Kitniyot: Difference between revisions

== Reason for prohibition ==

*The Smak (Rabbi Yitzchak of Korbol) explains that products of kitniyot appear like chametz products. For example, it can be hard to distinguish between rice flour (kitniyot) and wheat flour (chametz). Therefore, to prevent confusion, all kitniyot was prohibited.

*The Beit Yosef (Rabbi Yosef Karo, 16th century, Israel) notes that since regular grains may become mixed together with kitniyot (apparently due to changes in crop cycles), one may inadvertently come to eat actual chametz.

== Halachot of kitniyot ==

# The minhag to not eat kitnios begins on Erev [[Pesach]] at the same time that one may not eat chametz <ref> Shevet HaLevi III:31 citing Chok Yaakov 471:2, Rav Elyashiv quoted in Siddur Pesach Kihilchato 16:footnote 42 </ref>. Although one may not eat kitnios, one may own and derive benefit from kitnios. Therefore, on [[Pesach]] one may keep cans of sweet corn in their property or feed millet to their parrot. Additionally, children, people who are ill, and people whose diet is otherwise restricted and must eat kitnios, are excluded from the minhag and may do so after consulting with a Rav. This halacha is quite relevant to baby formulas and nutritional supplements (e.g. Ensure) which invariably contain kitnios, and are usually used by people who have few non-kitnios choices, if any. When such foods are used on [[Pesach]] they should be prepared in special non-Pesach and non-chametz utensils, which should not be washed with the [[Pesach]] dishes. <ref> http://www.kashrut.com/Passover/Kitniyot/</ref>

# Kitnios is batel b’rov, which means that if someone accidentally put kitnios into their [[Pesach]] food, the food is b’dieved permitted assuming the food contains more non-kitnios than kitnios <ref> Rema 453:1 as per Mishnah Berurah 453:9, Pri Chadash 453:1, Elya Rabbah 453:4, S"A Harav 453:5, Chayei Adam 127:1, Az Nedberu 8:20:4. </ref>. This means that although the food may have a pronounced taste of kitnios, the food is permitted (unless there are recognizable pieces of kitnios which haven’t been removed). Therefore, if a beverage is sweetened with aspartame made of kitnios shenishtaneh, even those people who hold that aspartame is forbidden (as explained above) may drink the beverage because the aspartame is batel b’rov in the other ingredients. Similarly, we have seen that there is a disagreement as to whether fenugreek is kitnios. Nonetheless, even those who follow the strict approach may consume maple syrup which is flavored with fenugreek (as it often is) because it is batel b’rov. Thus, although we’ve seen a number of disagreements as to whether certain foods are or aren’t kitnios, those disagreements are limited to one who wants to consume the actual item (or a hashgachah certifying someone else who is intentionally putting the ingredient into a food), but these disagreements rarely affect consumers. <ref> http://www.kashrut.com/Passover/Kitniyot/</ref>

# Some say that new tablecloths which may have been ironed with clothing starch, which could be made from Kitniyot, should be laundered in hot water in order to remove the starch. <ref>Nitai Gavriel (Pesach 77:17)</ref>

# Some poskim say that if a sephardi wants to eat kitniyot but his custom earlier was not to then he should perform a hatarat nedarim. <ref> Haggadah of Rav Elyashiv page 12 </ref>

==References==  

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