1)

WHEN WE BLESS BOREI MINEI MEZONOS ON THE FIVE GRAINS [Berachos: five grains]

(a)

Gemara

1.

36b (Rav Yehudah): One blesses sheha'Kol on Chavitz (a congealed dish of flour, oil and honey) or porridge;

2.

(Rav Kahana): One blesses Borei Minei Mezonos.

3.

All agree that one blesses Borei Minei Mezonos for regular porridge. They argue about porridge like Chavitz;

i.

Rav Yehudah says sheha'Kol, because the honey is primary. Rav Kahana says Borei Minei Mezonos, because the flour is primary.

4.

(Rav Yosef): Presumably, the Halachah follows Rav Kahana, for Rav and Shmuel say that one blesses Borei Minei Mezonos on anything containing [any of] the five species of grain.

5.

37a (Beraisa): The following are Ma'aseh Kederah -- Chilka, Tragis, Zariz, Arsan (the wheat kernels broken into two, three, four and five pieces, respectively), Soles (fine flour), and rice.

6.

(Beraisa): One who eats wheat blesses Borei Pri ha'Adamah;

7.

If it was ground (into flour), baked and cooked --

i.

If the pieces are intact, one blesses ha'Motzi (beforehand) and Birkas ha'Mazon (afterwards);

ii.

If the pieces are not intact, one blesses Borei Minei Mezonos and me'Ein Shalosh.

8.

(Beraisa - R. Yehudah): If Degen (grain) was not baked into bread, R. Gamliel obligates Birkas ha'Mazon, and Chachamim obligate me'Ein Shalosh.

(b)

Rishonim

1.

Rambam (Hilchos Berachos 3:2): One who eats Shaluk (cooked) grain intact blesses Borei Minei Mezonos and afterwards Borei Nefashos.

i.

Kesef Mishneh: The Gemara said that one who eats wheat blesses Borei Pri ha'Adamah. The Rambam understands that this includes even if it was cooked (when the kernels were) whole, and the shells were not removed and they were not divided. He calls this intact, for it is like it came from the granary. Also R. Yonah says so. Even though the Gemara said "ha'Koses rice blesses Borei Peri ha'Adamah", which connotes only eating it raw (but if it was cooked, even intact, one blesses Borei Minei Mezonos - PF). There is different, for it is normally cooked whole.

2.

Rambam (4): If flour of one of the five grains was cooked in a pot, whether alone or with other things, e.g. pancakes or similar things, or grain that was divided or crushed or cooked in a pot, e.g. Katush or cut grain, or similar things, all of this is called Ma'aseh Kederah. Similarly a Tavshil (cooked food) in which something from the five grains was mixed, whether flour or bread, one blesses on it Borei Minei Mezonos.

3.

Rosh (6:7): The Halachah follows Rav Kahana, for Rav Yosef supports him. Whenever the Ikar is from the five grains, even if the majority is from another species, we bless on it Borei Minei Mezonos and afterwards Al ha'Michyah.

4.

Rosh (9): One who is Koses wheat blesses Borei Peri ha'Adamah.

i.

Divrei Chamudos (21): The same applies if it was cooked intact, i.e. the kernels are whole. The Rosh equates these in Sa'if 9. The Beis Yosef says so, and also Kitzur Piskei ha'Rosh (of the Tur, 6:9).

ii.

R. Yonah (25b DH Chavitz): The Gemara says 'and similarly porridge', which is like Chavitz. This teaches that one blesses on porridge only if the wheat was mashed and stuck and became like Chavitz. If one cooked the wheat whole, and the kernels are intact, one blesses only Borei Peri ha'Adamah, just like one who eats (raw) wheat.

iii.

Tosfos (37a DH ha'Koses): Al ha'Michyah never applies to raw wheat. We say that if Degen (grain) was not made bread, Chachamim obligate me'Ein Shalosh. This is when it was made like porridge. Then, it is an esteemed eating. Eating raw wheat is not so esteemed, so one says only Borei Nefashos. However, the Ri says that perhaps Chachamim include (raw wheat) in Degen that was not made into bread. It is proper to be stringent to eat parched grain or cooked wheat only in a meal, for then Birkas ha'Mazon exempts it, unless it was mashed well, like porridge. The Yerushalmi says that the Amora'im were unsure about the Berachah Acharonah on Soles, i.e. parched grain. R. Yirmeyah did not eat it (for this reason).

(c)

Poskim

1.

Shulchan Aruch (OC 208:2): If the five grains were cooked, or if one made a cooked food from grain that was Katush or cut, or porridge, even if he mixed in much more honey or other species than grain, he blesses on it Borei Minei Mezonos and afterwards Al ha'Michyah.

i.

Mishnah Berurah (2): The text should not say "she'Shalkan" (cooked them), rather, "she'Chalkan", i.e. divided each into two or more. We call this grits. If the kernels are whole, even if they were cooked, one blesses Borei Peri ha'Adamah, like it says in Sa'if 4. However, if they were mashed in cooking, even though they were put totally whole into the pot, i.e. in their shells, one blesses Borei Minei Mezonos, since they were mashed well.

ii.

