# What is so kosher about a kosher dill pickle? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 14, 2006, 1:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-so-kosher-about-a-kosher-dill-pickle/348306 "2006-03-14T13:26:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![VunderBob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/839c29/32.png) [@VunderBob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VunderBob)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2006, 1:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-so-kosher-about-a-kosher-dill-pickle/348306/1 "2006-03-14T13:26:20Z")
My meager understanding of Jewish dietary law is that of an outsider. As I see it, the law applies to meat and animal products, such as milk. Not a peep about plant matter. With that in mind, is a kosher dill pickle really kosher, compared and contrasted to Polish or zesty dills? Or is this a matter of naming? ---
**Author:** ![crowmanyclouds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crowmanyclouds/32/19884_2.png) [@crowmanyclouds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crowmanyclouds)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2006, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-so-kosher-about-a-kosher-dill-pickle/348306/2 "2006-03-14T13:57:34Z")
Garlic, [ > [@](#): > > Here is an overview of the various kinds of pickles and pickled peppers available: > > ``` > Dill: Dill is the most popular variety of cucumber pickle. Herb dill or dill oil is added to impart a distinctive and refreshing flavor. There are many types of dill pickles, including: > > * Genuine Dill - These pickles are made by the slow "processed" method. Dill weed is added to the tanks during the last stage of fermentation or to the jar after fermentation. These pickles usually have a higher lactic acid flavor than other varieties. > > * Kosher Dill - In pickle lingo, "kosher" means garlic has been added to the brine. More robust than regular dill pickles, kosher dills are the ultimate accompaniment to an overstuffed deli sandwich. > > * Overnight Dill - Cukes are placed fresh into brine (which may include a slight amount of vinegar) for a very short time -- one to two days. The entire process takes place under refrigeration, and they stay refrigerated when stored and shipped. The bright green pickles taste like fresh cucumbers accented with dill flavor. They are the kind of pickle you usually find at a deli. > > * Other types of dills include Polish and German style. > > ``` ]([http://ilovepickles.org/articles/pickleprimer.html](http://ilovepickles.org/articles/pickleprimer.html)) CMC fnord! ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2006, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-so-kosher-about-a-kosher-dill-pickle/348306/3 "2006-03-14T14:05:46Z")
See also “kosher salt” – [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kosher\_salt:](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kosher_salt:) > [@](#): > > This salt gets its name not from following the guidelines of kosher foods as written in the Torah but rather because of its usage for making meats kosher by helping to extract the blood from the meat. Nearly all salt is kosher, including ordinary table salt. Kosher salt grains are larger than regular table salt grains, so when meats are coated in kosher salt, the salt does not dissolve readily. The salt remains on the surface of the meat longer, allowing fluids to leach out of the meat. ---
**Author:** ![mks57](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b9bd4f/32.png) [@mks57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mks57)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2006, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-so-kosher-about-a-kosher-dill-pickle/348306/4 "2006-03-14T14:42:36Z")
> [@VunderBob](#): > > My meager understanding of Jewish dietary law is that of an outsider. As I see it, the law applies to meat and animal products, such as milk. Not a peep about plant matter. > > With that in mind, is a kosher dill pickle really kosher, compared and contrasted to Polish or zesty dills? Or is this a matter of naming? It’s kosher if it’s certified kosher by a rabbinic authority, like the Orthodox Union. For the OU, look for the letter U inside a circle on the label. Other groups have their own distinctive marks. For pickles, the vinegar is an issue. If the vinegar isn’t kosher, the pickles are not going to be kosher. Vinegar produced from non-kosher wine is not kosher. For any food product, even if it is made from plant matter, there is the issue of ingredients and additives, which may be non-kosher. There is also the issue of the machinery and equipment used to produce the product. For some things, not every ingredient is listed on the label, or it’s listed in a generic manner. ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2006, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-so-kosher-about-a-kosher-dill-pickle/348306/5 "2006-03-14T18:18:07Z")
