Kashrut and common sense
Start here.
Not only does all that inspecting and washing of fruits and vegetables take forever, it also ruins the flavor and/or forces us to waste food in a way that would have scandalized some of our ancestors. (Me to my late grandmother: "I've looked all over New York, and I can't find rice knishes anywhere. Why are you the only person I know who makes rice knishes?" Grandmom: "We were poor, and rice was cheaper than potatoes.")
I've gone back to eating lettuce because we need more greens in our diet to stay healthy, and I've gone back to eating fresh strawberries because they taste much better than the frozen ones. I refuse to give up eating vegetables and fruits that are both delicious and good for me just because inspecting and cleaning them takes more time and effort than a person employed full-time (and/or caring for children and/or the elderly) can spare. How could I possibly inspect raspberries one by one when making a fruit salad in the few minutes I have before Shabbat after rushing home from work?
One local rabbi with whom we've studied is of the opinion that you don't eat bugs if you see them, but you needn't go looking for them. That may not be ok with the OK, but it's good enough for me.
Not only does all that inspecting and washing of fruits and vegetables take forever, it also ruins the flavor and/or forces us to waste food in a way that would have scandalized some of our ancestors. (Me to my late grandmother: "I've looked all over New York, and I can't find rice knishes anywhere. Why are you the only person I know who makes rice knishes?" Grandmom: "We were poor, and rice was cheaper than potatoes.")
I've gone back to eating lettuce because we need more greens in our diet to stay healthy, and I've gone back to eating fresh strawberries because they taste much better than the frozen ones. I refuse to give up eating vegetables and fruits that are both delicious and good for me just because inspecting and cleaning them takes more time and effort than a person employed full-time (and/or caring for children and/or the elderly) can spare. How could I possibly inspect raspberries one by one when making a fruit salad in the few minutes I have before Shabbat after rushing home from work?
One local rabbi with whom we've studied is of the opinion that you don't eat bugs if you see them, but you needn't go looking for them. That may not be ok with the OK, but it's good enough for me.
posted by Shira Salamone at 6:49 PM
4 Comments:
I don't know why you make a big deal of this. You will take transportation on Shabbat (a big deal) but make a mountain out of a molehill regarding vegetables. Most modern orthodox jews wash vegetables (because not to is disgusting), and eat them. If you see a bug, you don't eat it because 1) it's not kosher and 2) it's disgusting. But I don't know anyone who pores over each leaf or inspects each raspberry. i'm sure there are, and there certainly are in the more right wing communities, but I'd be more concerned about shabbat than bugs.
You do realize the whole bug thing is a plot by ultra-Orthodox men to avoid being made to eat broccoli by their wives.
Anon, it's true that I haven't sworn off traveling on Shabbat--I rarely do it anymore, but when all the local shuls die, well . . .
While it's true that many people in the Orthodox community aren't fanatics about bug inspection, it's equally true that the OU and the OK are serving *someone* with their charts and videos about produce-checking.
Reform BT, you're another wiseguy heard from. :)
OU is in the business of providing inspection. There is a glut of Rabbis educated in NYC by various Yeshivot. We now have full time lettuce inspectors.
I don't know anyone that uses a lightbox at home.
I wash my fruits and vegetables because I don't want E.Coli nor bugs. If something is infested, a quick vinegar wash gets it off. Use your eyes, wash your fruits and vegetables.
Post a Comment
<< Home