Bishul Akum - Parboiled Rice (Continued)

Q. I bought a box of 10-minute rice that is labeled “bishul Yisroel.” Can I ask a nochri to cook the rice, or must I prepare it myself?

A. In a previous Halacha Yomis, we noted that if a nochri cooked rice (which would constitute bishul Akum) and subsequently it was dried out to the point where it is not edible, a Yisroel may recook the rice, and it will be considered bishul Yisrael. This is because the initial cooking was reversed by the drying process and recooking the rice until it is edible is bishul Yisroel. The same is true in the reverse. If a Yisroel cooks a food and afterwards it is dried and becomes inedible, subsequent cooking by a nochri would be considered bishul Akum. With respect to our original question, a box of 10-minute rice should be cooked by a Yisroel and not a nochri, even though labeled “bishul Yisroel , because the rice is inedible without further cooking. (In truth, it is misleading to label dried rice “bishul Yisrael”, as it implies that it can be cooked by a nochri without consequence.)

A similar halacha is found in the Aruch Hashulchan (YD 113:15). The Talmud states that Bishul Akum does not apply to food that can be eaten in a raw state. An example would be many vegetables, such as tomatoes, peppers or carrots. However, the Aruch Hashulchan rules that if raw vegetables are dried to the point where they are no longer edible as is, they should not be cooked by a nochri, as that would constitute bishul Akum.

____________________________________________________

The Gerald & Karin Feldhamer OU Kosher Halacha Yomis is dedicated to the memory of Rav Yisroel Belsky, zt"l, who served as halachic consultant for OU Kosher for more than 28 years; many of the responses in Halacha Yomis are based on the rulings of Rabbi Belsky. Subscribe to the Halacha Yomis daily email here.