A FRIEND WEIGHS IN

Our friend Jon over on Kosher Blog (www.kosherblog.net) recently put up his “Wish List.” We think he raises some excellent points. We asked (and received) permission to reproduce some of his list here:

“The Wish List 2004

Here’s our first stab at a list of the top products and initiatives we’d like to see made real in the kosher community. Some of them seem perfectly doable, others don’t have a snowball’s chance, but are included for sake of discussion. Feel free to comment, and please let us know if any of them already exist or eventually come into being.

AGED BALSAMIC VINEGAR
Some time ago, Emeril Lagasse did a show-and-tell on his show of the different grades of balsamic vinegar, ranging in consistencies from water to motor oil. The truly aged varieties are thick, sweet and used in scant flavorful quantities. Nothing in the kosher world comes close. Two demerits if you even suggest Bartenura’s “Special Reserve” vinegar.

STEP-BY-STEP KASHRUT GUIDE
KosherBlogger ColumbiaAuds points out the need for better step-by-step guides on getting into keeping kosher. Taking on kashrut is very difficult without proper guidance, and the sheer expense and hard work required can be a complete turn-off to those who might be spiritually inclined to kashrut, but afraid or unable to take one huge step. Plus, there are familial issues that need attention — how to get one’s children or spouse involved, how to handle relatives and family gatherings that aren’t kosher. Most of the books on kashrut I’ve read are very heavy on halacha — invalid mixtures, kashering processes — and there’s little practical introductory material on the lines of “how do I gradually change my treif home into a kosher home.”

HARD-TO-FIND ASIAN SAUCES
I’ve had dishes with black bean sauce at kosher Chinese restaurants, so why can’t I buy fermented black beans, or black bean sauce? Along similar lines, KosherBlogger Tovah would like kosher nam pla, a salty, fermented fish sauce with an extremely pungent odor, popular throughout Southeast Asia.

BROTH/STOCK
Kosher beef broth (not the pareve powder) and kosher fish stock can’t be too tough to produce.

JUNK FOOD
Two e-mail requests for kosherized Skittles, plus requests for Starburst, Nerds, and Life-Savers. And what’s the deal with low-fat baked potato chips — why aren’t any of them kosher yet?

KASHRUT CERTIFICATION DISCLOSURES
Some widely-respected rabbinical authority on kashrut should formulate a detailed survey to be answered by all certification agencies as a formal disclosure of their standard practices (inspections, halachic leniencies, etc.) so we can move toward a standard, objective method of comparing hekshers without urban legends and lashon hara. It’s a long shot, but a boy can dream. “

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We especially like the last item on his wish list. Kosher Blog and Kosher Nexus are not competitors. We share the same mission essentially. If you don’t already subscribe,you should! And while you are visiting there, share your thoughts with Jon re the full Wish List.

(RJR)