Shiur #15: Retention, and Shehiya
LAWS OF SHABBAT: COOKING
By Rav Yosef Zvi Rimon
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Dedicated in memory of
Joseph Y. Nadler zl, Yosef ben Yechezkel Tzvi
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Shiur #15: Chapter 17 Retention, and Shehiya
XVII) Retention
May one leave uncooked dishes on the fire on Friday?
Is it permissible to put dishes on a gas burner if it is covered by a blech
(a plate of tin)?
Which dishes can one put on an electric hot plate before Shabbat? May one put
cold soup on it if it will not heat up before Shabbat commences?
Introduction
Aside from the actions that the Torah forbids because of
bishul, the Sages have banned a
number of actions related to heating the food.
Some of the decrees emerge from the concern that in the context of the
desire to maintain the heat of the food, one may come to
rake the coals,
i.e., stirring the coals in order to intensify the flames; by this, one will
violate the Torah prohibition of mavir,
kindling. In other cases, the Sages forbid
(according to certain Rishonim)
actions that appear like bishul
(mechzi ke-mevashel).
We may speak of three essential rabbinical decrees:
1)
Shehiya
(retention):
Putting a dish on the fire
before Shabbat,
so that it will continue cooking or being heated on Shabbat.
2)
Hachazara
(replacement):
Putting a
cooked dish
back on the fire. This includes
putting it there initially (netina).
3)
Hatmana
(insulation):
Insulating or covering food. There
are a number of types of wrapping, and there is a distinction between doing so
before Shabbat
or
during Shabbat.
In the coming shiurim, we will examine each of these decrees, their
reasons and their parameters.
Shehiya
The mishna (17b-18a) cites a dispute between Beit Shammai and Beit Hillel
concerning
the application of the labors of Shabbat to inanimate possessions. The former believes that just as
Jews must observe Shabbat, so too must their property; the latter believes that
Shabbat is not applicable to vessels, but only to people and their livestock. According to this, Beit Shammai
should forbid putting food on a stove before Shabbat so that it will cook on
Shabbat, because the appliance is performing labor on Shabbat, while Beit Hillel
should not view it as a biblical prohibition (even if we are talking about
something uncooked), and this is how we rule halakhically.
However, the Gemara (18b) does indicate that Beit Hillel agrees that there is a
rabbinical prohibition
involved:
Our rabbis taught: A woman must not fill a pot with pounded wheat and lupines
and put it in the oven on Friday, shortly before nightfall
Shall we say that this agrees with Beit Shammai, but not Beit Hillel? In fact, you may even say that it is
accepted by Beit Hillel: it is a preventive measure,
lest one rake the coals.
Rabbinic Decree
Thus, Beit Hillel concedes that there is a rabbinic prohibition to put a pot
on the flame before Shabbat so that the dish will cook on Shabbat itself. The reason for this prohibition is
that we are considered lest a person will be eager to accelerate the cooking and
will come to rake the coals, a violation of the
melakha of kindling.
This prohibition, called shehiya, is
what appears in the Mishna (36b), and from the context there we may derive when
the Sages forbid this and when they allow it:
If a stove is heated with stubble or twigs, a dish (tavshil) may be put
thereon; with peat or wood, one may not put it thereon, unless one sweeps or
sprinkles ashes upon it.
Raking the Coals
Stubble and twigs are fuels that cannot be turned up; instead of becoming
coals, they are burnt up. On the other hand peat (from olives) and
wood are fuels that become coals, and they can be stoked and raked in order
to intensify the fire. The Sages
forbid putting a pot on a coal-fueled stove, since stoking is an issue, but a
stubble- or twig-fueled stove is not problematic, since there are no coals to
stoke.[1]
Sweeping and Sprinkling
The Mishna does offer a solution for a coal-fueled stove: if the coals are swept
to the side, or if ashes are poured on them (making the stove, respectively,
gerufa or
ketuma), a pot may be put on the
stove, since stoking the coals is no longer an issue. Below, we will analyze what makes a
stove gerufa or
ketuma, particularly for our modern
ranges and hot plates.
Shehiya
of Minimally Cooked Food
The Gemara (20a) cites the view of Chananya:
Chananya says: Whatever is like the food of ben Derusai may be kept on the
stove, though it is not swept or sprinkled with ashes.
