Search results for: ""Chametz""

What Jews May Not Benefit From
Jews are forbidden from benefiting (asur b'hana'a) in any way from:
  • Bechor (first-born male) of a Jewish-owned goat, sheep, or cow
  • Chametz on Passover
  • Idols
  • Kilei ha'kerem
  • Mixtures of milk cooked with meat
  • Orla
  • Yayin nesech and possibly stam yeinam.
 
Microwave Oven: Kosher Status
If a microwave oven's walls/floor/door do not become hot (more than 120° F, or 49° C), the microwave oven does not become non-kosher, dairy, meat, or non-Passover/chametz.

A microwave oven that does not normally get hot, may get hotter than 120° F if you cook:

  • A liquid or moist food for a long time (even if less than 10 minutes),

  • Several liquid or moist items sequentially, or

  • Popcorn and similar foods.

If a microwave oven's walls/floor/door get hot, the oven can become dairy, meat, or non-kosher (if they become one gender and then the opposite gender is cooked or if non-kosher food has been cooked in it). If any surface--including walls, door, floor, etc.--that gets hot are plastic or coated metal, it cannot be returned to kosher or pareve. However, if the surfaces are all made of metal, they may be kasherable. Consult a rabbi.
NoteIf microwave oven does get hot, it cannot be kashered at all--not for Passover and not from non-kosher to kosher. To check if your microwave oven gets hot, see How To Check If a Microwave Oven Will Get Hot during Cooking.
Non-Kosher Mouthwash
You may use non-kosher mouthwash, even if you may swallow some residual mouthwash, as long as you do not intend to swallow the mouthwash.
Note On Passover, you may not use chametz mouthwash.
Hand Shmura Matza or Machine Shmura Matza
Hand shmura matza has some advantage in that it was made with the intention of being for a mitzva, but machine shmura matza has the advantage of being less likely to become chametz since it is automated and not touched by human hands.
 
Passover: When You Do Not Need To Clean
You do not need to clean your house if you will:
  • Leave your house 30 days or more before Passover, and
  • Will not return to your house until after Passover has ended, and
  • Have sold your chametz before the holiday begins.
Microwave Oven: Kosher Status: Floor

Microwave oven floors can get hot, especially where there is no rotating glass tray and the utensil is placed directly on the oven floor. All microwave ovens should be assumed to get hot unless you have tested them personally.
Microwave Floor
Cover the floor (ideally with styrofoam or another substance that blocks heat and moisture).

Glass Tray
The glass tray does not become non-kosher and does not become dairy or meat or chametz (unless it was removed and used in a conventional oven) as long as it is clean.
Plastic Tray Support
The plastic support under the glass tray must be cleaned and must be blocked from contact with actual cooking utensils and from food if the tray:

  • Has any food of the gender opposite that of the food being cooked,
  • Has non-kosher food on it, or
  • Is dirty and you cannot tell with what.
Introduction to Passover
Introduction to Passover: Passover Names

Passover celebrates the seven or eight days starting with the 14th of Nisan, when God took the Israelites out of Egypt about 3300 years ago. The holiday has several names:
  • Chag HaPesach--Holiday of "Skipping Over" (reflecting that God passed over the Jewish homes and did not kill the first-born sons, unlike those of the Egyptians);
  • Chag HaAviv--Festival of Spring (the Jewish calendar is based on the moon and is adjusted to the solar cycle so that Passover always comes in the spring);
  • Chag HaMatzot--Holiday of Unleavened Bread; and
  • Zman Cheiruteinu--Time of our Freedom.

Introduction to Passover: Passover Observance

Passover observance includes removal of chametz, the Passover sacrifice and its reminders, and the Passover seder:

Chametz

Chametz Gamur and Ta'arovet Chametz

The Five Grains, once fermented into items such as bread or beer, are genuine chametz (chametz gamur) and are forbidden on Passover by the Torah (d'oraita).  Ta'arovet chametz (a mixture containing chametz) includes foods such as breakfast cereal and are also forbidden on Passover.

Rules for Chametz

  • You may not own or see (your own) chametz during the entire period of Passover.
  • You may not benefit in any way from chametz during Passover, whether it belongs to a Jew or to a non-Jew. If the chametz was owned by a Jew during Passover, you may not benefit from that chametz even after the holiday has ended.

What To Do with Chametz

Ideally, any chametz should be used up before Passover, given to a non-Jew, or destroyed. But if the chametz has significant value, the custom is to sell that chametz to a non-Jew. You do not need to sell kitniyot, but you must sell any genuine chametz and any mixtures of chametz (ta'arovet chametz).

Passover and Nullification by 1/60th

During the year, 1/60th or less of an undesired substance is considered to be inconsequential and nullified by the other substances. But on Passover, any amount of leaven mixed in food is forbidden.
However, the chametz in food acquired before Passover can be nullified before Passover, but ONLY if:
  • It is 1/60th or less of the total volume of food,
  • The food is liquid mixed in other liquid, or solid in other solid, AND 
  • The chametz/non-chametz elements cannot be easily separated from each other.

Four Steps To Eliminating Chametz

There are four means of eliminating chametz:
  • Bedika: Searching
    You try to find any chametz.
  • Bitul:  Verbal and Intentional Nullification
    Since you may have overlooked some chametz during bedika, declare that any chametz in your possession is not important to you and has no value.
  • Bi'ur: Burning
    By burning and therefore destroying the chametz, we fulfill the Torah
    commandment of “tashbitu” (making it cease to exist).
  • Mechira: Selling
    By changing the ownership, we no longer own chametz on Passover and we create the opportunity to re-acquire the chametz after Passover has ended if the non-Jewish buyer agrees.

Chametz Symbolism

Fermented grains represent (among other things) arrogance and pride:  the puffing up of fermented grains is symbolic of people puffing up themselves. In Judaism, one way to get rid of a bad personal trait is to utterly destroy it and so we symbolically remove and destroy any fermented grain foods from our houses and ownership.

Destroying chametz is not a violation of “do not destroy” (bal tashchit) since it is done to perform a commandment.

What Are Kitniyot

Kitniyot are foods that look similar to the five chametz grains or that could be ground into a flour that could look like flour from those grains, such as beans, peanuts, rice, corn, mustard seeds, and other food plants that are grown near the Five Grains.

What To Do with Kitniyot

Kitniyot may not be used on Passover but do not need to be sold or removed from one's ownership. Kitniyot should be stored away from kosher for Passover food.

Passover Sacrifice

In Temple times, the Passover sacrifice was to be eaten with one's family and possibly with neighbors, depending on the number of people present. The only two instances of kareit (being cut off spiritually) for not doing a positive commandment are for not doing a brit mila and not bringing a Passover offering (in Temple times).

