About kosher food

Kashrut (‏כַּשְׁרוּת‏‎), is a set of dietary laws dealing with the foods that Jews are permitted to eat and how those foods must be prepared according to Jewish law.

Literally, "kosher" is translated as "suitable". To begin with, let's analyze what kashrut is. Most often, this word is used in combination with "kosher food" — this is the name of food prepared in accordance with the laws of the Jewish tradition. The totality of these laws is called Kashrut in Hebrew. It is based on a number of commandments known from the Torah, and some additional rules established later by Jewish sages.

In total, there are 365 prohibitions that affect all aspects of Jewish life, and most of these prohibitions relate to food. Thus, kashrut is a set of laws that regulate the nutrition of the Jewish people. Another important aspect in kashrut is hygiene. Products should not contain harmful substances, animals should be healthy, dairy and meat products should not only be stored separately, but also be eaten separately.

It is impossible to fit all the laws of Kashrut into the framework of a small text, but we can try to highlight several basic principles of kosher nutrition: 
1. Certain animals are prohibited for food (including their meat, internal organs, eggs and milk).
2. Animals that are allowed for food must be slaughtered in a special way, called shechita.
3. Blood (except fish) is strictly prohibited for consumption. It should all be removed from the meat (with the help of salting, soaking, etc.) before cooking and eating it.
4. Meat and dairy products should not be mixed or used together.
5. Dishes used for meat products should not be used for dairy products, and vice versa. Dishes used for non-kosher products are prohibited.
6. Fruits and vegetables are allowed to be eaten, but they must not contain insects and be spoiled.
7. Grape products (juice, wine, cognac) made without observing certain rules are prohibited for consumption. 

Kosher food must be made from kosher products, in a strictly defined way and only by Jews. All products that do not correspond to the concept of "kosher" are prohibited and harmful to the physical and spiritual health of a person. According to this, the purpose of the laws of Kashrut is to:
• reduce to a minimum the number of animals that can be killed;
• perform the killing of animals in the most painless way;
• cultivate an aversion to shedding blood. 

Cruelty to animals is explicitly prohibited by the Torah. Therefore, hunting for entertainment is also prohibited. It is necessary to kill animals only for food (perhaps also for medical research, etc.). Shechita (slaughter of livestock according to the Torah) is one of the most humane methods of killing an animal. According to the laws of Kashrut, any wounded animal is no longer kosher. Therefore, you should kill animals quickly, with one blow of a knife, to reduce the pain to a minimum. The knife used by shochet (butcher) must be sharp. The animal loses consciousness in a split second. And finally, according to experts of the Torah, the purpose of the laws of Kashrut is that through eating Jews strive for holiness, so that such qualities as self-discipline and the ability to self-restraint are instilled.

Kosher products that match the description of the Torah:
• Meat - beef, lamb, goat meat. You can eat the meat of those animals that are artiodactyls and ruminants. Rodents (hares, rabbits, etc.) are not kosher. The slaughter of animals should take place in a special way. It is conducted only by shochet (butcher). To remove all the blood from the meat, it is soaked in water and sprinkled with salt, which absorbs the last drops of blood. 
• Poultry - chicken, duck, goose, quail, turkey. It is forbidden to eat the meat of birds of prey and birds-scavengers.
• Eggs of only kosher birds are considered kosher.
• Fish - only those that have scales and fins. Red caviar is considered kosher, but black caviar is not included in this list. Conger, catfish, shark, sturgeon are not considered kosher - just like shellfish and crustaceans.
• Milk - only from kosher animals. Another important aspect: according to the Torah, different dishes are used for cooking meat and cooking dairy products (even a different stove), meat and dairy products are stored separately (on different shelves in the refrigerator) and you can consume milk after meat only after 6 hours, but meat after milk can be consumed after 30 minutes (if we are not talking about hard cheeses, the time is kept longer there).
• Insects are prohibited. Only honey, the product of bees' vital activity, is an exception and is considered kosher. Housewives very carefully check cereals, herbs and vegetables because of that ban.
• With regard to alcohol, the Torah prescriptions are very strict: wine must be made only by Jews. 

Thus, one of the most important principles of kashrut is: "What comes from the pure is pure, and what comes from the unclean is unclean." It follows from this that you can not drink the milk of an unclean animal, eat the eggs of an unclean bird, eat the caviar of an unclean fish. The only exception to this rule is honey.