May these words of Torah serve as a merit le’iluy nishmat Menachem Mendel ben Harav Yoel David Balk, a”h, and Meira Chaya Nechama Beracha, a”h, bat Reb David Mordechai Fishel, sheyichyeh.
This week we learned Chullin 93. These are some highlights.
Would we allow nikur?
Our Gemara teaches about membranes and strands of fat of the animal that are prohibited. The shochet or butcher needs to carefully cut these fats out of the animal, nikur, in order to prepare kosher meat. Rama (Yoreh Dei’ah 64:7) points out that the order of nikur is complicated. One needs to learn it from an expert by observing how he does nikur; these are matters that cannot be learned from books. Rama adds that virtually all these fats are found in the rear of the animal, and the front two legs of the animals hardly have any problematic fats or membranes. Based on the Rama, Be’eir Heitev (s”k 7) says that there are those who will not eat the rear legs of an animal. Yeshuot Yaakov (s”k 2) writes in the name of the Maharshal that those who fear God have a custom not to eat the meat from the rear of the animal. In the United States, almost all shochtim do not perform nikur and the meat of the rear of the animal is sold to gentiles.
Rav Moshe Feinstein (Igrot Moshe, Yoreh Dei’ah Cheilek Bet Siman 42) was asked about a business that would supply meat to cruise ships. They needed to supply a lot of meat. They wished to supply meat from the rear of the animal in addition to meat from the front of the animal. They had a shochet who had undergone training with an expert and had a letter attesting to his expertise in nikur. Were they allowed to rely on the shochet and perform nikur to remove all the forbidden fats, membranes and sinews? Rav Moshe rules that they are allowed to rely on the expert and to perform nikur. There is no custom prohibiting nikur. In many locations we did not perform nikur because we did not have to. We had gentiles available who were willing to purchase the rear legs of the animals. Since nikur is tedious and difficult, we would merely sell the rear to the gentiles. Therefore, when there is a great need one can rely on the expert and we can perform nikur. Rav Moshe adds that unfortunately there are some Jews who because they want to eat the meat of the rear of the animal and they cannot get such meat from kosher butchers, purchase non-kosher meat from gentiles. Perhaps enabling nikur by an expert will save these Jews from eating non-kosher. One might argue that we should not care about such Jews and their eating habits. They are allowing an urge for a particular taste to lead them to great sin. We should not change what we do to try to accomodate them. This is a true argument. Nevertheless, Rav Moshe points out that these people are feeding the treif meat to their children. Their children have not committed any sins and deserve to eat kosher. To enable the children to eat kosher we can allow an expert in nikur to perform nikur and thereby make these desirable cuts of meat available.
Rav Moshe emphasizes that this permission is only granted if the kosher meat producer has expert menakrim available. However, we may not send meat to Israel for nikur and then use it. If we would send meat to Israel, it would not be salted within the three first days of its slaughter. Even when you freeze meat, it should be salted within the first three days of its slaughter and we should not eat meat that was not salted within the first three days. (Mesivta)
By Rabbi Zev Reichman
Rabbi Zev Reichman teaches Daf Yomi in his shul, East Hill Synagogue.
