Comments on: TastyBite Ready-Made Indian Cuisine

By: Shmuel Robinson

Shmuel Robinson — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 20:03:47 +0000

I hope you all don’t mind me joining your discussion. I really enjoy Indian food, but Kosher Indian food is so hard to come by. Making my own would be the best alternative, but even some of the spices are hard to find. Tasty bite seemed like a viable option. I follow the Star-K, so I contacted them. The Star-K recommended against this product.

With that said, does anyone know of a brand of prepared Indian food that does have a more universally accepted hashgacha?

Or, on a different note, is there any possibility that the KIS is taking action to gain more worldwide acceptance?

By: Baruch Horowitz

Baruch Horowitz — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 16:27:43 +0000

TYPO : e-mail address correction: betyosef6000@hotmail.com

By: Baruch Horowitz

Baruch Horowitz — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 12:35:19 +0000

B’Seyata D’Shemya - Providence. A commentator above stated, “don’t open a can of worms.” Would all of you like to eat blindly without ever knowing the truth about the rabbi? Are you really that hard-up for new foods? #5 nonmevushalmarc lives in a barren wasteland and the reason for that is that a rabbi that tried to make things right a number of years ago got stomped on by his own “orthodox” colleagues and community and left him with a bad reputation. I would eat anything this symbol appeared on without question. A hechsher this rabbi help start got stomped on by a biased individual on this site who undoubtedly never did too much research but called it unreliable. Did that individual bother to find out if the organization has poskim? Not everything that glistens is golden that goes with all kashrut agencies. A good reputation means that you keep your nose clean and out of trouble, don’t ruffle any feathers otherwise your goose is cooked. I would like a lot more scrutiny on the major hashgachot and then you won’t be so quick to down the somewhat smaller ones.

By: Craig Winchell

Craig Winchell — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 05:29:12 +0000

BS”D

So Baruch, what’s your point? Or is it just a random rant about kashrus?

By: Baruch Horowitz

Baruch Horowitz — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 03:46:33 +0000

When did Rabbi Dovid Jenkins who runs the Half Moon K located in California from Passaic NJ (I love long distance relationships) become the epitome of kashrus decisors? He worked for Kof K then got bounced out, worked at the cRc got bounced out and then bought into the Half Moon K after Rabbi Chaim Hisiger (now in NY) left. People, please wake up and smell the roses. Most of you eat from the KVH (Mass Vaad) that has had bakeries open on Shabbat for years. How come Kellogg’s went OU was the KVH not acceptable enough? The only reason you hold by the OU is because you have been mentalty inundated with the OU since you were small. In Israel amongst the American’s that are in-the-know OU is NOT accepted. The OU is not a Mehadrin service and never was. One of the top three hashgachot (B’Datz Mehadrin) in Israel, its director used to be associated with the OU; how come he broke off ties with the OU years ago. There were full page articles in all the newspapers in Israel but all if us were sheltered from it but I got plenty of e-mails with scans of all the articles. How is it the local Mehadrin kashrut agencies located in Israel state on a good many of their products “only for usage during the year” while the OU that only has a handful of people in Israel marks on these same products “OU P” Kosher for Passover? Am I missing something here or are we all?
You blow your nose and you say,”pass me a Kleenex(R),” (Kimberly-Clark), pass me the Coke(R) (Coca-Cola) even it is a an RC cola product. Xerox(R) this for me please but you are using a HP(R) another well-known brand. As kosher consumers we have become so accustomed with the OU and the other more prominent symbols that we no longer question the reliability of their kashrut; are we that trusting or that stupid? You throw stones at the Shield Star K as you are unfamiliar with it and the Triangle K as you feel he is too lenient; where are you getting your facts from? The Tablet K, I would not touch with a lengthy pole.(you are welcome to ask me off the blog). You are getting your facts from other rabbis who are most likely actively involved in kashrut is some way and they are called “no-gaya badavar.” If they don’t like the way the guys parts his hair or for whatever reason they won’t tell you nice things about him. Coca-Cola for many years was fine till the people at the OK wanted it and then the OU eyed it and now it is the OU’s. I wonder how all of that came about - surely no lashon hara was spoken as it isn’t kosher. How about all those years that some of us enjoyed Drakes Cake under the Triangle K and even the yeshivish crowd ate them at least those that were not concerned about Chalav Yisrael; wonder how they became presto chango to OU? How is it the Star K was started in 1947 but there is no history of the Star K existing before then why is that? It is because it never existed only in someone’s head not on paper. Why did the OU retract its hashgacha on ELAL meals; did any of you know that? DO NOT LOOK at the Chief Rabbinate of Israel as a ruler stick where kashrut is concerned as it is a political body and its agenda is to make money for the gov’t. The religious / kashrut observant communities in Israel DO NOT rely on the Rabbanut for anything. Israel is the only country in the world that descriminates on what is legitimately kosher in other parts of the world and rejects them from entering the country. Kashrut is a BIG MONEY business people. The author of this blog is not in kashrut so I will give him the benefit of doubt but cashews and raisins have to be thoroughly checked for infestation ESPECIALLY coming from India. India is best known for Basmati rice and the rice has been found with dark spots; what are those dark spots? Those innocent chick peas can also be infested so someone has to check them too. If we are presently having problems with infestation in our part of the world where it isn’t all that warm and a perfect climate for breeding insects (e coli is a different story), India is a perfect breeding ground for a lot of things as it is constantly hot and the water supply is less than desirable. Mashgichim that have come back from India have become violently sick and one almost died (chas v’shalom) last week in Israel.
For those of you having a dispute over the usage of the Aleph Bet hashgacha should ask themselves a few questions. Does this rabbi have a full-time mashgiach present to check all the vegetables, nuts, raisins and other items that go into these products? Since there is a very small observant community in India who is doing the checking of these two production facilities to make sure they are adherent to strict kashrut standards? I know the answers, it is you that need to ponder these questions over and then answer them considering what you know is required to maintain proper kashrut standards especially with the ingredients involved that is if you care. As my friend would always sign off, I too sign off with Caveat Emptor!!
(betyosef600@hotmail.com)