Seder

The Passover seder (order) was prescribed in ancient times as a means for helping all Jews, of all ages and both genders, to re-experience the transition from having been slaves to becoming free and from having ascended from idol worshippers to being monotheistic.

Introduction to Food Nullification: Utensils (Kashering)
Food Nullification in Utensils: Torah-Law and Rabbinic Decree
By Torah law (d'oraita), any clean utensil, countertop, etc., automatically reverts to neutral/pareve and kosher after not being heated to more than 120° F (49° C) for 24 hours.
But by rabbinic decree, utensils do not automatically become neutral/pareve even after 24 hours and must be kashered by heat (libun—direct heat; hag'ala—boiling in a pot; or eruy rotchim—pouring boiling water over item) or, if some types of glass, by soaking in water (meluy v'eruy ).
 
Changing Gender of Utensil
You may kasher a pot or cooking/eating utensil from:
  • Non-kosher to kosher, or
  • Year-round use (chametz) to kosher for Passover.
 
You may not intentionally kasher a utensil in order to change it from dairy to meat or meat to dairy; you must first kasher it from accidentally (or intentionally) non-kosher to kosher/pareve, or from non-Passover to Passover/pareve. You may then use it for either dairy or meat.

Once you have used it for that gender, the item retains that gender (unless you re-kasher it for Passover or you make it non-kosher first, then kasher it to neutral/pareve).
But if you accidentally heat meat with a dairy utensil or vice versa, you may kasher it back to its original gender by any one of the kashering methods, depending on how it became non-kosher.
 
Items/Materials that Can Be Kashered
The following materials can be kashered:
  • Glass, including Corelle, if not used directly on the stove or oven. Glass does not change gender or other kosher status unless heated on a flame or in the oven. Unless it is heated in this way, glass does not ever need to be kashered (except for Passover) (see Meluy v'Eruy, below).Glass, including Corelle, if not used directly on the stove or oven. Glass does not change gender or other kosher status unless heated on a flame or in the oven. Unless it is heated in this way, glass does not ever need to be kashered (except for Passover) (see Meluy v'Eruy, below).Glass, including Corelle, if not used directly on the stove or oven. Glass does not change gender or other kosher status unless heated on a flame or in the oven. Unless it is heated in this way, glass does not ever need to be kashered (except for Passover) (see Meluy v'Eruy, below).
   NOTE  Glass used directly on fire or in the oven (kli rishon) cannot
  be kashered except by heating in a kiln.
  • Granite (not granite composite)
  • Marble
  • Wood, if smooth (see notes on Eruy Rotchim, below)
  • Metal, including stainless steel, cast iron, and aluminum.
Note While metal can be kashered if thoroughly cleaned, welded handles and other difficult-to-clean parts may render a metal utensil not kasherable. You might be able to use libun kal on the problematic area and still use hag'ala for the remainder of the utensil.
 
Items/Materials that Cannot Be Kashered
  • China
  • Corian
  • Corningware
  • Crockpot
  • Formica
  • Glass that has been used directly (kli rishon) on a stove or in an oven; however it can be kashered in a kiln
  • Granite (composite)
  • Knives with Plastic Handles (knives with wooden handles may be kashered if there are no cracks in the wood and if the rivets do not have spaces that catch food and prevent you from cleaning it completely)
  • Mixer-there might be exceptions. Consult a rabbi.
  • Plastic
  • Porcelain (Enamel)
  • Pyrex (if used directly on stove or in oven--kli rishon)
  • Rubber (synthetic)
  • Silestone
  • Silverstone
  • Stoneware
  • Teflon
  • Toaster/Toaster Oven
  • Waffle Iron.
 
Pot Lid Handle
Kashering
The handle on a pot lid does not need to be kashered for normal use during the year. 
Reason It does not normally get hot.
Cleaning
However, the pot lid handle must be removed and the lid cleaned where the handle attaches, if possible.
Note If the gap between the handle and lid cannot be completely cleaned, you may not use that lid for Passover and you normally may not kasher it if it becomes non-kosher. If the lid handle cannot be removed, consult a rabbi.

Pot or Pan Handle
A plastic handle that gets hot, especially if it is over a flame on a burner, may not be kashered. If the handle becomes non-kosher, it must be replaced. If a plastic handle connects directly to the metal of the utensil, consult a rabbi about what to do.
 
Food Nullification: Heat-Kashering
Three Methods of Heat-Kashering
Heat-Kashering is of three types:  Libun, Hag'ala, and Eruy Rotchim.
  1. Libun (Direct Heat)
    How It Works  Burns up any residual food taste
 
 What It Works On
Complete Burning (Libun gamur --heating metal red-hot).  Stoves, ovens, grills, grates, baking pans, roasting pans, etc., that were ever used with direct heat MUST be kashered by heating to red-hot (libun gamur). Libun gamur works on anything except pottery (this is a rabbinic injunction since you might not do a good job).
 
Light Burning (Libun kal--heating metal hot enough to burn paper on the side opposite the one being heated).  You may use this method whenever there is a question of whether an item needs libun. For example, food may have overflowed onto gas-stove grates. Due to safek, we use libun kal-- gas-stove grates do not need libun gamur.
 
 Process 
Libun Gamur The entire metal substance of a utensil, oven, or other cooking surface becomes red hot, but the item does not need to be red hot all at the same time: it may be heated sequentially as long as the entire surface gets red hot at some time. Libun gamur can be done by blowtorch or by placing the item in a kiln. 
 
Libun Kal
  • Direct a flame, such as a blowtorch, onto the inside of a pot. Pot is hot enough when a piece of paper that touches the outside of the utensil burns (it does not need to burst into flame, just to smolder), or
  • Put the pot into the oven at 500 ° F for 40 minutes. (First, remove any non-metal handles; they will need to be kashered separately or not used.)
 
   Waiting Time  You do not need to wait at all before kashering by libun--and certainly not the 24 hours needed before kashering by hag'ala.
 
  1. Hag'ala (Boiling)
     
How It Works
Any non-kosher or meat or milk taste is removed from the walls of the utensil during boiling (hag'ala). You may kasher a pot or utensil by either:
  • Boil Method Boiling water within the pot to be kashered, and making the boiling water overflow, or
  • Dip Method Dipping a smaller pot or utensil to be kashered into a larger pot of boiling water.
What It Works On   
Pots and utensils that are used with liquids (meaning, liquid all the time) can be kashered by being immersed in boiling water (hag'ala). The utensil being kashered by hag'ala must be made of a material that can release flavor, such as metal or wood. Materials that cannot be kashered (except in a glazing furnace!) are pottery--and, by extension--china, enamel, and similar materials. 
 
