QUESTION

Washington, D.C.

Good morning. Congregants are renovating their kitchen and asked about porcelain countertops. My understanding is that they aren’t kasherable but figured I would double check. Apparently they are more durable than marble or granite. Thank you!

ANSWER

Countertops do not really need to be hekhshered. Why? Because they are not made to put hot food on directly. So if any hot food falls on it, that is not the way it is used, and for kashering we go by רוב תשמישו (Shulchan Arukh OC 451:6). In