Do Jews Eat Bacon?

Each religion has its own practices, diets, and traditions that make them unique to one another. Judaism is one of these religions with its own perspective on how to live.

They have an interesting diet that disapproves of many meats. Is bacon a food they’re allowed to eat?

No, Jews do not eat bacon or other pork products. According to their practices, pork products cannot be consumed because pigs do not chew their cud.

Other animals such as cows, sheep, and deer are safe to eat, but pigs are not on that list. Thanks to this, you most likely won’t see any Jewish people eating bacon or other pork food items.

The rest of this article will cover why Jews don’t eat bacon, why Jews don’t eat pork, other foods Jews don’t eat, and what foods Jews eat.

Why Jews Don’t Eat Bacon

Although Biblical scholars are making new theories that say Jews can eat bacon, for countless years, it was never allowed. This prohibition dates all the way back to the Roman period. Even non-Jews knew about the no-pork diet.

There are cases throughout history where some leaders have tried to force Jews to eat pork, but these plans failed and the Jewish tradition of not eating pork carried on. 

Jews do not wish to consume blood from animals, hence why much of their meat must be slaughtered properly. If a Jew spots blood inside an egg, they cannot eat it.

When meat is slaughtered, it undergoes a salting process to remove blood from the food.

Why Jews Don’t Eat Pork

Bacon is a pork product, which explains why Jews don’t eat it. However, did you know that Jews stay away from all pork products? It very clearly states in the Bible that the only meat they can have is from any animal that has a cloven hoof completely split into double hoofs.

The list of what they can and can’t eat is so specific that you can’t deny it: Jews don’t eat pork. Although not all Jews remove pork from their diets, most have and continue to eat meals without pork in them.

There is a new study stating that since the Book of Leviticus is meant to be followed by priests, Jews who are not priests can eat food items such as pork. However, this is just one study, and most Jews still tend to follow their own rules.

Other Foods Jews Don’t Eat

When following a religious diet, you need to know what foods you can and can’t have. Pork is one restriction Jews have, but they also don’t eat much seafood.

For example, Jews can only have meat from fish that have both scales and fins.

This means that seafood cuisine that includes lobster, crab, shrimp, and clams are prohibited in their diet as they don’t have both scales and fins.

Another practice is not eating meat with dairy. You won’t see any Jews having a meat dish topped off with a dairy product.

For example, you won’t see Jews eating cheese with meat. It is said that you need to keep them separate. So although you can eat the meat and cheese separately, eating them together is not ideal.

What Foods Jews Eat

Jewish cuisine is fascinating due to the unique flavors that blend together to create a filling meal. Although pork and many seafood products are not allowed, that doesn’t mean there aren’t other tasty meals waiting for you.

All fruits and vegetables are okay for Jews to eat, and you’ll see them having such meals often. There’s also cod. Yes, cod is a fish, but it follows the rules of having both fins and scales and can therefore be consumed by Jewish people.

Any food that can be consumed by Jewish people is called “kosher”. Using this term, you can identify which foods Jews eat.

The term “kosher” translates to proper or pure. For example, the only dairy products Jews can consume should come from a kosher animal.

The same applies to eggs. If there is no blood in the egg and it came from a kosher animal, then Jews are permitted to eat it. As soon as blood is spotted, that’s when the Jews cannot eat it.