Note  The Boil Method only helps if the utensil became non-kosher due to food inside the utensil. If the non-kosher food was on the outside of the utensil, you may only kasher it by the Dip Method or by libun kal.
 
Note The boiling water must reach at least the same temperature during kashering as when the utensil became non-kosher.
 
Note Once the Passover holiday has begun, chametz cannot be nullified with hot water/hag'ala (only libun can kasher something during Passover). You may only kasher during chol hamoed, not during the first and last (festival) days.
 
Note Whenever hag'ala is effective, you may instead use libun kal, since libun kal is a stronger form of kashering. Sometimes you may find it more convenient to use libun kal to kasher an item that needs only hag'ala.
Situation A metal pot of the opposite gender went through a dishwasher cleaning.
What To Do Even though the pot only needs hag'ala, you may instead kasher it by libun kal by putting it in an oven at 500° F (for this application).

Process
The Boil Method can be used as:
  • Batel BaShishim ("nullifying in 60 times" the volume), or
  • Batel BaRov ("nullifying in a majority"--that is, boiling the item in water that is more than twice the volume but less than 60 times the volume of the non-kosher element).
NoteIf a pot is hot (over 120° F, or 49° C) when only part of the pot becomes non-kosher, the entire pot is non-kosher and its volume is figured into the volume of water needed for boiling.
NoteFor whether the lid becomes non-kosher, consult a rabbi.

In Batel BaShishim, by the actual halacha, you do not need to wait at all before kashering. But the custom is to wait 24 hours--except in extreme circumstances--because it is too hard to figure out 1/60th. In Batel BaRov, you must wait 24 hours.
 
The Boil Method: Batel BaShishim
Using batel ba'shishim for the Boil Method is not customary.  You may use it for emergencies ONLY; ask a rabbi in this case.
Example To kasher a spoon with the batel ba'shishim type of hag'ala, immerse the spoon in boiling water of a volume at least the volume of 60 spoons. No waiting is needed before kashering with this method.
 
The Boil Method: Batel BaRov
To kasher a pot or utensil by hag'ala using batel ba'rov:
  • Clean the pot or utensil well.
  • Wait 24 hours after the pot or utensil was last heated to more than 120° F, or 49° C (such as when it was cleaned).
Reason Waiting 24 hours allows the taste to become “ruined” and then to be nullified (batel) in a majority (ba'rov) of boiling water.
Note During the 24-hour waiting period, you could still “use” the utensil for watering plants, etc., as long as the water remains under 120° F.
  • Fill the pot to the brim with water.
  • Bring the water in the pot to a boil.
  • Cause the water to overflow the entire rim of the pot by:
    • Plunging something hot into the pot (any item that will not cause the water to stop boiling is OK), or
    • Tilting the pot to slosh water over all of the pot's rim.
  • Cool off the pot by dipping it in cold water or putting it under cold running water.
Note If you did not put the utensil under cold water, it is still kosher b'di'avad.
 
The Dip Method
To kasher a smaller pot or any other kasherable cooking or eating utensil by hag'ala, you may dip the pot or utensil into a large, kashered pot containing boiling water.
  • If the pot in which you are kashering the items had been heated to 120° F (49° C), with food of that gender in the pot, or more within the previous 24 hours, the items you are kashering will assume the gender of the pot.
  • If the pot in which you are kashering the items had NOT been heated to 120° F or more for at least 24 hours, any items that are kashered in it will become kosher and pareve.
Note When kashering a utensil by hagala, you may dip it into boiling water one part at a time; that is, you do not need to immerse the entire utensil under the water all at the same time. This is different from doing tevila since for tevila, the entire utensil must be immersed completely.
 
Calculating 24-Hour Waiting Time
Once a pot has become non-kosher due to any reason, if it gets heated to 120° F (49° C) or more with any food or liquid in it, you must wait another 24 hours from the latest heating before you can kasher it, since everything inside the utensil becomes non-kosher again.
 
Calculating Volume
If only part of a pot becomes non-kosher, as long as the pot was hot (over 120° F, or 49° C), the entire pot becomes non-kosher and its volume gets figured into the volume of water needed for boiling.
 
 
  1. Eruy Rotchim (Hot-Water Pour)
 
Process  Pouring hot water over, for example, a sink to kasher it.
 
Waiting Time You must wait 24 hours before kashering by eruy rotchim.
 
Note Only items that became non-kosher by being poured onto, may be kashered via eruy rotchim.
 
Note Smooth-surfaced wood may be kashered through eruy rotchim (pouring boiling water) but ONLY if it became non-kosher through eruy. If it became non-kosher by being cooked or heated in an oven, it may not be kashered via eruy rotchim.
 
Note A wooden cutting board may be kashered if the board is smooth. If it has cracks and crevices, it can be sanded until smooth and then kashered.

 
Food Nullification: Meluy V'Eruy
Meluy V'Eruy To Kasher Glass
Halachically, “glass” includes Arcoroc, Corelle, crystal, Duralex, and Pyrex.
NOTE In pre-war Europe, where glass was expensive and hard to obtain, it was customary to kasher drinking glasses, especially for Passover, by soaking the glasses for three 24-hour periods (meluy v'eruy), as follows:
Step 1: Submerge glasses in cold water for 24 hours.
Step 2: Empty water, refill, and submerge glasses again.
Step 3: Repeat Step 2.
NOTE If any of these materials were heated directly on a flame or other heat source, they cannot be kashered by meluy v'eruy!

Introduction to Taste (Ta'am) Transfer
Gender/Kashrut Status Transfer
Foods and kitchenware (pots, pans, dishes, utensils, and containers) can absorb taste from each other and so adopt a new gender or kosher status. They can change from:
  • Kosher to non-kosher,
  • Kosher pareve (neutral) to kosher dairy or kosher meat, or
  • Kosher Passover to kosher (or non-kosher) non-Passover.
 
Note You can sometimes change a utensil/container to kosher-pareve (see Kashering, below), but you cannot change a
  • Gendered food to neutral-pareve, or
  • Non-kosher food to kosher.
 
Taste Absorption
Taste gets absorbed in three ways: Heat, pressure, and soaking. 
 
