Comments on: Get Your Quinoa Now!

By: Joe Stein

Joe Stein — Sat, 19 Apr 2008 04:47:58 +0000

First of all, Corn and rice were not even sources of food during the Exodus and enslavement in Egypt. I am sephardic and proud of the richness of its cuisine. Even the Israeli army permit the “banned legumes”.

By: elf

elf — Wed, 28 Mar 2007 13:25:06 +0000

Gluten-Free By the Bay: Please post your recipe. Most of us still eat quinoa on Pesach. (Nice blog, btw.)

By: Gluten-Free By The Bay

Gluten-Free By The Bay — Tue, 27 Mar 2007 22:38:43 +0000

Oy vey - There goes the nice quinoa burger recipe I was going to post on my blog for Pesach. Count me as another gluten-free and nearly-vegetariain Jew who has enough dietary restrictions already. What next?

By: Michael Rogovin

Michael Rogovin — Thu, 14 Sep 2006 13:41:47 +0000

don’t know who uh huh is, but he or she, while entitled to his/her opinion, but that does not mean that the halacha is settled or uniform. Certainly many halachic decisors in the hashrut business. the Chicago CRC, Bergan County RCBC, OK Labs, and others, do NOT accept uh huh’s halachic reasoning. Given their known credentials and uh huh’s unknown, I go with them: quinoa is not kitniyos. Indeed, there are opions that kitniyos is limited to only those items already declared as such and nothing new can be added.

What grains are permitted and prohibited or are kiniyos is subject to much controversy among poskim, with many learned and reliable people coming down on different sides. There are also arguments about whether oats are truely one of the five grains that are prohibited (which would mean that (a) it is not chametz - whether it would be kitniyos or not is unclear, and (b) matza made from oats does not fulfill the mitzva.

Having said that, please note my earlier post on some brands not being acceptable for pesach.

By: Howard

Howard — Wed, 13 Sep 2006 16:30:35 +0000

Wow, “uh huh”, thanks for explaining all of that to me. Now that you mention all of it, that is really simple. In fact, I’m kinda puzzled as to how anybody could disagree with any of that. Thank goodness we can finally move to complete unanimity and uniformity in interpretation of Jewish law - just like in the time of our sages! Oh… nevermind that.

I also now fully understand why a grain-like grass such as quinoa should be classified as kitniyot… it’s because one could make a bread-like substance out of it (not because there is a clear set of rules for identifying a product as belonging to this class). This is particularly enlightening to me since it helps me to understand why other products such as mustard and string beans have been prohibited too. Gotta avoid making a bread-like substance out of some green vegetable and condiments. Of course, this also explains why potatoes and potato starch are prohibited for consumption on Passover. Hold on… you mean that potato starch is okay? Oh… nevermind.

Of course, what I really appreciate in your post, “uh huh,” isn’t how enlightening it is, or how simple you have made things seem. What I really respect is your completely pleasant demeanor and utter lack of condescending tone as manifested in your post. Thank you for giving me an opportunity to emulate that.

By: uh huh

uh huh — Wed, 13 Sep 2006 13:12:33 +0000

Some of the posters on here are amazing. Here’s the run down and it’s very simple. Kitnios were prohibited in Ashkenaz and most Sephard countries. The initial reason was that some might see bread being made out of them and become lax in the observance of refraining from other, real breads. Just like the people bickering on here about quinoa, an excellent gluten free whole grain during the year but most likely kitnios based on the above, there would have been people with little knowledge and correspondingly, a lot of hot headed opinions (Don’t those two things always go together?), saying these kinds of bread are permitted so what’s the big deal about eating real bread. Other rabbonim, such as those in Morocco didn’t see that as a problem. Once the decree is made it is (by a majority of sages of the country - pre shulchan aruch - when there was a level of ruach hakodesh - and even now concerning emergency takanos) as stringent as Torah Law because the Torah says to listen to the Sages - lo sosur min hadovor yomin us’mol(the only difference being that in the case of a sofek we go lechumrah on a d’oraisa and l’kulo on a d’rabbanan - also only because this is the will of Torah)

Therefore if you have a minhag - and Minhag Yisrael Torah Hi - to not eat kitnios, this includes all grains that would logically fall into that category. So much for an “ever expanding list.” lol - Some grains have only become widely available recently and the rabbonim have simply restated the obvious about them. If you have a minhag to eat kitnios then again, for you Minhag Yisrael Torah Hi and that is your minhag and this whole discussion is of no relevance to you.

