OU KASHRUT RABBI EZRA FRIEDMAN PAGE BY Director, The Gustave & Carol Jacobs Center for Kashrut Education
Waiting After Hard Cheese Part 2
na tzehuba” (literally “yellow cheese”) is one of the most widely-used products today. Its aging process is much shorter, and in addition, it contains additives and oils to enhance flavor, shelf life, and ease of use in cooked dishes.
I
Modern authorities debate if these modern cheeses should be considered like classic hard cheese and therefore require a waiting period before the consumption of meat. Rav Shmuel Halevi Wozner (Shevet Halevi 2:35) ruled that regular processed cheese is considered hard and one must wait six hours before consuming meat. His ruling is based on the fact that some processed cheeses are objectively quite hard, while others, as a result of prolonged shelf life, reach the age of six months and then might be halachically considered hard.
n last week’s article, we discussed the basic halacha regarding hard cheese. In the next few articles, we will expand on many important and practical details of this halacha. As explained last week, the requirement to wait after eating hard cheese before eating meat or poultry is based on two reasons: the hardness itself and the pungent flavor. Authorities were concerned that some foods either stick in one’s teeth or have a residual taste in the mouth and throat. Those factors are the basis for the laws of waiting between meat and milk, so this logic is extended to eating hard cheese as well. In general, high-quality hard cheese fermentation has not changed, as the classic aging process is still necessary to create the desired product. However, some cheese production has changed over the centuries, and with it many questions have arisen regarding the halachic status of new and innovative products. Modern processed cheese including Israeli “gevi42
TORAH TIDBITS / ACHAREI MOT - KEDOSHIM 5780
Rav Yosef Shalom Elyashiv, as quoted in numerous articles (Kovetz Tshuvot 1:58, Hilchot Chag Bechag Shavuot note 111), was also stringent, claiming that perhaps the flavor of the cheese is quite strong and therefore one must wait. Rav Elyashiv’s opinion is based on the fact that we follow both reasons regarding hard cheese: the firmness and the pronounced flavor. Rav Shlomo Zalman Auerbach (Halichot Shlomo 1,12:13) also addressed the issue and ruled stringently on processed