Heat
To absorb taste, and therefore gender or kashrut status, through heat, a food or utensil must be heated to 120° F or more while:
  • Steamed with a halachically “liquid” food, or
  • In wet physical contact with the food or utensil.
Examples
  • Two hot pans, which are clean on their outsides, only transfer taste from one to the other if they are wet on the outside and are touching each other.
  • A hot utensil placed onto a counter only transfers gender to the countertop if there is liquid or food at the point of contact.
Note  All liquids plays a major role in facilitating taste transfer.
NOTE Taste, gender, or non-kosher status do not travel upstream into the utensil that food is being poured from. Even if you pour hot liquid (pareve or of one gender) from a pot onto a non-kosher or opposite gender food, the genders are not transferred back through the stream of liquid to the pot, even if any or all of the elements are more than 120 degrees.
Situation You pour hot liquid from some pareve vegetables into a non-kosher sink that had hot in it within 24 hours. There are dishes or utensils in the sink.
Status The dishes do not change gender unless the hot liquid fills up from the sink onto them. If so, the dishes or utensils become non-kosher. But no gender change occurs through the stream of liquid back to the pot of vegetables.
 
Note If the non-kosher sink had not had anything hot (120 degrees or above) in it for at least 24 hours, no change of gender or kosher status happens at all.
 
Note On Passover, gender and chametz status DO get transferred through a stream of hot liquid.
 
Pressure
To absorb taste, and therefore gender or kashrut status, through pressure or short-term soaking, one of the items must be spicy/charif.
 
Soaking
To absorb taste, and therefore gender or kashrut status, through long-term soaking, the food must soak for specific amounts of time.
 
Note If the food or utensil is not hot (120° F or more), is not spicy/charif, and is not soaking for a long time, there is no gender or kashrut-status transfer.
Examples
You may use a non-kosher utensil for any cold food of the opposite gender, so you may:
  • Eat cold (kosher) cereal out of a meat or non-kosher bowl, or
  • Use a meat or non-kosher spoon to eat kosher ice cream.
Note Even though these are permissible, they may not be done regularly but only on an ad hoc basis.
 
Food and Kitchenware: Which Influences What
Hot or Spicy/Charif Foods
With hot (more than 120° F) or spicy/charif foods:
Foods and utensils/containers transfer taste to each other.
 
Cold or Non-Spicy Foods that Soak
With cold (less than 120° F) or non-spicy/charif foods that soak:
  • Foods do not transfer taste to utensils/containers;
  • Utensils/containers do NOT transfer taste to foods.


NOTE No substances (not salt, or any food...) absorb gender from the open air.
 
 
The 24-Hour Rule: Eino ben Yomo
Torah Law: Reverts to Kosher-Pareve
By Torah law, a utensil/container always reverts to kosher-pareve after 24 hours (since the taste of any absorbed food becomes ruined with time). 
 
Rabbinic Law: Must Be Kashered
However, by rabbinic law, the utensil/container must be kashered before using.
 
NOTE Even by Torah law, a hot or spicy/charif food can revive the milk-meat or non-kosher status of another utensil/container (see below) even after 24 hours.
 
Accidentally or Intentionally
Food Hot and Accidentally Placed; Utensil Not Hot for 24 Hours
Kosher food hotter than 120° F (49° C) remains kosher if accidentally placed into a non-kosher, clean utensil that has not been heated to 120° F or more for at least 24 hours.
REASON After 24 hours, b'di'avad, the utensil has reverted to being kosher-pareve.
NOTE If the utensil had been “used” (heated to 120° F or more) within the preceding 24 hours, the hot food that accidentally entered the utensil would be non-kosher. Ask a rabbi for possible exceptions.
 
Food Hot and Intentionally Placed
If the hot food had been put into the utensil intentionally, the food would not be kosher.
REASON Chazal made a rule (takana) that if you intentionally place food of one gender into a utensil of the opposite gender and heat it to 120° F or more, the food is not kosher.
Introduction to Food Nullification: Foods
Categories of Batel/Nullification
Categories of nullification of non-kosher ingredients:
  • Never batel.
  • Batel b'shishim when the non-kosher substance is less than 1/60th of the total volume of the food.
  • Batel barov when the non-kosher substance is less than 1/2 of the total volume of the food.
When Can a Non-Kosher Substance Be Nullified in a Mixture?
Whether a non-kosher substance can be nullified in a mixture depends on 3 factors:
  • Whether the owner is Jewish;
  • Whether the intended eaters are Jewish; and
  • Whether the non-kosher substance was added intentionally as non-kosher.
If the answers to all three cases is yes, the food is never batel.

Food “Nullified in 60 Parts”:
Accidentally Adding Non-Kosher to Kosher Food 
Batel ba'shishim, or “nullified in 60 (parts)” is food that remains kosher despite the accidental addition of 1/60th or less in volume of non-kosher or restricted food, since at this proportion the non-kosher food's taste becomes negligible.
Taste: If the non-kosher substance: 
  • Has no taste, it is batel barov.
  • Has a taste but the eater cannot taste it, it is batel b'shishim (1/60th).
In all cases, if a substance is added for flavor and can be tasted in the final food, it will never be batel, regardless of whether it was added intentionally (since you can taste it, by definition it was not nullified) and regardless of whether the food was owned by a Jew or not. There are some exceptions. Consult a knowledgeable rabbi.
Some foods do impart their flavor even if less than 1/60th of the total volume of the food and these do not ever become nullified based on the 1/60th rule. Otherwise,  the non-kosher food must be:
  • Less than 1/60 of the volume of the whole.
  • Mixed in and not lying on the surface.
  • Not intentionally added by a Jew.
  • Not listed in “Foods that Never Become Nullified” (below).
Min b'Mino
Substances are only batel when they are similar (“min b'mino”). The substances must be the same type, have the same taste, and have the same appearance (the eater cannot identify them as being different).
Note In such situations, it would be batel barov from Torah (d'oraita) but batel b'shishim (1/60th) by rabbinical order (d'rabanan).
Example A piece of non-kosher meat is mixed in with kosher meat of more than 60 times the volume of the non-kosher piece. The non-kosher meat is batel b'shishim.
Note As a practical matter, this can only apply to ground meat.
Counter Example Non-kosher chocolate syrup or a non-kosher flavored extract mixed into milk or other liquid or onto a solid would NOT be min b'mino even though both are liquids, since their appearances, flavors, and substance are different.

