Jewish dietary taboos

Fasting of "unclean" animals and plants that do not comply with religious beliefs, strict implementation of the meat and milk separation system, and all edible meat must be slaughtered and pre-processed in compliance with religious regulations； However, not all Jews strictly abide by this set of rules. Jewish groups of different denominations and different degrees of secularization have extremely different implementation standards. There are even many secular Jews who do not observe any dietary taboos at all.

The year before last, I was walking around the Jewish Quarter in the Old City of Jerusalem. The sun was beating down at noon, so I turned into a small falafel shop with a blue six-pointed star logo to take shelter. The owner was an orthodox Jew with a big beard. I pointed to the lamb on the menu. When asked if the meat roll could be paired with a cup of yogurt, he quickly waved his hand and said, girl, please don’t embarrass me. The tableware in our store is divided into two cabinets, and the meat that has been filled with milk will never touch the meat. If you really want to drink yogurt, you have to wait an hour after eating the roll before buying it.

Many people's first impression of Jewish dietary taboos is that they do not eat pork. In fact, this set of criteria is much more detailed than what everyone thinks. Animals must meet the two conditions of "parted hooves" and "rumination" at the same time. Although pigs have divided hooves but do not ruminate, they are naturally on the forbidden list. Even rabbits, which everyone thinks are quite "clean", cannot be eaten because they do not have divided hooves. ； The creatures in the water must have fins and scales, so shrimps, crabs, shellfish, and sea cucumbers are not allowed. Even in the early years, eels were classified as forbidden foods for a long time because their scales were so small and difficult to distinguish. ； As for birds, the Torah lists dozens of forbidden species, most of which are birds of prey and scavenging birds. Commonly eaten chickens, ducks, and geese are all within the allowed range. There are also many controversies here. For example, in recent years, some enlightened rabbis have proposed that artificially cultured crayfish have no scavenging problems and whether the standards can be relaxed. However, the orthodox faction does not agree with this statement at all, and the two sides have argued for many years with no results.

Even animals that meet the criteria cannot be killed casually and eaten. They must be "ceremonial slaughtered (Shechita)" by a certified butcher (Shochet) who has undergone rigorous training. The animal's trachea and esophagus must be cut off with an extremely sharp knife to minimize the animal's pain, and the blood in the meat must be completely drained. Judaism believes that blood is the carrier of life and must not be eaten. Therefore, the slaughtered meat must be soaked in salt for more than an hour to drain out all the remaining blood. In recent years, animal protection organizations have been protesting that this method of slaughter is not humane enough, saying that not stunning the animals in advance will cause more pain. However, the Jewish community also has its own basis: studies have shown that the knives of ritual slaughter are sharp enough, and the animals lose consciousness faster than the electric shock of industrial slaughter. On the contrary, it is a more humane method. Both sides hold different opinions, and there is no consensus yet.

Many people don’t know that the strictness of meat and milk separation goes far beyond “not eating at the same time”. The kitchens of Orthodox Jewish families often have two completely separate sets of kitchen utensils, cutlery, and even dishcloths and cleaning sponges. There are also completely separate storage areas for meat and dairy products in the refrigerator. You have to wait 6 hours after eating meat before eating dairy products. On the other hand, you only need to wait half an hour after eating dairy products before you can eat meat. I went to Israel before. I was visiting a local conservative friend's house. When I first walked in, I saw that their kitchen had two sinks and two dishwashers. At first I thought it was because there were four children in the house and they couldn't use them. Later I learned that one was all for meat-related tableware, and the other was only for dairy products. Even the children's food bowls were divided according to this standard. It really opened my eyes.

But don’t think that all Jews abide by these rules. I met a Jewish guy in Shanghai who is a cross-border e-commerce business two years ago. He is originally from Poland and is a completely secular Jew. He eats crayfish more deliciously than me. He also eats bacon burgers regularly. He said that only when he goes to his grandpa’s house to eat on Yom Kippur every year, he will pretend to abide by the rules to make the old man happy. Generally speaking, Orthodox people (also known as Haredi) strictly enforce all kosher rules. Even packaged foods purchased from outside must be purchased from those with a kosher certification mark. ； Conservatives will be slightly more relaxed. For example, if there is no kosher restaurant when dining out, you can also eat ordinary meals without pork or shellfish. ； Reform and secular Jews basically have no relevant restrictions. Whether or not to comply depends entirely on personal wishes.

Speaking of which, this set of dietary taboos that have been passed down for thousands of years is no longer just a simple religious requirement. For many people who abide by it, it is more of a symbol of cultural identity, just like in some places we must eat dumplings during the New Year and mooncakes during the Mid-Autumn Festival. It is not an iron rule that must be adhered to, but more like a small habit engraved in life and bound to ethnic identity.