RE

• Kashrut


  The laws relating to keeping a kosher (fit or proper) home in Judaism
• Mitzvot


  Commandments or laws in Judaism, mainly in the Books of Deuteronomy and Leviticus
• Kosher


  Foods permitted by and prepared in accordance with Jewish dietary laws
• Treif (or trefah)


  Foods not permitted in Jewish dietary laws. The word means 'torn'.
• Land animals


  • Must have cloven (split) hooves and must chew the cud
• Seafood


  • Must have fins and scales. Eating shellfish is not allowed.
• Birds


  • Only clean birds, meaning birds that do not eat other animals, can be eaten. Poultry is allowed.
• Meat and dairy


  Cannot be eaten together, as it says in the Torah: 'do not boil a kid in its mother's milk' (Exodus 23:19)
• Shechitah


  The correct method of slaughtering animals for food in Judaism. A sharp knife is used and there must be one cut to the throat of the animal. This can only be practiced by a specially trained person known as a shochet.
• Shochet


  A religious Jew who is licensed and trained to slaughter animals in accordance with kashrut rules.
• Parev


  Neutral foods, that can be eaten with either meat or dairy
• Examples of treif foods


  • Shellfish
  • Pork products
  • Food that has not been slaughtered in the correct way
• Examples of parev foods


  • Vegetables
  • Pasta
  • Rice
• Orthodox Jews


  • Keep all the rules of kashrut. Some even have separate utensils and perhaps fridges for the preparation and storage of meat and dairy products.
• Reform Jews


  • May choose to observe all of the kashrut, or a selection of the laws, or observe kashrut at home but not elsewhere.
• In big cities with large Jewish populations in the UK, there may be kosher supermarkets, shops and restaurants catering for the Jewish communities, often located nearby synagogues
• Even in smaller communities where there are fewer Jewish people, most major supermarkets will have a kosher food section
• Many food manufacturers produce ordinary foods to kosher standards
• Some foods and drinks are labelled 'parev' to show that they contain no meat or dairy
• Some Jews will avoid eating out at dinner parties, non-kosher restaurants and cafes, while others, particularly Reform and Liberal Jews, will be less strict about the rules when eating out or at friends' homes
• Lots of Jews may stick to vegetarian or vegan options when eating out, as all of these foods are parev