Too Thin To Make Non-Kosher
The thinnest layer of non-kosher fish oil, vegetable oil, soap, or any other very thin substance on food that does not make the food non-kosher is whatever amount cannot be detected by the five human senses.
Foods that Never Become Nullified 
Here are some foods that NEVER become nullified by being less than 1/60th of the main food:
  • Yayin Nesech
    Wine that has been offered to a pagan god or used for idolatrous purposes (yayin nesech) is forbidden in any amount!
  • Mixtures of Milk and Meat
    Mixtures of milk and meat are not ever batel if they were cooked together.
    ExceptionBatel in 1/60th if:
    • You cannot identify either substance AND
    • The mixture is liquid in liquid or solid mixed with solid.
Examples: Milk from a pig mixed with milk from a cow; ground kosher meat mixed in with ground non-kosher meat.
  • Chametz
Any chametz in any amount that became mixed with kosher-for-Passover food DURING Passover is not nullified in 60 parts (batel ba'shishim). 
Note Chametz may be nullified if:
  • Less than 1/60th of the volume of kosher-for-Passover food, AND
  • Mixed with the kosher-for-Passover food BEFORE the holiday began, AND
  • Liquid (solid chametz that got mixed up with kosher-for-Passover food is never nullified).
  • Jew Intentionally Adding Non-Kosher Item
If the non-kosher substance was added by anyone (Jew or non-Jew) unintentionally (he did not realize it was not kosher), the food is kosher/batel b'shishim (1/60th).
If a Jew intentionally adds a non-kosher ingredient to a food, that ingredient never becomes nullified, even if the ingredient is less than 1/60th of the total volume of food and even if the ingredient has no flavor. Note that there are exceptions when non-Jews do the action, especially when a non-Jew adds a non-kosher ingredient or adds stam yainam wine to other liquids.
  • Unflavored or Flavored Non-Kosher Ingredient
    Non-Jew Adds Unflavored Non-Kosher Ingredient
    Situation A non-Jew adds a non-kosher ingredient that has no flavor. 
    Status The non-kosher ingredient is nullified if less than 1/2 of the total (it does not need to be less than 1/60th--batel ba'shishim).

    Non-Jew Adds Flavored Non-Kosher Ingredient
    Situation A non-Jew adds a flavored non-kosher ingredient even if to impart flavor.
    Status The non-kosher ingredient is nullified in 60 parts (batel ba'shishim).
    Note If a Jew had told the non-Jew to add the ingredient, the mixture is non-kosher, just as if a Jew had added it. 
  • Stam Yeinam Added to Water
    Situation A non-Jew adds—to water--stam yeinam (uncooked/non-mevushal) wine that has been handled while open by anyone other than a shomer-Shabbat Jew.  
    Status As long as the wine is less than 1/7th of the final volume, the mixture is kosher. 
    Note For mixtures with liquids other than water, consult a rabbi. 
  • Essential Additives
Any additive that is essential to making a food (such as rennet for making cheese, or yeast for baking bread) is NEVER nullifiable.  
 
  • Food Bought by the Piece
An item that is always bought by the piece (davar she'beminyan) such that even one piece has importance—such as a mango—is never nullifiable.
Situation One mango grown in Eretz Yisrael during a shmita year got mixed in with many mangoes that were grown outside of Eretz Yisrael.
Status Batel ba'shishim does not apply and you must apply the laws of shmita to all of them. 
Note If kosher and non-kosher food items have become mixed up, it is sometimes permissible to eat from the batch of food if most of the items are kosher (batel ba'rov), but a rabbi must be consulted.
 
  • Important Food
Situation A food with which you could honor a guest (chaticha ha'reuya l'hitchabed), such as 1/4 of a non-kosher chicken or a serving of non-kosher chopped liver, was mixed up with kosher servings—even if more than 60 kosher servings.
Status None may be eaten.
 
 
  • Permissible in Future (Davar SheYesh Lo Matirin)
An item that would become permissible in the future (davar she'yesh lo matirin) cannot become nullified by being mixed in with currently permissible foods. 
Examples 
  • An egg laid on Shabbat will not be nullified by being mixed with eggs laid before Shabbat.
  • Matza made of chadash flour will not be nullified by being mixed with matza made from yashan flour.
 
  • Whole Insects
An entire insect (briya--whole creature) never becomes nullified even if mixed with other kosher food. 
Note An insect that is not whole MAY be nullified. 
Examples
  • Frozen or raw chopped or ground vegetables or spices may be considered kosher even without supervision.
    Reason We assume that any bugs in the food would have gotten partly chopped or disintegrated and therefore nullified.
  • If a recipe calls for chopping or grinding herbs or vegetables, you may do so without first checking them for bugs.
    Note However, if you know there are bugs, you may not chop the food for the purpose of making the bugs nullified:  You must still check for insects before cooking or eating the food and if you see any bugs, you must remove them.
Note You may not eat bugs even if they have been dead for more than 30 days (some people erroneously permit this).
How to Prepare Food in a Non-Kosher Kitchen

BAKING IN NON-KOSHER OVEN

An oven that has not been used for at least 24 hours is considered, d'oraita, to be neutral/pareve, but only if it is clean. D'rabanan, it is still not kosher, but this may be useful for when you can be lenient; e.g., if there is a safek.

Note Even when baking in a non-kosher oven, you must cook the food in a kosher utensil.

INTRODUCTION TO BAKING IN NON-KOSHER OVEN

Baking in a Non-Kosher Oven

How To Tell if Oven Is Clean

To determine whether a non-kosher oven with black or brown spots is clean, scratch them:

  • If the substance crumbles, the spots are OK and you may bake non-liquid food in that oven without covering the food.
  • If the spots do not crumble or they remain immovable or come off in flakes rather than crumbles, consider the oven not clean.

Uncovered Food; Clean (Non-Kosher) Oven

You may cook food uncovered in a non-kosher oven if:
  • The oven rack and walls are clean, and
  • The food is not “liquid.”
    Note Non-liquid is defined as not being liquid before cooking OR not being liquid after cooking, but the food does not need to be non-liquid at both times.  Examples of “non-liquid” foods:
    • Apple cobbler
    • Lasagna
    • Meat (that will create gravy at the end)
    • Pudding
    • Raw fish.
Situation You plan to bake uncovered food in a clean, non-kosher oven in which the racks are not clean.
What To DoPlace two layers of foil under the baking utensil.

Double Wrapping

When To Double Wrap

Double-wrap food before baking in a non-kosher radiant-heat oven if:
  • The rack and/or oven are not clean;
  • The food that you are baking is liquid at any time during the cooking process; OR
  • Some of the food you are baking spills onto the rack or oven surfaces.

How To Double Wrap

When wrapping food for cooking in a non-kosher oven, the wrapping material does not need to seal completely, but the:

  • Food must be completely covered with two layers of foil or plastic;
  • Layers must keep water vapor out from between the layers; and
  • Surfaces of the utensil must all be covered.