> [@mks57](#): > > For pickles, the vinegar is an issue. If the vinegar isn’t kosher, the pickles are not going to be kosher. Vinegar produced from non-kosher wine is not kosher. > > For any food product, even if it is made from plant matter, there is the issue of ingredients and additives, which may be non-kosher. There is also the issue of the machinery and equipment used to produce the product. Pickles also are commonly made with polysorbate 80, which can be of either animal or vegetable origin depending on the manufacturer. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2006, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-so-kosher-about-a-kosher-dill-pickle/348306/6 "2006-03-14T18:49:06Z")
See also the words of our patron: [Are kosher pickles really kosher?](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a1_351.html) I quoteth: > [@](#): > > Some of the confusion about pickles, I suppose, arises from the assumption that the Torah doesn’t have much to say about them-- pickles are, after all, basically vegetables, which the dietary laws don’t cover. But modern science has stepped in to cloud the issue. Polysorbates, derived from animal fat, are sometimes added to the pickle brine as an emulsifier. Anything derived from animals, no matter how remotely, is covered by the laws. ---
**Author:** ![crowmanyclouds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crowmanyclouds/32/19884_2.png) [@crowmanyclouds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crowmanyclouds)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2006, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-so-kosher-about-a-kosher-dill-pickle/348306/7 "2006-03-14T19:04:37Z")
Soo, I could get; a pickle, a kosher pickle, a “kosher” pickle, or a kosher “kosher” pickle, but,[“I don’t want a pickle Just want to ride on my motorsickle…”](http://www.arlo.net/lyrics/motorcycle-arlo.shtml) ;j ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2006, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-so-kosher-about-a-kosher-dill-pickle/348306/8 "2006-03-14T19:31:48Z")
> [@crowmanyclouds](#): > > a kosher pickle, > a “kosher” pickle, or > a kosher “kosher” pickle ;j If it is labeled as a kosher pickle, it better be kosher. It’s not just a marketing concept, it must meet the definitions in law. ---
**Author:** ![al129](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/6de8d8/32.png) [@al129](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/al129)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2006, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-so-kosher-about-a-kosher-dill-pickle/348306/9 "2006-03-14T20:45:21Z")
also bear in mind that its not just the ingredients … its also the production process … so you must e.g. guarantee that no menstruating woman was touching the pickle … wait - there is a joke in there somewhere… ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2006, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-so-kosher-about-a-kosher-dill-pickle/348306/10 "2006-03-14T21:14:51Z")
> [@al129](#): > > its also the production process … so you must e.g. guarantee that no menstruating woman was touching the pickle The production process is important to producing kosher food, but I’ve never heard that a menstruating woman touching kosher food renders it non-kosher. 😕 (and I keep kosher- I’m pretty sure I would know if that were one of the rules) I would think you’d want to minimize the number of people who touch the food just for sanitary reasons, but that wouldn’t be just for kosher food. What they do look for in the production process for most foods is that no non-kosher ingredients (pork, shellfish, etc) or stuff derived from non-kosher ingredients or from a mixture of dairy and meat products are used. They also ensure that equipment used to process kosher food isn’t also being used to process non-kosher food, as the non-kosher food might leave a residue on the equipment. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2006, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-so-kosher-about-a-kosher-dill-pickle/348306/11 "2006-03-15T01:04:50Z")
In the US, it’s important to remember the distinction between something labeled “Kosher” and something labeled “Kosher-style” The former means it really is kosher. The latter means with the same ingredients, but without the concern as to whether or not those ingredients actually are kosher. So it tastes the same, but may not be kosher. ---
**Author:** ![Eleusis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Eleusis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eleusis)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2006, 11:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-so-kosher-about-a-kosher-dill-pickle/348306/12 "2006-03-15T11:08:13Z")
Since the OP has been answered, can I tag along for a second? > [@](#): > > (pork, shellfish, etc) So, never anything from a pig, ever, right? No bacon. I assumed that much… but… “shellfish”… that means no lobster, crab, or even oysters? Do oysters count? ---
**Author:** ![pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a9a28c/32.png) [@pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pseudotriton_ruber_ruber)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2006, 11:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-so-kosher-about-a-kosher-dill-pickle/348306/13 "2006-03-15T11:34:14Z")
> [@Eleusis](#): > > Since the OP has been answered, can I tag along for a second? > So, never anything from a pig, ever, right? No bacon. > > I assumed that much… but… > > “shellfish”… that means no lobster, crab, or even oysters? > > Do oysters count? Why do you think they call them OYsters? ---
