Chapter 7:

What Food Is Kosher for Pesach?

Chapter 7:

What Food Is Kosher for Pesach?

  1. Kosher for Pesach Food Opened/Used during the Year
  2. If you have an opened food item containing only kosher for Pesach ingredients, and you would like to use it for Pesach, whether you can use it or not would depend on the way the food container has been exposed.
  3. If the open container is likely to have had direct contact with chametz so that chametz became mixed into the product, or it had contact with very hot steam or other heat used with chametz, one should purchase a replacement to use for Pesach. This situation most frequently arises with condiments and spices. For example, you might know that you held a spice or sugar container over the visible steam of very hot oatmeal or pasta.1
  4. However, with most opened items in the average kitchen, this scenario does not occur.2 If you have no reason to believe that chametz fell into or came into direct ‘hot contact’ with the item, then you may assume that it didn’t, and the item may be used on Pesach.3

Food You Can Buy from the Supermarket

  1. If a person lives in a city where it is easy to buy a variety of foods that are certified kosher for Pesach, a person should purchase that food.
  2. Many people do not have that luxury (such is the case in Center City Philadelphia), and they find it difficult to obtain food with kosher for Pesach certification. If necessary, one has the option of purchasing certain food items that are not certified kosher for Pesach.
  3. The general rule is: You can determine the kosher for Pesach food status of a packaged food item by carefully reading all the ingredients on the package.4
  4. If an FDA-regulated food item has ingredients that:
  5. DO NOT include anything non-kosher
  6. DO NOT include anything derived from the 5 grains (wheat, barley, spelt, oats, and rye)
  7. DO NOT include any major items (>50%) derived from kitniyot (rice or beans/lentils, discussed below),
  8. AND the item is NOT a wine or a hard cheese product,

THEN that food item is kosher for Pesach even without special Pesach certification (and even without regular kosher certification.)

  1. One must be extremely careful when relying on ingredients listed on a package to make sure they do not include any non-kosher ingredients or any of the 5 grains. UNLESS YOU ARE CERTAIN THAT EVERY INGREDIENT IN A FOOD ITEM IS BOTH KOSHER AND KOSHER FOR PESACH, THE ITEM SHOULD BE CONSIDERED FORBIDDEN ON PESACH.
  2. If the package of an otherwise acceptable product states that it “may contain” or “is produced in a facility that processes” any of the 5 grains, this would not affect its kosher for Pesach status.5
  3. If you have a question about whether a product has any chametz ingredients, you may take a photo of the ingredients label and send it via email to me at rabbiehirsch@gmail.com, and I will try to respond with a definite answer as quickly as possible.

Rules Regarding Some Specific Packaged Food Items

  1. Matzah and matzah meal require special Pesach certification/supervision.6
  2. Alcohol in your liquor cabinet: Beer, vodka, scotch, bourbon, and gin are assumed to be chametz. Rum, Tequila, and (kosher) brandy are not made from the 5 grains and are kosher for Pesach (assuming there are no non-kosher ingredients added, which is usually the case.)
  3. Kosher Wine is permissible without a Pesach hechsher.
  4. Vinegar: In the U.S., vinegar used in food products is generally made from non–five-grain sources (such as corn or fruit) and is usually acceptable for Pesach. However, it’s best to call the manufacturer to confirm that it is not derived from wheat. 100% apple cider vinegar is considered kosher for Pesach.7
  5. One may purchase instant coffee or tea bags that do not have any non-kosher or non-kosher for Pesach ingredients. One need not be concerned about de-foaming agents and the like since they are insignificant in taste and in substance (and are almost always derived from non-chametz ingredients anyway.)
  6. Eggs, milk or dairy products (such as kosher cheeses, whipped cream and ice creams and yogurts not containing ingredients from the 5 grains) may be purchased on Pesach and one need not be concerned about traces of chametz in the product or that consuming these products could be considered as deriving benefit from chametz.8
  7. One may purchase kosher fresh fish, chicken, or meat/beef at a supermarket that is not specifically kosher for Pesach, preferably before Pesach. One may purchase or use frozen/packaged kosher fish, chicken, or meat/beef without Pesach supervision.9
  8. Fresh, frozen and canned fruits and vegetables with no problematic ingredients added are kosher for Pesach.10
  9. Bottled water, juices and soft drinks generally do not require special Pesach certification because they usually do not contain any non-kosher ingredients or ingredients from the 5 grains. Corn syrup or other sugar substitutes are permissible.11
  10. 100% spices, cocoa, salt, sugar, and sweeteners are kosher for Pesach if no 5 grains ingredients are listed12
  11. Dried fruits and nuts are kosher for Pesach if no 5 grains ingredients are listed.
  12. Chocolate and candy products not containing ingredients from the 5 grains are usually kosher for Pesach.13
  13. Nut butters,14 jams, preserves, and jellies are kosher for Pesach if they do not contain chametz ingredients.
  14. Meat substitutes are sometimes made from wheat, so one must be very careful regarding these items.
  15. Most breakfast cereals contain chametz and are not kosher for Pesach.
  16. Gluten free products are NOT automatically considered to be chametz free.
  17. Artificial and natural flavors and colors, gelatin, and carmine are not considered to be non-kosher ingredients.15
  18. Yeast Extract: Must be verified to ensure it is not derived from wheat. If confirmed to be from a non-wheat source, it is acceptable for Pesach.

