Preparing foods on Shabbat

Source: Halachipedia: Preparing foods on Shabbat

Link: https://halachipedia.com/index.php?title=Preparing_foods_on_Shabbat

Categories: Shabbat

Exported: 2025-12-30

Preparing food on Shabbat is a general topic that potentially can involve several melachot on Shabbat. If one wants to learn details about a certain melacha, please visit that melacha specifically. The specific related melachot include: Borer (Separating), Tochen(Grinding), Merakaid (Sifting), Lash (Kneading), and Ofeh and Bishul (Baking and Cooking). B"H below will be the halachot of a number of practical cases of preparing food on Shabbat.

Soda on Shabbat

1. Many hold that it is permitted to make soda on Shabbat using a soda making machine that fills the water with carbon dioxide.¹

Ripening an Avocado

1. It is permitted to place an avocado that is too hard but possible to eat to the sunlight so that it softens if one's intention is to eat it on Shabbat.²

Cutting Fruit into Shapes

1. It is permitted to scoop melon into balls with a ball scooper.³
2. It is permitted to cut a food or fruit into a simple shape such as a triangle or square, but it is forbidden to cut it into a specific design or shape.⁴ See Kotev.

References

¹: Yabia Omer 3:21

²: Dor Hamelaktim (Asifat Yitzchak v. 6 p. 4016)

³: Orchot Shabbat 15:23, Eshmara Shabbat v. 2 p. 354

⁴: Mishna Brurah 510:17, Chut Shani (Yom Tov p. 139), Divrei Binayahu 10:49, Eshmara Shabbat v. 2 p. 354. Divrei Binayahu quotes Leviat Chen p. 210 who disagrees with Maharshag that there's no writing with food. Yalkut Yosef (Yom Tov p. 188-9) writes that cutting fruit into a circle, square, or hexagon is fine, but cutting it into a complex shape like a fish is forbidden. Shevut Yitzchak (v. 14 p. 320) writes that cutting into a triangle is fine but into a star is forbidden. See, however, Mayan Omer 14:76 who writes in the name of Rav Ovadia that it is permitted.