As we saw in our first shiur, the level of minimal cooking observed by
the highwayman ben Derusai is a matter of dispute: the
Rambam (9:5) quantifies it as
one-half cooked, while Rashi (ad loc. s.v. Ben) quantifies it as
one-third cooked. Chananya
believes, in any case, that when food reaches the level of Ben Derusai, the
prohibition of shehiya does not
apply. The reason for this that
when the food is already edible (even if only minimally so), the person is not
so eager to accelerate the cooking, so there is no concern that one will stoke
the coals.
However, the Gemara (36b) raises the possibility that the Sages argue with
Chananya, and according to them, one should not leave on an unswept, unsprinkled
stove any food that would benefit from further cooking, because for every food
such as this, we must be concerned that someone will stoke the coals.[2] According to them, one is allowed to
leave on such a stove only a dish that is fully cooked to the extent that any
further cooking will be detrimental (mitztamek
ve-ra lo).
Following the Gemara, the Rishonim argue as to the halakhic ruling:
Rashi (37b, s.v. Ve-Rav
Sheshet) and Tosafot (37b,
s.v. Amar Rav Sheshet) rule in accordance with Chananyas view:
shehiya is not forbidden for a food
that is maakhal ben Derusai, while
the Rif (16a, Rif) and Rambam
(3:4) rule that the halakha does not follow Chananya, and only a fully cooked
dish may be left on an unswept, unsprinkled stove.
Shulchan Arukh
Halakhically, the Shulchan Arukh
(253:1) cites both views but does not express a preference; the
Rema explicitly endorses the
lenient view of Chananya.
One may not put a dish on it during daytime to leave it there, unless it is
fully cooked and further cooking is detrimental
However, if it is only partially cooked, or if it is fully cooked and further
cooking is beneficial, we are concerned lest one rake. One cannot leave it there unless one
sweeps, removing all of the coals from it, or sprinkles, covering the coals with
ashes to reduce their heat
There are those who say
that if it is cooked like maakhal ben Derusai, or if it is fully cooked
and further cooking is beneficial, one may leave it on the stove
even if it is
neither swept nor sprinkled
Gloss [of the Rema]: The custom is to be lenient, following the latter view.
Shulchan Arukh
The halakhic authorities differ as to the view of the
Shulchan Arukh; many believe
that he supports the lenient view as well (Minchat Kohen,
II, 4; Kaf Ha-chayim 253:23).
According to this, it is permissible (for Ashkenazim, and most Sefardim agree)
to put any food that has reached the level of maakhal ben Derusai[3]
even on an open fire.
Accelerating Bishul
We should note that when keeping a food that is not fully cooked on the fire,
one must avoid accelerating the bishul
in any way on Shabbat. The Rishonim
argue whether the prohibition of bishul
is applicable to a food that has reached
maakhal ben Derusai (see note 8); however, the
Shulchan Arukh (318:4) is
stringent about this and writes that a prohibition of cooking is applicable to
any dish that is not fully cooked.
Therefore, when one puts on the fire a food that is not fully cooked, one should
be careful that no one in the house will remove the lid and replace it, since
covering the pot is forbidden because of
bishul, as we saw in a previous shiur. Therefore one should be strict and
not move the pot to a hotter place on the hot plate and the like.
Cooled Liquid
May one put cooked soup that is cold on the fire before Shabbat?
As we have already seen, concerning this soup, there is a prohibition of
bishul because it has cooled. Apparently, for the same reason, one
should leave the soup on the fire before Shabbat, because it is considered
uncooked. However, the
Chazon Ish (37:27) believes that
one may be lenient about this.[4] In his view, it is true that
halakhically the soup is considered uncooked, and therefore there is a
biblical prohibition of bishul, but
when it comes to shehiya, the
question is pragmatic: how much motivation is there to stoke the coals? Since realistically, the soup has
already been cooked, the motivation to stoke is low (even though the soup is
cold) and therefore one may ab initio leave the soup on the fire before Shabbat.
To summarize, one may leave food on an open flame before Shabbat,
if it can be eaten in extreme situations (maakhal ben Derusai). In this case, even if the food is
now cold, one may leave it, even if it is a liquid. However, generally we are accustomed
to use an electric hot plate or a blech (tin cover) for the range, and
this allows us to reheat foods over the course of Shabbat, as we shall see below
and in future shiurim.
