Halacha: What Blessing Do You Say Over Bell Peppers?
Curious about the correct blessings for bell peppers - both before and after eating? All the details are here, including the amount required for a blessing.
- הידברות
- פורסם כ"ט תשרי התשע"ז
#VALUE!
On the bell pepper, you say "Ha'adama" (first blessing)
At the end of the meal, you say "Borei Nefashot" (final blessing)
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The amount of eating required to warrant a final blessing (from the "Daily Halacha" based on the rulings of the late Rabbi Ovadia Yosef):
For anything a person eats, they must say a "first blessing", such as "Shehakol" or "Ha'etz". Even if they eat only a small amount of the food, they must bless it, as long as they intend to eat it for sustenance. (However, if they only taste the food to improve it by adding seasoning or something similar, they do not bless this 'eating' at all). Therefore, someone who chews flavored gum, even though they swallow very little of it, must bless it to enjoy the gum's flavor. Similarly, someone who comes to drink something must bless it even if they only drink a drop of it.
However, all this concerns the first blessing, but a final blessing is only said when one eats a "significant eating", and the measure of significant eating is the amount of an "olive", which is twenty-seven grams, and for drinking, the measure is a "revi'it", which is eighty-one grams.
Furthermore, the eating or drinking must be within a time frame such that the eating or drinking complements each other. For if a person eats the amount of an "olive" of bread throughout an entire day, crumb by crumb, they certainly cannot say the blessing after. Rather, the eating of the measure of an "olive" must all be within the timeframe of "eating a 'pras'", and the adjudicators disagree on this timeframe, with some saying it is five minutes and others saying it is about seven and a half minutes (and there are other opinions). Therefore, it is always correct to eat the measure of an olive (especially during Shabbat meals) within four and a half minutes to satisfy all opinions.
Regarding a final blessing on a drink, one must drink a revi'it of the beverage (which is eighty-one grams) at once, because if they stopped between swallows, they do not say a final blessing at all. Therefore, someone who drinks soup with a spoon does not say a final blessing for that soup, as they did not drink a measure of revi'it at once, and similarly someone who drinks coffee or tea while hot does not bless it, because they cannot drink it all at once.
