Eating Food Prepared and Served by Non-Muslims in US

2-2-2000 | IslamWeb

Question:

I live with a non-Muslim. Is it permissible for me to eat what he cooks knowing that he only cooks Halaal (lawful) meat. There is unlawful meat like pork?

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Answer:

All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allah, and that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger.

It is permissible for a Muslim to eat the food prepared by non-Muslims if he knows that they do not add to it something which Allah has forbidden, like dead meat, blood, the flesh of swine (pork), alcohol [all kinds of intoxicants] and the like. However, the fact that they prepared the food does not affect the food itself [if the food is lawful].

On this occasion, we advise the Muslims who are living in non-Muslim countries to establish their own restaurants so that they can be sure that the meat served in it is lawful, and so that they can get economic benefits from it. By doing so, one cooperates in piety and righteousness. Allah Says (what means): {Help you one another in virtue, righteousness and piety but do not help one another in sin and transgression.} [Quran 5:2]

As far as we know, in general the people of that country do not slaughter according to Islamic rites, as they electrocute the animal, or drown it, or kill it with a heavy metal, and there is no doubt that any animal slaughtered in this way is a dead animal and eating it is prohibited.

Allah knows best.