Shabbat: Removing Seeds in Foods

Shabbat: Easy to Remove
If each unwanted element is easy to identify and remove, there is no issue of boreir. Consult a rabbi regarding what is halachically considered easy to remove.

Shabbat: Removing Cantaloupe Seeds
You may remove cantaloupe seeds only by shaking, not by scooping, them out.

Shabbat: Removing Lemon Seeds
You generally may not remove lemon seeds (pits) from food. However, if you are squeezing a lemon and some pits get partly squeezed out, you may:
  • Shake the lemon in order to shake off the pits, or
  • Use your hand to remove the pits from the surface of the lemon.
Once the pits fall onto food, you may use your hand to push the seeds to the side of the plate. But you may not use any instrument to do so, not even a non-specialized instrument such as a spoon.

Note If there are only one or two seeds and they are easily differentiated from the food, you may remove them by any means, except by using an instrument that is intended to separate food from non-food or from undesired food, such as a sieve, strainer, or slotted spoon.