Making Hamotzi When Eating Pas HaBa'ah B'Kisnin

We learned previously that if one eats an entire meal of an item that is considered pas haba’ah b’kisnin, the brachos recited would be Hamotzi and Birkas Hamazon. Is the amount of pas haba’ah b’kisnin  that would mandate Hamotzi the same for everyone?

No. To require the bracha of Hamotzi one must eat an amount, “she’acheirim kov’im alav” that other people normally eat for a main meal (Shulchan Aruch O.C. 168:6). The Biur Halacha (ibid) writes that “other people” refers to people of similar physical properties. Rav Belsky, zt”l explains that this refers to people of the same age and build. While an adult might need to eat two or three slices of pizza in order to say Hamotzi, a child might only need to eat one slice if that is a typical main-meal for a child that age.

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.