Nevertheless, sometimes a person may be staying in a place where there is some
difficulty in the matter, and sometimes there are electric heating vessels that
do not have the status of gerufa or ketuma (a hot-water urn and
the like). Therefore, one must know
the letter of the law: one may be lenient about the
shehiya of those items we have
mentioned even when there is an open, uncovered flame.
SHEHIYA
OF TOTALLY UNCOOKED FOOD
Raw Food
The Gemara (18b) explains that
totally uncooked food
may be left before Shabbat on the fire, even if it is not covered.
A raw dish may be put in an oven before Shabbat shortly before nightfall. What is the reason? Since it will not be fit for the
evening, he puts it out of his mind and will not come to rake the coals. Again, if it is cooked, all is well. If it is partly cooked, one is
forbidden to do so. Yet if a raw
bone is thrown into it, one is permitted to do so.
According to this passage, raking the coals is not an issue because the dish
will not be ready for the evening meal even with it, while it will be ready for
the morning meal even without it.
Therefore, the person puts it out of his mind.
Thus, we learn that a dish that has begun to cook but has not yet reached the
level of maakhal ben Derusai is more
problematic than a completely raw dish, because with the former there is a
reason to be concerned that one may rake the coals in order to make it ready for
supper. This concern does not apply
to raw food, which in any case will not be ready for supper. The
Shulchan Arukh (253:1) rules
that shehiya is not forbidden for a
raw dish.
Addition of a Raw Food
The passage concludes by noting that a raw bone saves the whole dish; since
this one element is totally uncooked, one does not think of it, so
shehiya is not forbidden in this
case.
According to the view of the Rambam
(Commentary to the Mishna 3:1), this applies to any raw food:
If the dish is partly cooked, but one puts in at the time of insulation
something raw, e.g. meat or vegetables, it is permitted to leave it on
the coals, because one puts it out of his mind.
Rav Yosef Karo (Beit Yosef,
253, s.v. U-ma she-katav ve-im natan) understands that although the
vegetables cook quickly and will be ready for the evening meal, the very fact
that one puts raw items in the dish shows that one is diverting his attention
from it, and therefore leaving it on the stove is allowed.
Limitations
However, the Rambam (3:8) writes
that one must put in a raw limb.
This is what other Rishonim indicate, that only raw meat serves this purpose,
since it will not be ready by the time of the evening meal, and no other raw
foods, which will be ready for the next meal.
This is what the Mishna Berura
(253:9) writes:
This only applies to raw meat, which will not cook by the evening meal, but for
vegetables and other things that are easily cooked, it does not help even if
they are raw.
Must it be raw meat, or may one use any food that will not cook by
that evening? For example, we
now have a crockpot (electric slow-cooker), in which many dishes of
legumes or vegetables will not be ready for supper. Is one allowed to leave in it raw
food, even without a blech and with the knobs uncovered (see below)?[5]
Chazon Ish
The Chazon Ish (36:3) deals with
this question:
As for a cauldron on the oven filled with water before Shabbat and lighting a
low flame under it, which burns all through the night, and when one wakes in the
morning, it appears that one may be lenient
even though water is forbidden even
when it is raw
because it cooks quickly, so that rawness is not a reason to
allow it
nevertheless, if one adds so much water that making it boil is harder
than cooking meat, it appears that a great deal of water is like tossing a raw
bone into it.
The important issue is whether this will be ready for the night. If the vessel contains so much
water that this will not happen, it may be left on an unswept, unsprinkled
stove.
Crockpot
According to this, even if the food is something that would normally cook
quickly, if it has been put on the fire in such a way that it is clear that even
raising the flame will not make it ready for the night of Shabbat (a small
flame, crockpot, etc.), one may be allowed to leave it on an unswept,
unsprinkled stove. Conversely, one
may not leave a pot on a fire with raw meat if turning the flame up could lead
to the meat being ready for the evening meal (see Beiur
Halakha 253:1, s.v. Mesiach).
However, we must note that this is applicable only to a food that is
not cooked at all.
A food that has started cooking cannot be left on an unswept, unsprinkled stove,
even if it is clear to us that it will not be ready by the time one sits down
for supper.
Before Sunset
What is the beginning of cooking for this issue?
The
Mishna Berura (253:11) explains that
bishul starts
at the moment that the dish is warm,
while the time in which it becomes hot
is not considered part of the bishul
process. The Chazon Ish (37:22) explains that the reference is
to the heat of
yad soledet bo.
