meat in a pot that had previously been used for dairy, and even requiring that there be an extended time period between eating meat, and eating dairy.