Consumer Kosher Articles
The OU: Mastering the Challenges of Producing Kosher Wine
Over the last ten years there has been a veritable explosion in the certification of kosher wine. Kosher wine is now produced on every continent and in most of the world’s premier wine regions. While the manufacture and handling of kosher wines (and grape juice) involves certain unique challenges, with the OU’s experience and expertise these have been met and overcome, providing consumers an ever- increasing variety of kosher wine products.
Rope Walker, the Legend
Rabbi Ranaan Broderick RFR, Texas, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska Wellington, Kansas. Established: April 4, 1871. Location: Exit 19 on Interstate 35. Population: 8,172. Largest and most attended venue: Wal-Mart. Some people drive right by the interstate exit, without even noticing it. It would be a mere one of 627 incorporated cities in the great state […]
OU KOSHER Experts Answer Sukkot Questions
OU Kosher presents frequently asked questions to-date on the OU Kosher Hotline (212-613-8241) by consumers in preparation for Sukkot. Questions may also be submitted to kosherq@ou.org. The questions below were answered by Rabbi Eli Gersten, rabbinic coordinator and halachic recorder. The responses were reviewed by Rabbi Yaakov Luban, OU Kosher executive rabbinic coordinator. […]
Cardboard No More
The Kosher pizza industry has been transformed in recent years, leading, leading to many opportunities and challenges, both for manufacturers and for the OU.
Kosher in the Dairy Case
From genetically engineered microbial rennet to ‘Rocky Road’ ice cream, the dairy industry presents new challenges to the kosher kitchen. As with many other food products, modern food technology has created new concerns for the kosher consumer. All dairy products, by definition, begin with milk, and milk from a kosher species of animal is inherently kosher. […]
A Time to Eat and A Time to Wait
General guidelines for waiting between the consumption of milchig and fleishig foods
Kosher Cheese
“Rabbi, why doesn’t most hard cheese have a hechsher? After all, the ingredients all seem kosher?”
The above question is often posed to me and my colleagues in the kashrus industry. While the question is simple, the answer is a bit more complex.
Ice Cream and Other Frozen Desserts
Before we know it, the heat of summer will be upon us, and many of us will be consuming ice cream and other frozen sweets in an effort to keep cool. So long as our summertime frozen treats are reliably-certified, we do not think too much about how they are made or about the kashrus […]
The Kashrus of Skinless Salmon
This column has previously addressed the concern of purchasing fish without its skin intact. We discussed that once the skin is removed, one has no way of knowing what a particular fish is, unless it was skinned in the presence of a mashgiach. As such, a skinless fish is considered “kirvei dagim” (unidentifiable fish), and […]
An Analysis of Kaskeses: Past and Present
Consumers are becoming more health conscious. Fish is often considered a healthier option compared to meat. We are all familiar with certain fish like salmon and tuna. Yet, some may want to broaden their culinary experiences and try some more exotic varieties of fish. The question then becomes, what fish are kosher? This article will illustrate that it may not always be so simple to answer this question.