SPILLED KOSHER FOOD IN NON-KOSHER OVEN

Kosher Food Spilling in Non-Kosher Oven

If kosher food spills inside a non-kosher oven in which you are cooking uncovered kosher food (whether liquid or non-liquid), consult a rabbi about whether the uncovered kosher food may still be eaten.

NoteIn this case, it makes no difference whether the oven is clean or dirty because the spilled food is wet and takes on the non-kosher status of the oven. When the spilled food vaporizes, it carries the non-kosher essence to the kosher food or utensil.
NoteIf the non-kosher oven had not been used for more than 24 hours, the food is probably still kosher b'di'avad. 
NoteThis applies to food spilled either from the same utensil in which you were cooking the kosher food or from a different utensil.

FROZEN FOOD IN NON-KOSHER OVEN

Double Wrap Frozen Food in Non-Kosher Oven

Frozen food is considered to be wet food regarding cooking it in a non-kosher oven or regarding its being neutral for dairy and meat issues: If the oven is not kosher, the frozen food must be double wrapped, even if the oven is clean.

AIRLINE MEALS IN NON-KOSHER OVEN

Heating Airline Meals in Non-Kosher Oven

Airline meals are usually non-liquid, so even if they are single-wrapped, it is OK to heat them in a non-kosher oven as long as no non-kosher food contacts the kosher food container.

COOKING IN NON-KOSHER MICROWAVE OVEN

Microwave Oven: Kosher Status

Introduction to Microwave Oven: Kosher Status

If a microwave oven's walls/floor/door do not become hot (more than 120° F, or 49° C), the microwave oven does not become non-kosher, dairy, meat, or non-Passover/chametz.

NoteA microwave oven that does not normally get hot, may get hotter than 120° F if you cook:

  • A liquid or moist food for a long time (even if less than 10 minutes),
  • Several liquid or moist items sequentially, or
  • Popcorn and similar foods.

If a microwave oven's walls/floor/door get hot, the oven can become dairy, meat, or non-kosher (if they become one gender and then the opposite gender is cooked or if non-kosher food has been cooked in it). If any surface--including walls, door, floor, etc.--that gets hot are plastic or coated metal, it cannot be returned to kosher or pareve. However, if the surfaces are all made of metal, they may be kasherable. Consult a rabbi.

NoteIf the microwave oven does get hot, it cannot be kashered at all--not for Passover and not from non-kosher to kosher. To check if your microwave oven gets hot, see How To Check If a Microwave Oven Will Get Hot during Cooking

Microwave Oven: Kosher Status: Walls and Door

Since microwave oven walls and doors do not normally get hot (more than 120° F, or 49° C), there is usually no need to kasher them from milk to meat (or back to milk); from ordinary use to Passover use; or from non-kosher to kosher. Just clean all surfaces.

Microwave Oven: Kosher Status: Floor

Microwave oven floors can get hot, especially where there is no rotating glass tray and the utensil is placed directly on the oven floor. All microwave ovens should be assumed to get hot unless you have tested them personally.

Microwave Floor

Cover the floor (ideally with styrofoam or another substance that blocks heat and moisture) in a non-kosher microwave oven.

Glass Tray

The glass tray does not become non-kosher and does not become dairy or meat or chametz (unless it was removed and used in a conventional oven) as long as it is clean.

Plastic Tray Support

The plastic support under the glass tray must be cleaned and must be blocked from contact with actual cooking utensils and from food if the tray:

  • Has any food of the gender opposite that of the food being cooked,
  • Has non-kosher food on it, or
  • Is dirty and you cannot tell with what.

How To Check If a Microwave Oven Will Get Hot during Cooking

To determine if the walls of a microwave oven will get hot during cooking:

  • Boil water for as long as food would typically be cooked in that microwave oven, and
  • Touch the inside walls, floor, door, and ceiling
    • If the walls are too hot to touch, the walls may acquire the gender of any food cooked in the oven. (If the walls are already the opposite gender when cooking a food, the oven may become non-kosher.)
    • If the walls are not too hot to touch, then no change of status occurs.

Non-Kosher Microwave Oven: Hot Oven, Liquid or Solid Food

If the walls of a non-kosher microwave oven get hotter than 120° F, you must double wrap any liquid or solid food you cook in that oven.

NoteIf you did not double wrap liquid or solid food cooked in a non-kosher microwave oven, consult a rabbi about whether you may eat the food.

Non-Kosher Microwave Oven: Non-Hot Oven

If the walls of a non-kosher microwave oven stay less than 120° F, you do not need to wrap or cover liquid or non-liquid food, as long as:

  1. The microwave oven is clean and dry, and
  2. If the tray is non-glass or non-Pyrex, you put a layer of separation (plastic, styrofoam, etc…) that blocks heat and any moisture underneath the cooking utensil.

COOKING ON NON-KOSHER STOVE

Setting Down Hot Lid on Non-Kosher Stove Top

SituationYou set down a hot pot lid on a non-kosher stove top.
Status

  • Lid is dry and stove is clean: lid remains kosher.
  • Lid is dry or wet and stove is dirty: lid is non-kosher.
  • Lid is wet and stove had hot non-kosher mixtures on it within the previous 24 hours--even if the stove is clean: lid is not kosher.
  • Lid is dry or wet and stove is clean and did not have hot non-kosher mixtures on it within the previous 24 hours: lid is kosher.

COOKING WITH NON-KOSHER UTENSILS

Using a Non-Kosher Kitchen Utensil
Introduction to Using a Non-Kosher Cooking Utensil
You may not use a non-kosher cooking utensil (pot, pan, baking dish, etc.) for cooking even if the utensil is clean and has not been used for more than 24 hours (unless you kasher it first).

Fruit Cut with Non-Kosher Knife
You should wash most fresh fruit cut with a non-kosher knife in order to remove whatever non-kosher food might have been on the knife from before.
Note Fruit with a sharp taste—such as lemons or tart apples—may not be used if cut with a non-kosher knife, regardless of whether the knife had been used within 24 hours.

WASHING IN NON-KOSHER SINK

Using a Non-Kosher Sink
A dish is still kosher b'di'avad if heated to 120° F (49° C) or more in a clean, non-kosher sink that had remained below 120° F for the previous 24 hours.
 

Introduction to How To Pray in Synagogue
The synagogue (shul) prayer service may confuse the unfamiliar. Here is a brief guide to following the congregational prayers.
Note This Guide may be printed and given to people who are unfamiliar with the prayer services (or to people who are not yet completely comfortable in following the prayer services). It may be particularly useful for people who do not normally attend weekday minyans, especially people who are saying kaddish!

