Why can't Jews eat pork? Isn't a pastrami sandwich pork?

Question

As a Jew do you ever imagine how BBQed pork ribs taste? Or a nice baked ham?

Answer 1

The story is that the bible says eating the flesh of a scavenger ("unclean animal") is prohibited and pigs are as scavenger as animals get.

Pastrami is not pork. It is beef brisket with strong spices rubbed onto it on it followed by a long time in a smoker.

Anyone who has tried both pastrami and ham agrees that pastrami beats eating a salty pig's butt.

Answer 2

Most Jews still consider pigs as unclean animals no matter how it was raised. Some Progressive Jews believe that the prohibition against pork was a secular law related to how unhealthy pig meat was 3000 or so years ago. Modern methods of raising and cooking pork with make it less dangerous and therefore it is OK to eat. Many Orthodox Jews consider the law to be more important and that the law must be obeyed without questioning whether or not it is healthful is a moot point. They would never agree that eating pork is OK. Some self proclaimed Jews are of Jewish heritage but not followers of Judaism. Since the prohibition against pork is for religious reasons, they might eat pork and still call themselves Jews (some Jews object to this use). Many non-practicing Jews still avoid pork. So I have been told.

Answer 3

Turkey pastrami is awesome. Many of the deli meats in a kosher store are made with beef, chicken, and turkey and are delicious!
I have friends who are Jewish who eat pork products.
Being a Jew has many meanings. It can be a religion, a nationality, or a culture. Jews are not all alike any more than are Christians, Muslims, agnostics, atheists, etc.

Answer 4

It's not just Jews, but Muslims do not eat/touch pork either. The same justification goes for Islam: "cloven hoof". Besides, pigs are considered to be dirty and having tapeworms. Obviously, it was very risky consuming pork in that hot climate of the Middle East/Saudi Arabia.
As for pastrami, I know the Turkish type called "pastirma". It is made purely of beef or veal and is similar in looks to bacon with less fat. Also the Turkish/Armenian "sucuk" which is a kind of sausage is made from ground beef and spices.
Muslim "halal" and Jewish "kosher" are almost identical.
Today, in Turkey they produce all kinds of sausages/hotdogs, 'ham' etc. made purely of beef, chicken, or turkey.

Answer 5

I'm not Jewish, but I have a few friends who are. Let me demystify you of some myths regarding Jews and pork (as I used to have the same questions):

1. Not all Jews forsake pork. There are three main types of Judaism practiced: Orthodox, Conservative and Reform. Those who are of the Orthodox Jewish faith (the strictest) routinely avoid foods which are considered "non-kosher," like pork and shellfish.

2. The practice of some Jews to avoid pork and shellfish, or to not mix dairy products with meat dishes, stem from the Old Testament's guides to Hebrew practices, usually in Leviticus and Proverbs.

The Scripture exhorts Jews to not "eat of any unclean things" and to avoid foods made from animals with "a cloven hoof," signifying the devil. Pigs are one of the animals with cloven hoofs, so Orthodox Jews avoid any pork products.

I guess you could say that for them, "pork" is a four-letter-word. (Not my joke, but my friend Daniel's.)

3. Pastrami is NOT pork. Rather, it is a beef brisket that is seasoned and cooked medium to well done, and sliced thinly and served on good Jewish rye bread. I've sampled it in Miami, New York, Houston and Dallas and I think the best one was in Manhattan.

4. Being born and raised in the South, no summer barbecue is complete without some ribs. However, here in Texas we use beef instead of pork ribs. Pork is more popular east of the Mississippi River in barbecue. Just FYI.

Mazel tov!

Answer 6

Pastrami is a popular deli meat made from chiefly red meat. The raw meat is salted (through immersion in a thick brine), then dried, seasoned with various herbs and spices (such as garlic, black pepper, marjoram, basil) and smoked. Aside from the pepper and smoking, it is similar in process and flavor to corned beef. In the United Kingdom and the United States, beef is used and the meat is boiled after the salting stage.

The English word pastrami is derived from the Yiddish: פּאַסטראָמע (pronounced pastrómeh).[citation needed] Both the dish and the word were brought to the United States with a wave of the Jewish immigration from Bessarabia and Romania in the second half of the 19th century; it is a signature dish of the local Jewish cuisine of these regions.[citation needed] The word, however, as used in Yiddish and various languages of the Balkans (e.g. Romanian pastramă), which entered the Russian language as pastromá, is likely of Turkish origin, spread during the period of the Ottoman domination of the region. The authoritative dictionary of gastronomic terminology of the Yiddish language (by Dr. M. Schaechter) and the official etymological dictionary of the Romanian language, the Dicţionarul explicativ al limbii române, derive the term from Turkish pastırma.[1] Indeed, an analogous Armenian and Middle Eastern dish is known as basturma. Early references in English spelled "pastrama", while its current form is associated with a Jewish store selling "pastrami" in New York City in 1887. It is likely that this spelling was introduced to sound related to the Italian salami.


Pastrami sandwich Unlike its Jewish and derivatively modern American counterparts (where pastrami is exclusively a beef dish), in the Romanian tradition, sheep meat was used and over time pork became the prevalent choice.Romanians distinguish between different kinds of pastrami, depending on the meat used. When not specified, pork is implied.

Now you know about pastrami...

As to the reason no pork, in the Bible it says in Leviticus 11: 7-8 is says " 7...and the swine, though it divides the hoof, having cloven hooves, yet does not chew the cud, is unclean to you. 8 Their flesh you shall not eat, and their carcasses you shall not touch. They are unclean to you."

So now you know ...<><...

Answer 7

Pastrami is Beef.

Pork is not eaten because - according to the bible - you are not to eat animals with "cloven hooves". They are considered unclean.

I did taste pork - ham at someone's home - I didn't care for it. The texture was odd, waxy and the meat tasted salty to me. Have't eaten it again.

Answer 8

I believe as a religious idea the answer is never.
As a practical view,, most may have,,, but would return to their religious,, Family,, practice.
The religious abstention is of unclean animals and was determined as having cloven hooves ( look that one up).
Religion that includes Jello and marshmallows.
Look at today's food laws NO horse, NO cats, No dogs
even Buffalo is next to impossible to find.

Answer 9

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Answer 10

The imaginary man forbids it.