195

Not to eat meat and milk cooked together

The Luchos - Ten Commandments
רֵאשִׁ֗ית בִּכּוּרֵי֙ אַדְמָ֣תְךָ֔ תָּבִ֕יא בֵּ֖ית יְהֹוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֶ֑יךָ לֹא־תְבַשֵּׁ֥ל גְּדִ֖י בַּחֲלֵ֥ב אִמּֽוֹ׃ - כִּי תִשָּׂא
Exodus 34:26 - "The choicest of the first of your soil you shall bring to the house of the Lord, your God. You shall not cook a kid in its mother's milk."

This Mitzvah's Summary

מִצְוָה עֲשֵׂה - Positive Commandment
מִצְוָה לֹא תַעֲשֶׂה - Negative Commandment
Kashrut – כַּשְׁרוּת

Forbidden to eat meat and milk that were cooked together.

This mitzvah prohibits eating any mixture of meat and milk that has been cooked together. The Torah repeats this command three times, which the Sages explain as forbidding (1) cooking meat and milk together, (2) eating the mixture, and (3) deriving benefit from it. The prohibition applies to kosher domesticated animal meat cooked with milk. Poultry and wild animals are rabbinically included. This law serves as a constant reminder of the Torah’s demand for holiness even in daily sustenance.

Commentary & Classical Explanation:

  • Rambam (Hilchot Ma’achalot Asurot 9:1): Rules that eating meat and milk cooked together is a Biblical prohibition, while chicken and milk is rabbinically prohibited.
  • Sefer HaChinuch (Mitzvah 92): Explains the root as a discipline in separation and holiness, distancing Israel from cruelty and confusion in dietary practice.
  • Talmud (Chullin 113b–115b): Analyzes the threefold repetition of the verse and derives the full scope of the prohibition.
(Source: Chabad.org)

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