A printed copy may also be useful as a guide to a specific siddur. Before the prayer service takes place, the actual page numbers may be copied from the siddur onto the pages of the Guide for quick reference during the service. (This could be done by the user or by someone who is more familiar with the prayer services, as an aid to help the user follow what is going on.)
 
General Rules in Following/Answering the Leader
Ends/Beginnings of Paragraphs
Each individual says most of the prayers, but the leader sets the pace. He says out loud the last line or two of many paragraphs (and sometimes the next paragraph's first few words), to help others find where he is in the prayers.
Hint If you get lost, listen to the leader and try to find those words at the beginning or end of one of the paragraphs near where you think you should be!
 
Saying Amen
When the prayer leader/chazan says a blessing (Baruch ata adonai...) and finishes the final word, everyone usually replies amen.
 
Baruch Hu U'Varuch Shemo
It is common (but not required) to say baruch hu u'varuch shemo after hearing God's name (Adonai) when it is said in a blessing.
Exception No one should say baruch hu u'varuch shemo between bar'chu and the beginning of the amida.
Note Some people say the phrase very loudly and slowly (pretentiously), but this wrong practice may prevent themselves and others from hearing the blessing's end and knowing when to say amen.
 
Praying Shacharit
This list mainly includes the parts of the prayer service that are said together or when in synagogue, not those said individually or at home.
NoteIf you need to use the toilet between baruch she'amar and yishtabach, say asher yatzar after saying yishtabach and before saying yotzeir or.
Note If you need to speak during the early part of shacharit, it is best to speak after yishtabach but before bar'chu. You should not speak during psukei d'zimra unless it is urgent or about the shacharit service.
 
Initial Blessings/Asher Natan
The initial blessings beginning with asher natan... through the end of ven brit may be said at home.
 
Ma Tovu
Upon arriving in synagogue in the morning, say Ma tovu....
 
Talit
Married men (and also those with a tradition to wear a talit from bar mitzva age) normally put on their talit gadol on all days (except Tish'a b'Av morning).
For more details, see Talit (Gadol).
 
Tefilin
On weekdays, all men put on tefilin. They do not interrupt putting on tefilin to respond to other's prayers, not even to say amen. 
For more details, see Tefilin.
 
Birchot HaShachar/Initial Blessings
If you have not yet said the initial blessings beginning with asher natan... through the end of ven brit, say them once you are in synagogue and after you have put on talit/tefilin (if relevant).  
Everyone stands while the prayer leader reads the initial blessings aloud.  They say amen after each one. 
Note Individuals should not intend to fulfill their personal requirement to say those blessings by answering amen, since everyone should say the blessings for him/herself.
 
L'Olam Yehei Adam/Shema
L'olam yehei adam is said quietly, with everyone saying the shema line together.
 
Order of the Sacrifices
Some read (quietly) the order of the sacrifices.
 
13 Principles of Talmud Explanation/Kaddish
  • The 13 principles of how the Talmud is explained are read quietly.
  • Kaddish is said by any mourners.
  • Everyone says, amen, yihei shmei raba...
Note Everyone, not just mourners, stands for kaddish; this is the custom for all kaddishes and for all services.
 
Mizmor Shir/Kaddish
  • Mizmor shir is read quietly.
  • Another kaddish is said by the mourners.
Baruch SheAmar
            Baruch she'amar is said by everyone, standing.  The leader says the final blessing out loud.
 
Verses (Psukim)
The following several pages are verses (psukim) from various sources, said by everyone quietly.
Note The leader says several intermediary lines aloud due to their importance and so that everyone else knows where he is. 
 
Mizmor L'Toda/Yehi Chevod
  • Everyone stands to say mizmor l'toda quietly (just for this paragraph).
  • The next paragraph (yehi chevod) is read quietly.
Note Don't say mizmor l'toda the day before or during Passover (the Thanksgiving offering/Toda was chametz), or before Yom Kippur.
 
Ashrei and 5 Psalms
Ashrei and the following five psalms (#146 to 150) are said quietly by everyone; the leader says the final line or two out loud.
 
Baruch Adonai L'Olam Amen v'Amen
Baruch adonai... is said by the leader.  
 
VaYevarech David
The next section (from va'yevarech David until after bar'chu) is said quietly by everyone while standing.
 
Shirat HaYam
Shirat ha'yam is read quietly by everyone.
 
Yishtabach/Kaddish
Yishtabach is said quietly by everyone together. The leader says the final line of yishtabach out loud and then kaddish.
 
Bar'chu
  • The leader says Bar'chu et Adonai ha'mevorach.
  • Everyone bows from the waist and replies (aloud), Baruch Adonai ha'mevorach l'olam va'ed (which is then repeated by the leader).
  • Everyone says the blessing's ending ...u'vorei et ha'kol.
 
Shema and Its Blessings
The next paragraphs lead up to the shema:
  • Leader says, “Et shem ha'el...”
  • Everyone says aloud, together: Kadosh, kadosh, kadosh... and Baruch kevod Adonai mi'mkomo.
  • Leader says the final line or two of La'el baruch ne'imot... and everyone responds amen.
  • Everyone says ahavat olam quietly.
  • Leader reads the final lines aloud.
    Note It is the custom to not say amen to the blessing before shema.
  • Everyone says the first line of the shema together and aloud, but Baruch shem... silently. 
  • Everyone reads the shema individually, and the leader repeats out loud Adonai eloheichem emet.
  • Everyone reads the next paragraphs, through ezrat avoteinu, together, quietly.
 
Mi Chamocha
Stand for Mi chamocha until after the amida.

Adonai Yimloch
Everyone reads together and aloud: Adonai yimloch... until the final blessing before the amida.
Note At some time before completing that blessing, step back far enough (one large step is fine) so that you can take three small steps forward to begin the amida. If there is no room to step back, you may pray the amida without stepping forward.
 
The Amida
Amida: Details and Direction
For more details on saying the amida, see What To Pray: Set Prayers: Amida
For where to face during the amida, see Amida: Location: Where To Face
 
Stepping To Begin the Amida
After saying ga'al Yisrael, symbolically approach God by taking three steps forward (any size of steps is fine):
  • Step forward with your right foot,
  • Step forward with your left foot, and
  • Step forward with your right foot.
  • Bring your left foot to meet the right one, so that both feet are touching at the heels and at the balls (so that you are standing as if you had one leg, like the angels!)
Bowing in the Amida
Next, with your feet still together, do knee-bowing at the start and end of the first paragraph.  You will also be bowing at:
  • Beginning of modim (waist-bowing).
  • End of modim (knee-bowing at Baruch ata Adonai of the blessing ending u'lecha na'eh l'hodot).
Note For how to do knee-bowing and waist-bowing, see Amida: Actions: Bowing.
           
