By Rabbi Yair Hoffman for the Five Towns Jewish Times
Many people are eating turkey this evening, on account of Thanksgiving. But did the Tannaim and Amoraim eat turkey? Did the Gaonim or the rishonim?
The answer, of course, is that they did not. The turkey was only found in the Americas and only came to Europe after 1493.
But that does not mean that the turkey is not kosher.
The Torah also gave us a list of Tameh birds that also are non-kosher. This list is found in Parshas Shmini (Vayikra 11:12-19). Technically, if a bird is not on the list it would not be forbidden. The Mishna in tractate Chullin gives us four signs in regard to the list of birds in the Torah.
• It says (sign #1) that every bird that is a dores “a predator” is not a kosher bird.
• It also says (sign #2) that every kosher bird has an extra toe.
• It also says (sign #3) that all kosher birds have a zefek, a crop – (in scientific language it is called “ingluvius” in the Torah it is called “more’eh.” See Vayikra 1:16). The crop is an expanded, muscular pouch near the gullet or throat. It is a part of the digestive tract, essentially an enlarged part of the esophagus. As with most other organisms that have a crop, the crop is used to temporarily store food.
• All kosher birds also have a peelable korkuvan, or a gizzard (sign #4). This is called a “pupik” in Yiddish.
Nonetheless, based upon the ruling of the Ramah, we only consume birds that we have a tradition to eat from the past.
What then about newly discovered birds such as the turkey? Although we had no tradition for the turkey, it was eaten by Jews.
It seems that when it was discovered in the New World, the Poskim permitted it.
There are two reason for this: either because 1] they classified it as a type of chicken (Dvar Halacha #53 p. 74), and there was no concern that it was a cross-fertilization from the list of forbidden birds. Or 2] because it was discovered prior to the adoption and spread of the ruling of the Ramah, This explanation is provided by the Shoel UMaishiv (YD III 1:15).
Rav yaakov Kaminetsky zt”l personally did not eat turkey on account of the problem in the mesorah for it. The Torah world, however, has accepted the turkey.
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3 Responses
The original wild turkeys were not readily accepted. Over the next few centuries turkeys were domesticated which made them more like chickens, so people accepted them. I have never seen wild turkey (other than the alcoholic beverage named in order of the birds) consumed by frum Jews – though there is the problem of catching one and slaughtering it (unlike domestic ones bred for stupidity, the wild ones are big, intelligent, feisty and can fly).
What part of the Turkey’s neck is where it is Shechted? It has a lot going on there.
I saw a wild turkey in Lakewood a few months ago, there was an issue with wild turkeys in New Jersey this past summer, you can google it. However, you will not see one in Brooklyn roaming ocean parkway anytime in the future.