By: Harlan

Harlan — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 21:26:28 +0000

Well, it would seem the question at issue is whether TastyBite Indian and Thai food bearing the KIS are considered Kosher by R.Jenkins.

By: Rebecca Friedman

Rebecca Friedman — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 17:26:32 +0000

I have no problem revealing my full name, as well as the name of the frum Kashrus supervisor I asked about this hecksher. The primary goal is to find out if one can rely on a certain hecksher, and I am happy to pass along the information.
Rabbi Dovid Jenkins of Passaic NJ (where I live) and who now runs the Half Moon K has said that Kosher Inspection Service products are Kosher on an item-by-item basis. He is willing to be consulted on this issue. To save him the bother of being asked by many different people, please email me directly if you would like to get input from him on particular products. As a Kosher and mostly vegetarian chef, I am personally delighted to learn that there are ANY Indian or Thai product s under supervision. Please, no more comments on reliability. I have provided my own contact information, as well as the name and supervising agency I will consult, and you can either rely on that information or not.

Best,
Rebecca
rebeccafriedman@yahoo.com

By: Craig Winchell

Craig Winchell — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 16:26:10 +0000

BS”D

I don’t see what the big deal is. We don’t discuss triangle-K anymore, we don’t discuss the tablet-K on Cabot and other cheese, Gorton’s of Glouscester and VanderKamp’s fish sticks anymore, we just recognize that many among us don’t hold by those hechsherim in certain cases or in all cases. Is this any different? Those who hold by KIS will no doubt continue to do so, and those who don’t won’t. So why devote so much space and energy to this? You ask people who you trust, and come to your own conclusions. There’s nothing to be gained anymore except baiting. It probably deserved one comment about the nonuniversality of support for the hechsher, but not the endless haranguing. I know, coming from me, who will argue ad infinitem given the chance, it sounds a little strange.

By: Howard

Howard — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 15:54:44 +0000

KIS is the Indian Kosher Inspection Service.

Little known fact - the religious Jewish community in India is splintered on whether to accept this hecksher. Some do. Those who don’t will only accept the other Indian heckshers. They eat very little.

By: Milhouse

Milhouse — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 15:53:27 +0000

The same Bombay hechsher that’s on TastyBite’s Indian products. The one we’ve been going round and round about.