Q:
What is considered “Kitniyos” and why is it forbidden to some on Pesach?
A:
The Ashkenazic minhag is to avoid eating Kitniyot on Pesach, however, even Ashkenazim hold that one does not have to burn or sell one’s Kitniyot. One is permitted to keep Kitniyot in one’s home on Pesach.
Although some sephardic poskim say that it is preferable not to eat kitniyot, the custom among Sephardim is to eat kitniyot on Pesach.
Sephardim should check the rice or any kitniyot to make sure that there’s no chametz mixed before they cook them.
The earlier Poskim mention that rice, buckwheat/kasha, millet, beans, lentils, peas, sesame seeds and mustard are included in the minhag.
Among traditional Ashkenazi Jews, the custom during Passover is to refrain from not only products of the five grains but also kitniyot, such as other grains and legumes. Traditions of what is considered kitniyot vary from community to community but generally include maize (North American Corn) , as well as rice, peas, lentils, and beans. Many also include peanuts in this prohibition – Iggeros Moshe (O.C. 3:63) assumes that peanuts are not kitnios but notes that some have a custom to be machmir. One source – the Chayei Adam – also includes potatoes in his list, although his opinion is not followed by any large or major groups.
Some common foods that are Kitniyot include: Beans, Black eye peas, Buckwheat, Canola oil, Chickpeas, Coriander, Corn, Fenugreek, Kasha, Lentils, Mustard, rapeseed oil,Peanuts, Rice, Sesame seeds, String Beans, Sunflower seeds
Some say that quinoa is kitniyot, however, if there’s a medical issue one may be lenient to use it on Pesach.
From the Torah, only the five grains can become chametz and not legumes or rice. The Gemara (Pesachim 35a) states that one may only fulfill one’s obligation of matza on Pesach with matza made from the five grains. The gemara explains that since the Torah contrasts Matza and chametz, anything which could ferment and become chametz may be used for matza, which is only the five grains and not rice or millet. See Pesachim 114b for a proof that the Amoraim ate rice on Pesach.
The Smak (Rabbi Yitzchak of Korbol) explains that products of kitniyot appear like chametz products. For example, it can be hard to distinguish between rice flour (kitniyot) and wheat flour (chametz). Therefore, to prevent confusion, all kitniyot was prohibited.
The Beit Yosef (Rabbi Yosef Karo, 16th century, Israel) notes that since regular grains may become mixed together with kitniyot (apparently due to changes in crop cycles), one may inadvertently come to eat actual chametz.
The origins of this practice are not clear, though two common theories are that these items are often made into products resembling chametz (e.g. cornbread), or that these items were normally stored in the same sacks as the five grains and people were worried that they might become contaminated with chametz. It was also possible that crop rotations would result in the forbidden chametz grains growing in the same fields, and being mixed in with the kitniyot. Those authorities concerned with these three issues suggested that by avoiding eating kitniyot, people would be better able to avoid chametz. The Vilna Gaon (Hagaos HaGra, 453) indeed actually cites a novel source for this custom. The Gemorrah Pesachim (40b) notes that Rava objected to the workers of the Raish Gelusa (the Exilarch) cooking a food called chasisi on Pesach, since it was wont to be confused with chametz. The Tosefos explain that, according to the Aruch, chasisi are lentils, and thus, argues the Gra, establishes the basis for the concern of kitniyot. |