עברית
Prayer and Blessings
What blessing is recited on soup with vegetables and noodles?
Halachic guidelines on blessings for mixed soups and related questions
Question
Greetings, I have several questions:
1. For vegetable soup containing discernible vegetables like potato, celery, etc., along with thin noodles for soup, what blessing should be recited? Should each be blessed separately? (Soup - Shehakol, noodles - Mezonot, and vegetables - Ha'adama?)
2. After reciting the Shema at bedtime, if I receive an SMS on my mobile, may I reply? May I listen to a radio program with Jewish content? Or should one simply refrain from any activity after the blessing?
3. Is it permissible for me to recite one of the blessings of enjoyment (Birkat Ha'nehenin) while the person I am speaking with on the phone responds "Amen"?
4. May I purchase a fruit shake based on water from a shake stand without kosher certification?
Thank you very much :-)
Chodesh tov.
Answer
1. From Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu:
• Soup with mostly noodles – Mezonot.
• Soup with noodles in a minority intended for satiety – Mezonot and Shehakol.
• Soup with noodles in a minority which are not significant – Shehakol.
• Chicken or meat soup, powdered or with pieces – Shehakol.
• Vegetable soup with discernible vegetables – Ha'adama.
• Vegetable soup with no discernible vegetables or powdered soup or vegetables intended for flavor and not eaten – Shehakol.
• Mushroom soup, whether discernible or not – Shehakol.
• Rice soup, mostly discernible – Mezonot.
• Rice soup in minority – Shehakol or according to the other components.
• Rice soup dissolved – Shehakol (like vegetable soup), and by the Baghdad custom, Mezonot (like noodle soup).
• Vegetable and chicken soup – If the chicken is discernible – Shehakol; if vegetables are also discernible and intended to satisfy hunger – Ha'adama as well.
• Vegetable soup and chicken powder – If vegetables are not discernible – Shehakol; if discernible – Ha'adama.
• Vegetable and noodle soup – Mostly noodles – Mezonot covering all.
• Vegetable and noodle soup with a minority of noodles intended to satisfy hunger, and vegetables discernible and intended to satisfy hunger – Mezonot and Ha'adama.
• Vegetable and noodle soup with a minority of noodles that are insignificant – Like vegetable soup.
• Vegetable, noodle, and chicken soup – If mostly noodles – Mezonot covering all.
• Vegetable, noodle, and chicken soup – Minority of noodles intended to satisfy hunger, and vegetables discernible and intended to satisfy hunger – Mezonot and Ha'adama; if chicken is discernible – also Shehakol.
• Vegetable, noodle, and chicken soup – Minority of noodles intended to satisfy hunger, vegetables not discernible or not intended to satisfy hunger – Mezonot; if chicken is discernible – also Shehakol.
• Vegetable, noodle, and chicken soup – Minority of noodles insignificant – Shehakol; if vegetables also discernible and intended to satisfy hunger – Ha'adama as well.
• Vegetable, noodle, and chicken soup – Minority of noodles and vegetables insignificant – Shehakol.
• Noodle and chicken soup – Mostly noodles – Mezonot covering all.
• Noodle and chicken soup – Minority of noodles intended to satisfy hunger – Mezonot and Shehakol.
• Noodle and chicken soup – Minority of noodles insignificant – Shehakol only.
In all these cases, "chicken" refers also to meat, etc. "Noodles" refers to any of the five grains such as soup almonds, pasta, macaroni, etc. "Vegetables" means dried or fresh vegetables such as beans, carrots, potatoes, onions, etc.
2. All the aforementioned actions are permitted.
3. The poskim disagree; Rabbi Ovadia Yosef permits responding "Amen".
4. No.
Blessings, Binyamin Shmueli
