"Traditional Judaism injects sanctification into the ordinary habits of everyday life. Keeping kosher helps us pause and think about what we eat, and how we eat it, and elevates the act of eating."

What does it mean to keep kosher? Many may be familiar with the basics: no bacon, no shrimp, no cheeseburgers. But the Jewish dietary laws go deeper than that, and How to Keep Kosher explores the ins and outs. Why are some foods deemed kosher while others are not? Why can't you mix meat and dairy dishes? How do you turn a nonkosher kitchen into a kosher one? Do you really need multiple sets of everything -- dishes, pots, pans, and utensils? How do you keep track of what's what?

Whether you are thinking about adopting a kosher lifestyle or already have a kosher home and just want tounderstand what it is all about, Lisë Stern's How to Keep Kosher is essential reading. You will learn about the biblicaland historical origins of keeping kosher, the development of the kosher certification system, specific food preparation requirements for Shabbat, Passover, and otherholidays, and how to actually set up a kosher kitchen.

In straightforward language, drawing upon explanations from the Torah and Talmud, along with interviews with rabbis, academics, and laypeople who keep kosher, Lisë explores all aspects of Judaism's ancient dietary traditions as they are carried out in today's kitchen, with its range of modern appliances -- dishwashers, food processors, and microwave ovens. For the first time, one book explains both Conservative and Orthodox perspectives on kashrut, as well as opinions from other Jewish affiliations.

When Lisë was nine, her parents decided to make the change -- transform their home to a kosher one -- as a core part of their evolving commitment to Judaism. Because Lisë experienced the transition as a child and keeps a kosher home today, she is uniquely qualified to explain all aspects of this traditional practice.

Setting up a kosher kitchen lays the foundation for implementing the tradition; the proof is in the potato pudding. As Lisë notes, the Talmud says, "Room can always be found in one's stomach for sweet things," and the wealth of information is sweetened with more than forty recipes for Shabbat dinners and lunches as well as holiday and festival celebrations. Traditional recipes include Chicken Soup with My Mother's Ethereal Matzo Balls, Sliced Potato–Onion Kugel, and Hamantashen; new classics are Chilled Cucumber–Yogurt Soup, Rosemary Sweet Potato Kugel, Enchilada Lasagna, and Chocolate-Flecked Meringues.

Stern's How to Keep Kosher is an inclusive, user-friendly handbook filled with answers to the fundamental who, what, where, when, why, and how questions surrounding the Jewish dietary laws -- making these laws both accessible and appealing.

I have been keeping kosher since I was about nine years old. That's when my family made the switch, and I remember the elaborate changes that I objected to initially, changes that evolved into personally meaningful practices. As I was a child at the time I began keeping kosher, I just accepted the various laws of kashrut at face value, without questioning the source and reason -- this is just what we do. No pork, no meat with milk, only “kosher” meat -- meat that has been slaughtered according to the laws of shechita. Chicken, which many general cookbooks categorize separately from meat, is as fleishig as beef under Jewish dietary laws. Fish, however, is considered pareve, neither meat or dairy. Fish could be served before meat, but it couldn't be served with meat. And eggs, which come from chickens, are also pareve, and can be served with meat.

Yes, it is confusing, but I just filed away the rules and followed them. Later, however, I wanted to understand these dietary laws; I thought, it may be easier to understand the various laws of kashrut if I had a better sense of where they came from.

I wanted to understand why the laws are what they are -- not the philosophical or spiritual reasons, but the practical reasons. The why I was seeking was not really the logic or justification of kashrut, but the historical roots. I was curious about the sources for the laws of kashrut. What were the origins of the basic laws of kashrut (not to mention the wealth of detail) that we observe today? What exactly does it say to do in the Torah, the Talmud, the Shulchan Aruch, and other writings of Jewish sages over the millennia and beyond, and how did that all evolve into the way kashrut is observed today, in the twenty-first century?

Regardless of the whys, I appreciate kashrut as a way of sanctifying meals, but understanding the sources helps give a sense of the bigger picture, of how kashrut has been a part of Judaism since the time of the Torah. The biblical verses that set down the basic laws of kashrut provide a fascinating glimpse into our own history as a people. To think that we have maintained some observance in how we eat for thousands of years -- it is a kesher, a tie, a connection between our ancestors and us as Jews living and eating and working in the twenty-first century.

Lemon-Scented Roast Chicken

Meat • • • Serves 4

My friend Elizabeth Sternberg trained as a professional chef before becoming the Combined Jewish Philanthropies' Director of Housing for People with Disabilities. A meal at her house is always a treat. "Chicken is my favorite food," she told me and rattled off a list of chicken recipes she makes regularly. Her favorite is a simple roast chicken. "I prefer a whole chicken; I think it cooks better," she says. "It seems like there's more flavor when you roast chicken, it's the right consistency. And I like carving it."

Ingredients

One 4-pound whole chicken, rinsed and patted dry
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 garlic cloves, peeled and finely minced
Zest and juice from 1 lemon; save lemon halves
2 teaspoons dried rosemary
½ cup minced fresh parsley

Lisë writes on subjects ranging from software to travel, but specializes in food, including culinary customs and history and recipe development. She keeps a kosher home in Massachusetts with her husband and three children.

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