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Chulin, 93

1) HALACHAH: ROASTING MEAT TO REMOVE ITS BLOOD

OPINIONS: The Gemara says that "[after] cutting it and salting it, one may cook meat in a pot." When salting meat to remove its blood, one must first cut open the meat. The Gemara later (93b) says that another way to remove blood from meat is by roasting it over a flame.

When removing blood through roasting, is it necessary to cut open the meat first?

(a) TOSFOS (DH Chatchei) infers from the Gemara that it *is* necessary to cut meat even before roasting it to remove the blood. The Gemara states that before cutting and salting, the veins of the foreleg are prohibited due to their blood content. After cutting and salting, they are permitted "not only" to be roasted, but "even" to be cooked in a pot. We may infer from this statement that before removing the blood the foreleg may not be roasted, since it was not cut open.

(b) RASHI (93b, DH Talyei) implies that it is not necessary to cut the meat before roasting. Tosfos and the RASHBA explain that according to Rashi, it depends on whether one is removing blood from within the meat of an animal or from a vein that is in direct contact with the fire. When removing blood from a vein that is in direct contact with the fire, it is not necessary to cut the meat.

(c) The ROSH (7:7) quotes RAV AMRAM GA'ON and the GE'ONIM who state that it is *never* necessary to cut open the meat before roasting. The Rosh favors their opinion.

HALACHAH: The latter two opinions are quoted by the SHULCHAN ARUCH (YD 65:2). Accordingly, the practice is to be stringent (like Rashi's opinion) and cut open the meat before roasting, unless the veins are on the surface of the meat and directly exposed to the fire.

OPINIONS: Abaye states that there are two places on the animal where the "Chutin" (veins) contain forbidden blood -- the foreleg and the jaw. By cutting them and salting them, one effectively removes the forbidden blood.

It is clear from the context of the Gemara that Abaye is referring to a domesticated animal (Behemah), since he mentions also that there are three other Chutin that are forbidden because of Chelev, and the Isur of Chelev applies only to a Behemah. Does the requirement to cut the two veins that contain blood apply only to these veins on a Behemah, or does it apply to these veins on all types of animals, including birds?

(a) The RITVA writes that his teacher, the RE'AH, ruled that this requirement applies only to animals. The corresponding veins on birds do not need to be cut individually. They are considered part of the bird's flesh for which Melichah, salting, is effective.

(b) However, the Ritva's other teacher, the RASHBA, disagreed and ruled that the veins of a bird must also be cut before salting. (D. Bloom)

HALACHAH: The SHULCHAN ARUCH (YD 65:3) rules that the wing of a bird (which corresponds to the foreleg of an animal) needs to be cut and salted, as well as the bone of its cheeks. The RAMA, however, rules that this is not necessary for a bird. This is also the ruling of the SHACH (65:7), who writes that the practice nowadays is not to require the cutting of the Chutin in the wings and cheekbones of birds.

OPINIONS: Abaye states that there are two places on the animal where the "Chutin" (veins) contain forbidden blood -- the foreleg and the jaw. By cutting them and salting them, one effectively removes the forbidden blood.

Are these the only veins that need to be cut in order to remove the forbidden blood?

(a) RASHI (DH ud'Lo'a) writes that the two places that Abaye mentions are places that contain only thin veins. Abaye does not discuss the "Mizrekei ha'Tzavar," the thick veins in the neck, which also require cutting.

The TEVU'OS SHOR (YD 22:2) writes that the "Mizrekei" that the Gemara later (93b) mentions are identical to the "Veridin" mention in the Mishnah earlier (27a), which Rebbi Yehudah requires to be cut during Shechitah in order to remove the blood.

However, when the BEIS YOSEF (YD 65, DH ha'Noker) cites RASHI later (93b, DH Mizrekei) who says that "Mizrekei" are the veins of the neck, he adds that it appears that these are not the same veins that Rebbi Yehudah (27a) discusses. The "Veridin" that Rebbi Yehudah requires to be cut do not need to be removed before salting, since they were cut during Shechitah.

(Rashi in Pesachim (74b, DH Umtza) seems to support the position of the Tevu'os Shor. Rashi there writes that "Mizrekei" are the "Veridin in the Beis ha'Shechitah." See SICHAS CHULIN, p. 75, DH Isa).

Similarly, the ROSH (2:3) cites RABEINU EFRAIM who maintains that before cooking poultry, one must not only salt the bird but one must cut up the bird and remove the Mizrekei (the MA'ADANEI YOM TOV there points out that this is also the view of Rashi, as mentioned above).

(b) The Rosh disagrees and states that from the Gemara here we see that there are only two areas of veins that require additional cutting in order to remove the blood, and the neck is not one of them. We can infer from the Gemara that the Mizrekei of the neck do not require any more cutting than the rest of the meat (the animal is cut up limb by limb).

The dispute between the Rosh and Rabeinu Efraim is reflected in a dispute between the RAN and RA'AVAD. The Ran (6b of the pages of the Rif) cites the Ra'avad who explains that the intention of the Gemara is that even if the Veridin of a bird were cut during Shechitah, or if an animal was cut up limb by limb, one who wants to cook the animal (as opposed to roasting, which is more powerful with regard to extracting the blood), one must cut the veins of the foreleg and jaw to ensure that the blood is removed. The Ra'avad states that in fact all veins must be cut up in this way. The only reason why the Gemara mentions the foreleg and jaw is to teach that even though these are close to the Veridin of the neck, the fact that the Veridin were cut during Shechitah is not sufficient to remove the blood of these veins. According to the Ra'avad, it is more obvious that veins elsewhere in the body require cutting, because they are farther away from the Veridin.

The Ran disagrees and maintains that it is only the veins of the foreleg and jaw that require cutting. The Chachamim knew that the blood contained in these two areas does not exit through the Veridin when the animal is slaughtered, while blood from veins elsewhere in the body exit through the Veridin at the time of Shechitah. (D. Bloom)

HALACHAH: The SHULCHAN ARUCH (YD 65:1-2) writes that the veins of the neck, as well as other areas of the animal's body, need to be cut.

93b

OPINIONS: The Gemara says that when one wants to remove the wool from a lamb's head by burning it off with hot coals, one must position the head in a way such that the blood can drain.

What is the law with regard to removing chicken feathers by burning them off? Does the chicken need to be positioned in such a way that the blood drains out?

(a) TOSFOS (Reisha) suggests that the Gemara's requirement to position the head in a way that the blood will drain applies only to a large animal, because the skull bones trap the blood inside. In contrast, when dealing with a small animal such as a chicken, the heat of the fire still draws out the blood.

(b) The RASHBA quotes the BA'AL HA'ITUR who disagrees and asserts that once blood moves from one place to another inside the animal as a result of externally applied heat, it does not come out through salting, and thus the animal is prohibited. The Rashba agrees with this ruling.

HALACHAH: The SHULCHAN ARUCH (YD 68:8) rules that one may remove feathers from a chicken by burning it with coals as long as one fulfills two conditions. First, the area of the Shechitah must be rinsed from all the blood that is on it. Second, when one plans to cook the bird afterward, he must make sure -- when burning off the feathers -- that the liver and heart do not heat up to the point that they release blood.

The REMA rules that the present practice is not to remove feathers by placing the bird in coals. (Z. Wainstein)