Cutting Fruit with Non-Kosher Knife
Question
Hi I’m currently in a Airbnb I traveled for medical reasons I have fruit but I don’t have a kosher knife the Airbnb has knives but they aren’t kosher I’m not currently well enough to go out to buy a knife I do have just bread or chips if I’m not aloud to use the non kosher knife. I have had no appetite since my surgery and I have to force myself to eat but now I got a tiny appetite specifically for the mango I have can I cut it it with the knife in the apartment?
Answers
First, please accept my personal Brachah that you have a Refuah Shelaymah – a complete and speedy recovery!
The issue of using a non-Kosher knife is Halachically complex. In general, it is better not to use one because one can never be sure if the knife was considered to be Halachically clean or not. The best option, therefore, would be to ask someone to buy you some disposable knives and to use them. If that it is not a possibility, I think that it would be permissible for you to use a knife if it is completely clean of any obvious food residue and has been cleaned carefully with some kind of an abrasive cleaning product and that you wash the mango after it has been peeled. I would also suggest that you do not use a sharp knife that is used in the kitchen for cutting up raw food. Rather, to use a knife that is normally used for eating cooked food.
Best wishes from the AskTheRabbi.org Team