Eating at a Restaurant, Coffee Shop, or Other Food Establishment

  1. One should preferably not drink coffee and the like at a coffee shop (like Starbucks) or eat other food at a restaurant or other food establishment, even if all the ingredients are kosher for Pesach, because it is very difficult to ensure that a small amount of actual chametz or chametz taste from a utensil does not become mixed into the food.
  2. When eating and drinking at a coffee shop, restaurant, or other food establishment, one should preferably eat only packaged food items with no problematic ingredients and that was not packaged on Pesach (i.e., commercially packaged food and not packaged in-store.) One may use the utensils at an establishment for cold food items.16


Notes

  1. Even though you are unsure if the chametz or chametz taste entered the product, it is proper nonetheless to be stringent because of the principle of ‘rov’ (i.e. in most situations the chametz could be present in the food item.)

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  2. Or if it does occur, the steam would not be hot enough to transfer taste to the condiment container. Plus, there are other possible factors present such as: the taste is now pagum (spoiled), or was batel (nullified), or non-absorbent etc. Thus, for most typical situations where one is unsure about an opened product’s status, the item would be permissible to eat on Pesach because the case would be at least a safek sefeika (a “double doubt.”) See Taz, Chavot Yair, S”A HaRav, Chayei Adam, Pri Chadash in OC 467. Cf. Rama OC 467:2, however, see Nachalat Yehoshua OC 16 who explains that the Rama agrees with these opinions as well.

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  3. In addition to the Sefeikot mentioned above, several Poskim taught me that one may use the principle of ‘rov’ (majority) regarding personal evaluation of circumstances. Also see Chazon Ish OC 119:12.

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  4. This is an extremely complicated topic, and a footnote is hardly enough to address it. However, a few short points are in order: (1) One reason we can trust that all the ingredients and labels on food items are accurate is based on the halachic principle of -לא מרע נפשיה - an עכו"ם is halachically believed if lying would be detrimental to their interests. Accordingly, there are many serious consequences to a food business if they provide materially false labeling information to consumers (see S”A OC 20:1, Igrot Moshe YD 1:47-48.) (2) Another factor is that they have no incentive to lie about a non-kosher or a chametz ingredient, per S”A YD 118:10. (3) We are not concerned about a minute amount of chametz in the item, because most processed food products purchased up to Chol Hamoed Pesach are usually produced before Pesach when a minute amount would be nullified, and it is a safek d’rabbanan she-ei efshar l’varer in any event. (See S”A & Rama OC 447:4.) (4) We are not concerned about the equipment at the very least because of “stam keleihem ainam bnei yoman” (S”A YD 122:6), and in addition to the safek sefeika of the S”A, there are many other sefeikot such as: (a) many food items are produced on dedicated equipment, (b) the equipment was sanitized, (c) it was not used for non-kosher food, (d) it did not absorb taste, (e) any taste first went into a different food product as per YD 96:4 etc. Also see S”A OC 447:10, Chazon Ish OC 119:12,14, Yabia Omer OC 8:43:1 & 10:35:18 etc and notes above regarding countertops.

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  5. This is permissible because even if a morsel got mixed in, it would be nullified 1/60 before Pesach and thus halachically nonexistent and permissible to consume on Pesach. See S”A & Rama OC 447:4. There is no concern here of ‘bitul issur l’chatchila’ (the prohibition against intentionally nullifying a prohibited item in a mixture) as per S”A YD 99:6, Shach YD 84:29, Taz YD 138:14 and YD 137:4, Pitchei Teshuvah YD 99:4, Igrot Moshe YD 1:62-64, YD 2:41 and many other sources.

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  6. This is because one cannot assume that matzah products were produced under proper conditions to prevent them from becoming chametz.

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  7. In the US, it can currently be assumed that vinegar used as an ingredient in food is made from corn or fruit because it is much less expensive to produce or purchase than 5 grains or wine vinegar.

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  8. Because most of these products would have been produced before Pesach; and even if not, we are not halachically concerned that a minute amount of chametz fell inside the product (for one thing, it is a safek d’rabbanan shei-efshar livarer), and the fact that the animals might have eaten chametz is not considered benefitting from chametz. See Igrot Moshe OC 1:147.

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  9. It is recommended to inspect and rinse these items off before preparing them because of concern of a minute amount of chametz that may be present.

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  10. Some fresh fruits/vegetables must be properly cleaned because of concerns of tolaim (insects.) See below chapter 10.

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  11. They are either not considered kitniyot or they are batel b’rov (nullified in the majority.) See chapter 9 below.

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  12. Other than mustard seeds, poppy seeds, or sesame seeds for Ashkenazim, which are kitniyot. See chapter 9 below.

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  13. See chapter 9 below regarding peanuts, soy, and other legume ingredients.

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  14. See chapter 9 below regarding peanut butter.

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  15. This is because they are chemically changed (nishtaneh ligamrei - see note to “syrups” below Chapter 9), are usually inedible by themselves (yaveish k’eitz - see Shu”t Achiezer 3:3:5), are batel b’rov, b’shisha, or b’shishim even though they are “nikar haissur” (such as davar hamaamid, chazita, avidi l’taama) because of “zeh v’zeh goreim”(the flavor or color is also caused by permissible sources, nullifying the prohibited item – YD 142:11) and/or “trei d’rabanan” (i.e. the principle that two rabbinical injunctions cannot be combined to prohibit a food - See Igrot Moshe YD 1:62-64 and YD 2:32.) Also see S”A OC 160:11.

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  16. MB 451:16, 450:27, Rama YD 121:5.

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