Slach Lanu
In slach lanu, when saying ki chatanu and ki fashanu, hit your chest over your heart with your fist.
Reason We are saying that we sinned, so we strike our heart for leading us astray.
 
Ending the Amida
Symbolically take leave of God by taking three steps back after Adonai tzuri v'go'ali:
  • Step back on your left foot,
  • Step back on your right foot,
  • Step back on your left foot (and then place your right foot next to your left foot).
  • Bow to the left while saying Oseh shalom bi'mromav...,
  • Bow to the right while saying Hu ya'aseh shalom alenu, and
  • Bow to the middle (straight in front of you) while saying Ve'al kol yisrael v'imru amen.
Then pause for at least three seconds before walking forward or sitting down.
 
Reader's Repetition of Amida
At kedusha, everyone stands (even if they were sitting so far for the amida's repetition) with their feet together, again imitating the angels who only have one leg.
  • The leader says nekadeish (in some places, everyone says nekadeish).
  • Everyone says the next line together (kadosh, kadosh, kadosh...).
Note When saying kadosh each of the three times, rise up on the balls of your feet and return to “feet flat” so you will be able to rise up three times total.  Some people also rise on their feet when they say the next line (baruch kevod), but it is neither required nor a universal practice.
  • After the leader says Halleluya, everyone else may move their feet (or sit down, if that is their custom).
  • On fast days, the leader says an extra paragraph in shacharit (other paragraphs in mincha are said by everyone).
Note These extra paragraphs usually appear in small--or tiny!--print in siddurs near where they get said. Look for asterisks to show where to insert them. It might be helpful before beginning shacharit to ask someone to point out exactly what to say and when.

Tachanun

When To Say Tachanun
Tachanun is usually said on weekdays.

How To Say Tachanun
Tachanun is said differently, depending on if there is a Torah scroll in the room, as follows:
Tachanun If Torah Scroll Present
Tachanun with Torah Scroll: Sun., Tues., Wed., Fri. 
To say tachanun on Sundays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, when a Torah scroll is present:
  • Say Va'yomer David sitting down, while resting your head on your left arm (unless you are wearing tefilin on your left arm, in which case lean onto your right arm). 
Note Rest your head on your left arm even if you are left-handed. Some type of cloth should separate your face and your arm when doing this, but if your arm is bare and you don't have a talit or other garment with which to cover your arm, you do not need to put your head down at all. There is no problem with not being permitted to put your face on your bare arm, just that there is no point in doing so.
  • When you reach shomer Yisrael, lift your head up and sit normally while saying the paragraphs until v'anachnu lo neida ma na'aseh.
  • Before saying “na'aseh,” stand up for the remainder of tachanun.
Tachanun with Torah Scroll: Mon., Thur.
To say tachanun on Mondays and Thursdays, when a Torah scroll is present:
  • Say tachanun standing until Va'yomer David... at which time, everyone sits down.
  • Follow the directions above for the remainder of tachanun.
 
Tachanun If No Torah Scroll
Put your head down only if there is a Torah scroll in the room.  When you say tachanun in a room in which there is no Torah scroll, sit for the first part (without resting your head on your arm), remaining sitting for shomer yisrael..., then stand for va'anachnu lo neida.
For more about putting your head down for Tachanun, see Tachanun.


Hallel
  • When hallel is said, most of the psalms are said quietly by everyone.  (In some synagogues, several of the psalms are sung in unison.)
  • The lines beginning Hodu l'adonai... are read aloud by the leader.
  • Everyone else responds aloud, Hodu l'adonai... and reads quietly the next line (which the leader then reads aloud when they finish).
  • Similarly, Ana adonai is read responsively by the leader, followed by everyone else.
 
Kaddish
The leader says kaddish out loud.
 
Torah Reading (Mondays and Thursdays)
  • Everyone reads quietly the phrases va'yehi be'nso'a... and brich shmei.
  • The Torah is taken out and carried to the bima.
  • As each man (called an oleh) is called up to the Torah:
    • The oleh says Bar'chu...
    • Everyone responds Baruch Adonai....,
    • The oleh repeats that line and says a blessing.
    • Everyone answers amen.
  • After each reading, the oleh says one more blessing and everyone replies amen.
  • After the third aliya, the Torah is lifted up.
  • Everyone says, V'zot haTorah....
  • The Torah is rolled and wrapped.
  • Meanwhile, the leader reads four paragraphs beginning, Yehi ratzon mi'lifnei avinu...
  • The final paragraph, Acheinu kol bet yisrael... is read by everyone aloud.
  • The Torah is put back while everyone reads two psalms quietly.
 
Ashrei/U'va L'Tzion
  • Everyone reads ashrei quietly, followed by la'menatzeiach and u'va l'tziyon.
  • Everyone together says, Kadosh, kadosh, kadosh and Baruch kevod.
 
Kaddish
The leader says kaddish.
 
Alenu
Everyone says alenu together.
 
Kaddish
Mourners say kaddish.
 
Psalm for the Day
Psalm for that day is read by everyone.
 
Kaddish
One more kaddish is said by the mourners.
 
L'David
  • During Elul and into Tishrei, L'David is read by everyone.
  • One more kaddish is said by the mourners.
 
Praying Ma'ariv
 
V'hu Rachum
Everyone reads the two introductory lines of v'hu rachum.
 
Bar'chu
  • Leader says bar'chu.
  • Everyone else responds, baruch Adonai....
  • The leader repeats that line.
  • Everyone reads the next paragraph/blessing.
  • The leader says that final line out loud.
  • Everyone responds amen.
Note Don't say baruch hu u'varuch shemo at all during ma'ariv.
 
Shema and Its Blessings
  • The leader repeats the final two words of the shema and the word emet.
  • Everyone continues quietly saying the phrases until Mi chamocha.
  • Mi chamocha is said by everyone together including by the leader, who then also reads the next line.
  • Everyone says Adonai yimloch... together, continuing through the end of the next blessing, which is repeated by the leader.
  • Everyone says hashkiveinu quietly.
  • The leader says the blessing shomer amo Yisrael la'ad out loud.
  • Baruch Adonai l'olam... is said through to the end by everyone quietly.
  • The leader says the final line and the final blessing out loud.
Note Baruch Adonai l'olam is not said in Eretz Yisrael.
 
Kaddish
The leader says kaddish.
 
Amida
Everyone says the amida silently and individually.
 
Kaddish
The leader says kaddish.
 
Alenu
Everyone says alenu together.
 
Kaddish
Kaddish is said by any mourners.