Kosher: Keeping things Separate
One of the most important aspects of keeping kosher is the separation of meat and milk. This does not only mean waiting a period of time between eating meat and dairy (the length of time varies according to one’s tradition), but keeping areas of the kitchen and utensils separate, and to make sure that a meat spoon, for instance, does not end up in a dairy mug.
If you are starting to keep kosher, it is important to make meat and dairy utensils easily distinguishable. Everyone else using your kitchen must also understand where the dairy things are and where the meat things are. Here are some tips for separating meat and dairy in your kitchen
1. Divide and Conquer: Reserve certain areas of your kitchen (i.e. counters) for meat and other areas for dairy. You may want to post signs, at least in the beginning, to distinguish between the two different areas. You will want to put all your plates and silverware for that type of food in the area reserved for it. Use the dairy counter for cutting cheese and the meat counter for cutting meat.
2. Make Borders: If you have only one counter or a counter that is touching another, make a border to separate the meat and the dairy section. This divider can be made out of plastic and connected to the joining wall.
3. Remember the Details: Dishtowels and sponges must also be designated for meat or dairy. It is useful to hang dishtowels on a hook in the relevant area.
4. Buy a little oven: Most of us have only one oven. This can cause problems if sometimes you want to make a meatloaf and on other days, you may want to bake a lasagna. It is worthwhile to purchase a small oven for dairy that you can take out when you need to use it and store it when you aren’t using it.
5. About Sinks: Unless you have two different sinks, your main sink will not be kosher, because it will have residue from meat and dairy dishes. Therefore, you won’t be able to put pots and dishes right into the sink. It is useful to buy a plastic tub for meat and another one for dairy when you need to do the dishes.
6. Color Code: This isn’t a hard and fast rule, because it is often difficult to find the exact colors of dishes you are looking for, but it useful to color code your meat and dairy items. Red is commonly used for meat and blue is the most popular shade for dairy.
See Also: Kosher Food, Kosher Thoughts