checking brocolli | Imamother

sarahd

Tue, Jan 09 2007, 6:47 am

Can't help you with any of your questions, but broccoli is really not hard to check, so don't let that be your excuse for not eating any! Twisted Evil

shininglight

Tue, Jan 09 2007, 8:40 am

sarahd - broccoli is super hard to check! I went to a bug-checking class and the teacher told us that it's basically impossible to check, so just get the bodek or gush katif.

but purple girl - there are lots of fruits and veggies that are healthy besides for broccoli, so you can eat those. but I'm warning you - you're not really going to feel like eating much ... just listen to what your body tells you and eat what you feel comfortable eating.

sorry, can't answer your questions about twins because I don't have any, but bshaa tovah and feel good!

amother

Tue, Jan 09 2007, 11:01 am

Quote:

Can't help you with any of your questions, but broccoli is really not hard to check, so don't let that be your excuse for not eating any!

As another poster above mentioned. Broccoli is IMPOSSIBLE to check. I attended a hands-on vegetable checking class yesterday and we were astonished to see what goes on with these vegetables.
However 80% of the nutrients of broccoli are found in the stem!! The stem is easy to check. I will have to get my notes to tell you exactly how to do it but I know it's cutting off all the florets and twigs and the a little of the stem at the bottom and checking if there are any holes for leaf miners and washing it under a strong force of water. This is not accurate though becasue I don't have the notes in front of me. But just wanted to let you know that you can eat the brocolli for health reasons becasue it's basically in the stem and that's easy to clean and check. Same applies to cauliflower.

Mazel Tov and take care of yourself. Sorry I don't really have any helpful suggestions to your other questions.

amother

Tue, Jan 09 2007, 11:06 am

Quote:

Checking broccoli isn't hard. DH does it for me all the time (only cuz I never took the time to ask him how). He worked for the OU at one point & they showed him how. Takes about 5 minutes.

First of all OU is a big company and their way of checking has totally different halachos than for a regular household.
There are 3 Kosher companies that have Broccoli frozen packages and 1 has recalled all their broccoli and cauliflower packages. I know Bodek hasn't yet but there were found to have bugs as well. I don't know about the third if they recalled or not but I know that bugs were found in all 3 packages. We saw these bugs for ourselves under strong lights made especially for checking.

DefyGravity

Tue, Jan 09 2007, 11:24 am

I was just told by a mashgiach that works for Star K, that all frozen veggies (including brocolli) are ok to use w/out a hechsher.

Feel free to call them to check it out, but that's what I was told.

I also think that people make lettuce/brocolli/veggie checking a lot harder than it's supposed to be.

stem

Tue, Jan 09 2007, 12:03 pm

Defy, I got the same psak from the star-k about frozen veggies. I always wondered why people go crazy with the bodek. It's so much more expensive.

Emuna

Tue, Jan 09 2007, 12:24 pm

Stem, that just doesn't make sense what you're saying. How can that be? These other companies make no attempt whatsoever to check for bugs. I don't get it!

DefyGravity

Tue, Jan 09 2007, 12:27 pm

Emuna wrote:

Stem, that just doesn't make sense what you're saying. How can that be? These other companies make no attempt whatsoever to check for bugs. I don't get it!

Call the Star K and ask them.

Emuna

Tue, Jan 09 2007, 12:30 pm

Personally I would love if this were true because I'd rather get organic! Very Happy

DefyGravity

Tue, Jan 09 2007, 12:35 pm

I spoke to someone from Star K about using frozen veggies, and she said it was ok. Stem did the same.

I highly doubt they were lying to us.

From Star K website:
Processed Vegetables: The Star-K visited a number of frozen vegetable and canning plants to discuss the matter with them. At the time of our visit to the frozen vegetable plant, spinach was being processed. The processors explained to the Star-K that all spinach goes into a chlorine bath. From there the spinach goes to a second chlorine bath. If insects are again found floating on the surface, the whole shipment is discarded. When asked why they were so strict about these small bugs, when surely after the first chlorine bath the insects were eliminated, and any amount left was within the USDA tolerance level, they replied, " If the USDA would buy our product, we would have no problem. However, the housewife buys it, and if she finds dead insects floating in the water in which she has cooked her vegetables, she will not buy our product again." Nevertheless, no company will guarantee their product to be free of all infestation.

At canning facilities, spinach and other vegetables are double washed in jet tumblers with detergent. Samples are always analyzed, and in the very rare instance that infestation remains, the entire crop is discarded. In any case, it is virtually impossible for a company to be able to ascertain with complete accuracy that their product is completely free of insects.

Experiments have been preformed in the private kosher sector to determine exactly how free vegetables are from bugs. By soaking vegetables, both frozen and fresh, in liquid solution, insects have surfaced in many of the vegetables that are used in the kosher home. This revelation has been perceived as a major bombshell to those who wish to maintain a kosher diet and have assumed that kosher industrial washing sufficed. It is important that we scrutinize this enormous problem with the available statistics through the eyes of halacha. In turn, this information will help direct us to a practical kosher solution.

sarahd

Tue, Jan 09 2007, 3:31 pm

I got my information about checking broccoli from R' Falk's Madrich Levdikas Toloim, according to which the check is quite simple. Could be that it applies only to broccoli grown in England and Europe, not the US.

shininglight

Tue, Jan 09 2007, 3:48 pm

The Star K, Rabbi Faulk and Rav Vaye all have different "shittos" about bugs. Ask your Rav to find out who to follow.

DefyGravity

Tue, Jan 09 2007, 3:54 pm

Maybe the discussion about broccoli can be made into a new thread?

I feel bad about the original topic being hijacked!

purplegirl

Wed, Jan 10 2007, 4:45 am

I don't mind the hijack - broccolli is very important to me! Mr. Green

sarahd, I learned with Rabbi Falk! He said thus - soak the broccolli in warm water in a light-colored bowl, thumbing through the florets to loosen the bugs (that's why I always try to get soft broccolli with florets that give way) and remove after fifteen minutes, shaking the broccolli like a thermometer to get all the water back in the bowl. Then you look at the top of the bowl for floating buggies. If none, you pour the top layer off and inspect the bottom. If you really truly do not find a single bug - you can eat it. This happens to me 1 out of 3 times I buy broccolli. If you find bugs, you have to throw out the florets, there is no way to clean them completely of bugs.

and amother who says 80% of the vitamins are in the stem, I'm gonna research that, but in the meantime... I love you!!! Mr. Green

But maybe we should split the threads, because I'd still like to get comments on the original questions...

greenfire

Wed, Jan 10 2007, 9:58 am

Mazal Tov and b'shaa tova to you guys

"Difficult = that which is hard
Impossible = that which takes a little longer"

Anything can be done easier with the proper knowledge and tools. If Bodek could check - so can you!!!

And thanks for the frozen veggie Star-K info