1. If soup was removed from a K’li Rishon(such as a soup pot on or off the fire) with a ladle and was then poured into a soup bowl, one may consider the soup bowl as a K’li Shlishi and add baked foods (such as matza, soup nuts or chow mein noodles) to the soup. (Halachos of Shabbos by Rabbi Shimon Eider, Z’tl, p. 290)
2. Cutting or chopping into large-sized pieces is not considered to fall within the melacha of Tochen (grinding). How fine an item must be ground in order for it to be considered Tochen is questionable. Therefore, when cutting vegetables into fine pieces, one should not cut them into pieces which are very small; i.e., he should cut them into larger pieces than they are cut in normal circumstances. Although some Poskim hold that if one is chopping vegetables into small pieces for immediate use it is permissible, others disagree. One should conduct himself preferably according to this view, and not cut fruits and vegetables into very fine pieces, even right before the meal. Similarly, some Poskim hold that not only is chopping or cutting into very small pieces prohibited because of Tochen, but even slicing fruits and vegetables into very small slices in length and width is also prohibited. The size of a slice is relative to the fruit and vegetable that one is slicing. (Ibid., pages 206 and 213)
3. When preparing chopped liver, chopped eggs, or chopped fish (e.g., tuna salad or salmon salad), if onions or other vegetables are added, the vegetables must be chopped right before the meal, and should not be chopped into very fine pieces. The use of a chopping knife is questionable, and one should use a regular knife or fork (Ibid, 217).
Important Numbers
