DailyHalacha.com for Mobile Devices Now Available

Click Here to Sponsor Daily Halacha
"Delivered to Over 6000 Registered Recipients Each Day"

      
(File size: 956 KB)
Berachot Order of Varying Types of Food & Fruit

If one sits down to eat different kinds of fruits, all of which require the Beracha of "Borei Peri Ha'etz," over which fruit should he recite the Beracha, and thereby cover all the other fruits?

If one of the fruits is included among the seven special species of Eretz Yisrael (listed in the verse in Parashat Eikev – Devarim 8:8), such as grapes, then this fruit takes precedence over other fruits. For example, if a person eats grapes and apples, he would recite the Beracha of Ha'etz over the grapes, and this would cover the apples, as well.

If one sits down to eat several fruits which are all among the seven special species, over which fruit should he recite the Beracha?

Halacha requires reciting the Beracha in such a case over the fruit that is mentioned closer to the word "Eretz" ("land") in the verse that lists the seven species. The verse describes the Land of Israel as "a land [Eretz] of wheat and barley, grapes, figs and pomegranates; a land [Eretz] of oil-laden olives and date-nectar." The species closest to the word "Eretz" in this verse is given precedence over species situated further away from the word "Eretz." For this reason, when one eats both a Mezonot food (from wheat or barley) and fruits from the seven species, he first recites the Beracha over the Mezonot food, since wheat and barley are situated closest to the word "Eretz" in this verse. Among fruits, olives, which are mentioned immediately following the second instance of "Eretz," takes precedence over all other fruits. Then comes dates, followed by grapes/wine, figs, and, finally, pomegranates.

If one eats a fruit that requires the Beracha of "Borei Peri Ha'etz," and another food – such as watermelon – that requires "Borei Peri Ha'adama," which food should he eat first?

In this case, one should preferably first recite Ha'etz and partake of the fruit, and only then recite Ha'adama over the watermelon. If, however, the watermelon is "Chaviv" for this individual, meaning, he likes it better than the other food he wishes to eat, then he should first recite Ha'adama and partake of the watermelon, before partaking of the fruit.

Summary:
If one eats a fruit from the seven species and another fruit that is not among the seven species, he recites the Beracha of Ha'etz over the fruit from the seven species, which covers the over fruit, as well.

If one eats several fruits from among the seven species, then he chooses the fruit upon which to recite Ha'etz (and thereby cover the others, as well) based on the following sequence of priority: olives, dates, grapes, figs and pomegranates.

If one eats a fruit requiring Ha'etz and another food requiring Ha'adama, then he first eats of the food requiring Ha'etz, unless he has a stronger liking for the other food, in which case he first partakes of that other food.

Shulchan Aruch, Siman 211, Seif 1-4

 


Recent Daily Halachot...
Washing One’s Hands Immediately Upon Awakening in the Morning
Zimun: If Only Seven Out of the Ten Men Ate Bread
Determining Which Beracha to Recite When Smelling Fragrant Fruits
Within How Much Time After Eating May One Recite Birkat Hamazon or Me’en Shalosh?
Reciting Birkat Ha’gomel After a Boating Trip
Reciting Birkat Ha’gomel on Behalf of Somebody Else
Making a Zimun During Travel
Birkat Ha’gomel: Reciting the Beracha While Seated or at Nighttime; Reciting the Beracha After Confinement in a Holding Cell
The Procedure for Reciting Birkat Ha’gomel
Reciting a Zimun When Some Participants of the Meal Want to Leave
Mayim Aharonim – If One Forgot to Wash Mayim Aharonim; the Water Used for Mayim Aharonim; Using Other Liquids; the Procedure for Washing
Determining When to Recite “Boreh Asbeh Besamim” and When to Recite “Boreh Aseh Besamim”
Zimun: Counting Minors and Children Toward a Zimun, Granting Precedence to a Kohen or Torah Scholar
Situations Where One Would Not Recite a Beracha Before Drinking Water
Reciting the Beracha of Shehakol When in Doubt About the Beracha
Page of 239
3585 Halachot found