Zeiya vs. Hevel

QUESTION: What is the difference between zeiya and hevel?

ANSWER: Both zeiya and hevel refer to steam (and sometimes the terms are used interchangeably). However, according to their precise definitions, zeiya means unconfined, rising steam, while the term hevel refers to a layer of steam which accumulates due to being in a confined area. For example, if one places a pot cover on a boiling pot, the airspace between the liquid and the cover will fill with steam. When this happens, it is as though the pot is filled to the cover with liquid. Since the area is closed, the rising steam is forced back downwards as well. Therefore, the Rema (YD 93:1) writes that if one placed a dairy pot cover on a pot of meat, even though the cover does not directly touch the soup, it is as though the cover touched the soup directly and both the soup and the cover would become non-kosher. However, when there is no buildup of steam, such as if one places a dairy spoon into the steam that is rising from an open pot of meat, the spoon will become non-kosher, because it absorbs the flavor of the steam, but the pot of soup would remain kosher, since there is nothing forcing the steam back down.

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