Challah: The Blessing in the DoughSample

Rituals and Customs Observed Then and Now

And he humbled you and let you hunger and fed you with manna, which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, that he might make you know that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.
— DEUTERONOMY 8:3

Over time there have been many customs associated with baking challah, such as giving charity just beforehand and reading Psalm 90. In addition, many keep in mind the symbolism of each ingredient, intentionally blessing the dough with prayers as it is made.

When the Temple stood in Jerusalem and the priests served in the Temple, the dough that we are commanded to separate when making bread was given to the priests. This was part of the required contributions that allowed the priests to serve God without worrying about providing sustenance for their families. Essentially, the offering was for God, since it allowed the priests to serve in His Temple.

Today, while we no longer have the Temple, we still observe the practice of taking challah, first so that the practice will not be forgotten, and second, because the meaning and the spirit of the law is as relevant today as in biblical times. The only difference is that since we cannot give the challah to the priests, we dispose of it respectfully. Some have the custom of wrapping the dough in foil and burning it in a hot oven; others simply wrap the dough in a paper towel or paper bag and place it in the garbage.

There are several rules that govern this biblical directive of taking challah. The first is that challah is only taken from dough containing flour made from the following grains: barley, rye, oats, wheat, or spelt (hulled wheat). The second is that we only observe the commandment of taking challah when the dough contains flour that is 2 pounds,11 ounces or more – and even then it is taken without reciting the traditional blessing.

However, when the flour in the dough weighs 3 pounds, 11 ounces (roughly 12–14 cups of flour) or more, challah is taken and the following blessing is recited: “Blessed are You, God, our LORD, King of the universe, Who has sanctified us with His commandments, and has commanded us to separate challah from the dough.” After the blessing is recited, the small piece of dough is held up and we declare: “This is challah.” After that, the piece is either burnt or disposed of and the rest of the dough is now blessed and ready to be shaped and baked.

The sages teach that the time of separating the challah is an auspicious time for prayer. Some people pray for health, for sustenance, for peace, or anything at all. It is the Jewish custom to also pray for the rebuilding of the Third Temple, where we will be able to offer our challah in the way that it was originally intended.