In the previous Halachot we have discussed several details regarding the laws of selecting on Shabbat. We shall now conclude these Halachot by discussing several details which many people have inquired about.
A Salt Shaker Containing Grains of Rice in it
Many people have asked us regarding the status of salt shakers which have perforated caps in order to allow the salt to pour through. Some people place several grains of rice in the salt shaker in order to prevent the clumping together of the grains of salt due to moisture. The question becomes: Is it permissible to use such a salt shaker on Shabbat or would using it constitute a prohibition of selecting since when one shakes out the salt, the grains of rice remain in the shaker and this should seemingly constitute selecting “waste from food,” as the “waste” here refers to the grains of rice remaining in the shaker, in addition to the fact that this selecting is being done with the use of a utensil?
Halachically speaking, Maran Rabbeinu Ovadia Yosef zt”l writes (in his Chazon Ovadia-Shabbat Vol. 4, page 216) that since the salt shaker cannot be considered a “utensil designated for selecting” (meaning that whereas a strainer is a utensil designated for selecting, a salt shaker is not primarily designated for selecting; rather, it is meant for shaking out salt) and the one using the salt shaker does not intend to select at all, rather, he merely wishes to benefit from the salt, the prohibition of selecting in this scenario is only on a rabbinic level and not a Torah prohibition. Thus, regarding any forbidden work on Shabbat which is only prohibited by a rabbinic enactment, there is great room for leniency when certain conditions are met. He proceeds to quote other reasons to permit using a salt shaker on Shabbat. Thus, halachically speaking, one may be lenient in this matter as is indeed the custom of many righteous individuals.
Using a Tea Kettle with a Strainer
Regarding a tea kettle which has a strainer on its spout to prevent the tea leaves inside it from falling into the cup, although it would seem that one is using a “utensil” to separate the tea beverage from the tea leaves mixed into it, nevertheless, halachically speaking, Maran zt”l writes (ibid. page 226) that one may use such a teapot on Shabbat. It is preferable though to wait until the tea leaves fall to the bottom of the kettle and the tea beverage is on top in which case there is no limitation whatsoever. However, according to the letter of the law, one may be lenient and use the teapot even when the tea leaves are mixed into the water. This was indeed the custom of Hagaon Chazon Ish zt”l. The primary basis for this lenient ruling is due to the fact that since most people do not care about this and will customarily drink tea even when there are several tea leaves mixed inside, this does not constitute a forbidden form of selecting on Shabbat. Similarly, Maran Ha’Shulchan Aruch (Chapter 319) rules that drinkable water which contains some very small pieces of wood mixed inside may be filtered (with a strainer) on Shabbat and drunk in this way. However, if the water is very dirty such that it cannot be drunk without filtering, one may not filter such water on Shabbat. So too, in our case, the tea is drinkable without filtering and thus, even if certain people prefer to drink it only after filtering it, such filtering is not prohibited according to the letter of the law, as we have explained.