**Author:** ![calm\_kiwi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9fc348/32.png) [@calm\_kiwi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/calm_kiwi)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2006, 11:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-so-kosher-about-a-kosher-dill-pickle/348306/14 "2006-03-15T11:40:09Z")
I have nothing useful to add but on my first night as housekeeper/cook on a Moshav in Israel, I made lasagne for dinner…opps. The family ate it graciously but I got my first ever lesson about Kosher. ---
**Author:** ![VunderBob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/839c29/32.png) [@VunderBob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VunderBob)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2006, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-so-kosher-about-a-kosher-dill-pickle/348306/15 "2006-03-15T12:59:20Z")
I have to concede the point on additives like polysorbate 80. I’ve made dill pickles at home, which consisted of cucumbers, vinegar, dill, garlic, and salt. Nothing in that list would violate the kosher designation to my meager knowledge, and therefore is/was the root of my befuddlement. ---
**Author:** ![Cartooniverse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cartooniverse/32/3084_2.png) [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2006, 1:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-so-kosher-about-a-kosher-dill-pickle/348306/16 "2006-03-15T13:15:21Z")
> [@calm kiwi](#): > > I have nothing useful to add but on my first night as housekeeper/cook on a Moshav in Israel, I made lasagne for dinner…opps. The family ate it graciously but I got my first ever lesson about Kosher. Pity it wasn’t vegitarian lasagne. They would have adored you. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2006, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-so-kosher-about-a-kosher-dill-pickle/348306/17 "2006-03-15T14:15:32Z")
> [@Eleusis](#): > > “shellfish”… that means no lobster, crab, or even oysters? > > Do oysters count? I believe seafood must have scales and gills to be kosher. ;j ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2006, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-so-kosher-about-a-kosher-dill-pickle/348306/18 "2006-03-15T15:51:23Z")
> [@VunderBob](#): > > I have to concede the point on additives like polysorbate 80. I’ve made dill pickles at home, which consisted of cucumbers, vinegar, dill, garlic, and salt. Nothing in that list would violate the kosher designation to my meager knowledge, and therefore is/was the root of my befuddlement. The containers used to mix the ingredients – were they ritually clean? Had any single container, bowl, spoon, etc, been used in the past for both meat and dairy? ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2006, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-so-kosher-about-a-kosher-dill-pickle/348306/19 "2006-03-15T16:02:54Z")
> [@Eleusis](#): > > Since the OP has been answered, can I tag along for a second? > So, never anything from a pig, ever, right? No bacon. > > I assumed that much… but… > > “shellfish”… that means no lobster, crab, or even oysters? > > Do oysters count? No oysters. Of the things that are in the waters, anything that has both fins and scales in kosher. See Lev. 11:9 and Deut. 14:9. No lobsters, shrimp, clams, mollusks, octopus, squid, or crabs. In general, if it’s an ordinary fish – tuna, bass, halibut, carp, salmon, herring, even minnows – it’s fine. Land mammals – in general, any animal that has cloven hooves and chews its cud is fine. See Lev. 11:3 and Deut. 14:6. Cows, buffalo, sheep, goat, elk, and deer are all kosher. Any land mammal that does not have both of these qualities is _trefe_. The Torah specifically mentions that camels, rabbits, and pigs are not kosher because each lacks one of these two characteristics. Note that for land mammals, not only must the animal itself be kosher, must it must be butchered in the correct ritual manner. Slaughtering a cow incorrectly can render the meat unkosher. A _shochet_, a pious and learned butcher, is necessary to at least oversee this process. Birds are a more difficult category, but unless someone’s specifically interested, I won’t type all the bird rules out. ---
**Author:** ![VunderBob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/839c29/32.png) [@VunderBob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VunderBob)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2006, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-so-kosher-about-a-kosher-dill-pickle/348306/20 "2006-03-15T16:19:20Z")
> [@Bricker](#): > > The containers used to mix the ingredients – were they ritually clean? Had any single container, bowl, spoon, etc, been used in the past for both meat and dairy? :dubious: What’s the point? I’m not Jewish, and I’m not claiming my homemades are kosher. I was asking about commercial products… [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-so-kosher-about-a-kosher-dill-pickle/348306.md?page=2)