According to him, for this issue we do not consider the time at which one
accepts Shabbat, but rather the time at which Shabbat commences of its own
accord, i.e., sunset (this is implied by the Mishna
Berura, op. cit. 10). According to this view, one may
leave uncooked food only if we are certain that
by sunset it will not reach the heat of
yad soledet bo
(e.g., putting it on the fire when it
is cold or frozen, right before Shabbat begins).[6]
Replacing the Lid
One should note that if one puts a raw food on the fire (abiding by the
above-mentioned conditions),
one must be careful not to remove and replace the lid,
because this is an acceleration of the cooking, which is biblically forbidden. If there is a concern that one of
the family members will pick up the lid and replace it, one should always eschew
this allowance, using it only this in cases of unique pressure, and even then,
one must mark the pot and verify that no one will lift up the lid before it is
cooked.
To
summarize,
one may put food before Shabbat even on an open fire, even a dish that is
totally uncooked, if it will not be ready for the evening meal even were one to
turn up the fire. One should put
the dish up just before candle lighting, and one should be sure that it will not
reach a scalding temperature by sunset.
On a covered fire or a hot plate, one is certainly allowed to place an
uncooked dish (we will deal with a partially-cooked dish in a future shiur).
In any case, one must be careful and warn the people of the household not to lift the lid until the morning (or until a point when it will certainly be ready), so that they will not cover the pot and come to a question of the prohibition of bishul.
Translated by Rav Yoseif Bloch
[1] The mishna
and Gemara do not explicitly mention that the reason for the prohibition is lest
one come to stoke the coals; however, almost all Rishonim explain the reason of
the prohibition in this way, according to the Gemara (18b), as we saw above (Tosafot 36b, s.v. Lo yitten;
Rambam 3:3, 17;
Rashba 36b, s.v. Ad
she-yigrof; Rosh 3:1). This
is how the Shulchan Arukh
explains (253:1) the motivation. However,
Rashi on the mishna (s.v.
Aval) raises another reason, mechzi ke-mevashel, which requires
in-depth analysis beyond the scope of this forum.
[2]
The Sages do not say this explicitly, but we may conclude this from the words of
the above-mentioned source. The
mishna simply states that one should not put a
tavshil on a stove fueled with peat
and wood that is not gerufa or
ketuma. Presumably, the term tavshil is a food that has already
reached a certain level of bishul,
but the mishna nevertheless says that the prohibition of
shehiya is applicable to it. The implication is that the Mishna
disagrees with Chananya, and it does not allow
shehiya on the stove which is not
gerufa or
ketuma, even for a
tavshil which is cooked to the level
of maakhal ben Derusai. The Gemara
(36b), as we have said, suggests reading the mishna as relating to this
prohibition (shehiya), but it also
suggests an alternative possibility (hachazara),
according to which the mishna does not argue with Chananya. According to the second possibility,
the mishna does not deal with the prohibition of retaining a
tavshil on the stove from before
Shabbat; only the prohibition of replacing a
tavshil on the stove on Shabbat
itself is addressed, and only for this issue does the mishna say that even if
the food is fully cooked, one may return it to an unswept, unsprinkled stove, as
will be explained below.
[3]
As for the dispute between Rashi
and the Rambam about measuring
maakhal ben Derusai, the
Mishna Berura (253:38) writes
that initially one should be stringent to follow the
Rambams view and to retain on
the fire only on a food that is half-cooked, but in a case of pressing need, one
may be lenient and one may follow
Rashis view and suffice with one-third cooked.
[4]
The Peri Megadim (Eshel Avraham 253:41) still requires
further analysis, but since the Chazon
Ish has decided to be lenient and we are talking about rabbinical doubt,
we have ruled in accordance with the lenient view.
[5] In this pot,
there is an issue of hatmana, and we
will deal with this in a future shiur.
[6] In fact,
there are those who dispute the view of the
Chazon Ish and believe that it
is enough for the food to be raw at the time that we accept Shabbat, and there
is no need that it be raw at sunset (see Penei Shabbat, ch. 253). Similarly, in the
Or Le-Tziyon (Vol. I, ch. 21),
we find that as long as the meat has not begun to soften, the dish is considered
raw, and according to this, one may put a pot with raw meat on the fire even a
great time before sunset, if the meat will not begin to soften until sunset.