Meat: Seeing red

(Photo by Michael C. Berch)

Kashrut laws have long dictated that certain parts of even a “kosher” animal are not to be eaten.  Blood is definitely one of those forbidden components.

Drawing out the blood from meat is called kashering.  This process is supposed to take place within three days of slaughtering the animal.  The meat is first rinsed - then soaked for 30 minutes in lukewarm water.  This half-hour soak opens the pores of the meat so that its blood may seep out more easily.  The meat is then carefully washed and allowed

to partially dry (if the meat becomes too dry, salt will later stick to it).

A medium grade of salt is then used on all sides of the meat in order to draw out any remaining blood. Academy BJE states that the meat “must be left covered in salt for an hour on a sloped board so that the blood can drain off into a sink or container.”  Afterwards, the meat is rinsed three more times in order to remove any remaining salt and blood.

Torah law only permits the eating of meat from certain animals.  “Red meat” animals must “have cloven hooves and chew the cud.”  These “kosher species” include “goats, sheep, cattle and deer.”  However the “red” in “red meat” does not pertain to blood.  Wikipedia reports that the overall phrase “red meat” refers to “meat which is red when raw and not white when cooked.”  This includes the meat of “most adult mammals and some fowl.”  What gives such meat its red color is actually the “iron and oxygen-binding protein” called myoglobin.  Myoglobin is related to hemoglobin, but is found in muscle (prefix myo) tissue rather than in blood (prefix hemo).

Los Angeles Times reporter Eryn Brown wrote a March 12, 2012 article titled All red meat is bad for you, new study says.  Harvard researcher An Pan stated that “any red meat you eat” contributes to a higher risk of death.

Resources

http://www.latimes.com/health/la-he-red-meat-20120313,0,565423.story

http://www.bje.org.au/learning/judaism/kashrut/index.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_meat

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Myoglobin

Copyright March 26, 2012 by Linda Van Slyke   All Rights Reserved