If you are vegetarian (I hope for health reasons only and even then some meat once a week - poultry - is good and beneficial) then you can get protein from eggs, fish, nuts, milk, etc. If you are vegan the choices are less but that isn’t a healthy lifestyle anyway and many vegans consume high amounts of gluten (in wheat products, white rice, etc.) which is not beneficial for many people.

By: SA

SA — Thu, 03 Aug 2006 23:32:47 +0000

There are other grains which I believe fall in the same halachic category as Quinoa in regard to Pesach.
The following other grains should also be investigated to see if they are able to be used on Pesach: amaranth, teff, Job’s tears,and sorghum

By: Aseh L'cha Rav

Aseh L'cha Rav — Thu, 22 Jun 2006 13:16:14 +0000

The issue of kitnyot itself is problematic today in the age of knowledge, understanding, and technology in agricultural sciences. Why is it that the ashkenazim of the world interpret “chadesh yameinu k’kedem” as “we’d like to go back to the days of the shtetl and our ignorance of agricultural matters”? Why is it that we’ve taken religion and “enhanced” it by taking on chumrah on top of chumrah. Let’s get back to basics and remember that minhagim and chumrot must have a basis in halacha (lest it be called a minhag shoteh) and we are commanded “v’chai bahem” (live by them). It’s far easier to blindly claim that something is assur than it is to appreciate WHY and HOW something is mutar. We must not be lazy in these matters.

All that said, is it because quinoa was unheard of in the shtetl in Poland the reason why it’s being deemed assur?

This argument, of course, applies to many more areas in our lives. Recall that halacha is static but the application of halacha is dynamic with society, locale, and technological age. Consider that we still say the bracha of “borei pri ha’adama” for hydroponically grown tomatoes - technology DOES meet with halacha and they get along just fine.

By: Safler

Safler — Mon, 01 May 2006 02:53:03 +0000

I am allergic to wheat and so became interested in quinoa years ago as a Pesach alternative. This was before Spelt Matza became widely available. When I asked the sheilah back then, I was told that no one had ruled on it, so go ahead but check the grains before chag. I spent the next several years worried that it would be declared kitnios until Rav Blumenkrantz included it in his guide as not kitnios, complete with an article attesting to why. I hope he sticks with his assertion. Perhaps that will slow the chumra wildfire. There is never a shortage of those who strive to make our lives more difficult and to drive a deeper wedge between their brand of Orthodoxy and the rest of the world. The irony is that there are so many non-gebrochts cookies, cakes and even pizza and pasta. And even more “normal” foods if you don’t hold non-gebrochts.

By: elf

elf — Wed, 12 Apr 2006 22:44:28 +0000

debrag said:
if it IS your custom to eat quinoa, nothing a rabbi says can change that. Minhag hamakom legitimizes the practice that is mederabanan, not medeoraita.

That is true in principle, but in practice new chumrot can take hold of a community very quickly. No one wants to be the only Jew in town lenient enough to eat Whatever.

Renegade Kosher said:
This is an attack on vegan/vegitarian Jews, I just know it. ANY time any food becomes popular that actually gives them protien during passover, someone has to come along and try to make it trafe.

The CJLS (Conservative) allows vegetarians to eat kitniyot on Pesach if they consider it vital to their health. I know that most people here don’t rely on Conservative positions, but if you are vegan and your veganism is more important to you than a questionable Ashkenazi custom, it’s worth seeking out a rabbi (Orthodox or whatever) who is likely to be sympathetic to your point of view. At the very least, I would think that you could get a heter to ignore more recent additions to the kitniyot list. (Communities that are very strict about these things tend not to have many vegan members.)

For ovo-lacto vegetarians, I think there’s plenty to eat for one week. You just have to be creative with eggs and various cheeses. (Ricotta is very useful.) Consider it a challenge!

Chocolate lady: Nice site!

OC & Amphipod girl: I’ve never heard of the cashew issue, either. Are they considered OK in the US?

Chag kasher v’sameach to all!