Kaf ha'Chayim (6): Surely the text should say "she'Chalkan", for this Sa'if cites the Rambam verbatim. This does not affect the Halachah, for if they were cooked, i.e. until they became mashed, one blesses Borei Minei Mezonos.

iii.

Taz (3): The five grains are exceedingly important, so we do not follow the majority if they were put in l'Ma'achal (for the sake of eating them). Regarding other matters, we follow the majority. Here the Shulchan Aruch connotes that even if the grain is not for taste, since it is for l'Ma'achal (it is Ikar). Whenever there is honey, one tastes only the honey.

iv.

Magen Avraham (2): This connotes that above, we discuss when they were not Katush. This is difficult, for in Sa'if 4 we say that if the kernels were cooked whole, one blesses Borei Peri ha'Adamah! Perhaps here we discuss when they were cooked until they became mashed. The Levush on Sa'if 4 connotes like this. R. Yonah says 'if the wheat was mashed and stuck', i.e. through cooking. Surely, Ketishah does not make it stick! 'If one cooked the wheat whole' means that he did not remove the shell. If so, the kernels are intact. They do not stick through cooking. One blesses Borei Peri ha'Adamah. The Rambam says 'was divided or crushed.' This implies that crushing helps even if it was not divided, just the shell was removed. What I wrote in Sa'if 7 (Sa'if Katan 10) connotes like this. The Gemara did not mention grits. It mentioned only divided (grain), according to Rashi, who says that each (kernel) was divided in two, like it says in Mo'ed Katan (13b). The Bach said that one should eat barley or wheat 'Ganatzi Garstein' only within a meal. This is when they did not stick together during cooking. If they stuck through cooking, one blesses Borei Minei Mezonos. This is only if they were mashed well, like Tosfos says. The same applies to whole grits. I wrote (205:6) that the gravy is like the food itself.

v.

Eshel Avraham (2): Here, "Ketishah" does not mean grinding (like it means in the Torah). Rather, it means that the shell was removed. If the shell was removed but they were not mashed in cooking, the law is not clear.

vi.

Kaf ha'Chayim (11): The Berachah on the Tavshil exempts the gravy. However, if one drinks only the gravy, there are different opinions, so he blesses on it sheha'Kol.

vii.

Mishnah Berurah (4): Ketishah helps even without dividing, for it removes the shell. The Acharonim says that this is only if they stick through the cooking. Then it is considered Ma'aseh Kederah. If not, they are considered whole.

viii.

Mishnah Berurah (6) Porridge is when they were mashed and stick well.

ix.

Kaf ha'Chayim (10): If the bran was removed and returned, the Magen Avraham (451:2) was unsure whether it joins to a k'Zayis of Matzah. Eshel Avraham (208:1) says that the same (Safek) applies to (joining to the Shi'ur for) Birkas ha'Mazon or Al ha'Michyah. In 451:2, he wrote that surely it does not join. If such a case occurred, one should eat a k'Zayis without the bran to avoid the Safek.

2.

Shulchan Aruch (4): If one ate parched grain, or it was cooked and the kernels are whole, one blesses only Borei Peri ha'Adamah and afterwards Borei Nefashos.

i.

Beis Yosef (DH v'Hani): Tosfos and the Rosh (9) connote that Koses includes raw, and cooked if the kernels are whole, i.e. they were not mashed well.

ii.

Taz (7): When the kernels are whole, it is not important enough to fix the Berachah me'Ein Shalosh.

iii.

Gra (DH Kelayos): The Gemara said 'these are Ma'aseh Kederah', i.e. only when the kernels are not whole.

iv.

Eliyahu Rabah (5): The Bach (4) says that one should eat whole cooked wheat, barley or grits only in a meal. The Shlah said so about grits. I say that this is only if they were not mashed in cooking. B'Di'eved, if one ate one of them outside a meal, Keneses ha'Gedolah says to bless Borei Nefashos. I disagree with Keneses ha'Gedolah, but regarding this I agree, for only Tosfos says differently. However, why do the Bach and Shlah say to eat the grits in a meal? They are crushed and the shell is removed, and some are divided. If so all agree that one blesses Borei Minei Mezonos! Perhaps they hold that they must become mashed and stick together. This requires investigation

v.

Mishnah Berurah (165): When they were not mashed at all, they are not considered Mazon. They are like other Peri ha'Adamah. If the shell was removed through crushing, some say that one blesses Borei Minei Mezonos, for this is like Ma'aseh Kederah. Some say that it is Borei Peri ha'Adamah, for the kernels themselves are whole. It is proper to eat them only in a meal. If they stick together due to cooking, l'Chatchilah one blesses Borei Minei Mezonos and Al ha'Michyah. If the shell and part of the barley kernel was removed through milling, like is common in pearl grits, we do not protest against one who blesses Borei Minei Mezonos and Al ha'Michyah, even if it was not mashed in cooking.

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