Shabbos Hot Plate Dilemma

Dear Rabbi, Erev Shabbos, after everything was prepared and cooked, I placed everything on the Shabbos hot plate and then lit the candles and accepted Shabbos. Only to realize that I forgot to plug it in. Since it was already Shabbos (after sunset), and even though the food was hot, I placed the pot of cholent on my neighbor's hot plate. However, I didn’t place it directly, only on an overturned plate. The next morning, the cholent wasn’t edible since it had spoiled. My question is, was I able to place it directly on the hot plate, and if not, what were my options according to Halacha?

Thank you for your question.

The answer:

Since it was not on a hotplate that was on before Shabbos, it would be forbidden to place it directly on a hotplate on Shabbos, even if the food is hot and fully cooked. So, you did the correct thing by placing an overturned plate or you could also have put it directly on the hot plate if it was covered with a thick silver foil.

In a case where you don’t have a place to put the pot by the neighbor then one may be lenient and ask a non-Jew, even directly, to first set the Shabbos time-switch to turn on in another quarter of an hour, then he should connect it to the plug and then the hot plate. One would have to place the cholent pot either on an overturned dish or if the hot plate was covered with thick silver foil as explained above. And as I wrote, one doesn’t need to ask the non-Jew in an indirect way, but even in a direct way. These solutions are only if the food is still hot and fully cooked.

The answer explained:

The Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim 253, writes that even if the food is fully cooked and hot, nevertheless, one may not initially place it on a fire on Shabbos, and even if it is a hot plate, since it looks like one is coming to cook on Shabbos. So what you did was good, since you did not put it directly on the hot plate, so it does not look like your intention is to cook the food.

If placing the pot by the neighbor is not an option then one may be lenient and ask a non-Jew to set the Shabbos time switch so that it will turn on later, like a quarter of an hour later, and then he should plug the timer switch into the outlet and connect the hotplate to the time switch, and the pot needs to be placed either on a overturned pan or directly on the hot plate if it was covered with thick silver foil.

The reason this is permitted is that it is called 'amirah le’akum' to do a 'gramah melacha' (an indirect melacha). It is written that generally one may not ask a non-Jew to perform a melacha for you on Shabbos. There are three reasons for this prohibition brought in the Rishonim:

1. It says in the torah 've’daber davar,' meaning that one should not even speak a command that brings about a melacha on Shabbos. (Rashi, Avodah Zarah page 15a).

2. It is considered as if the non-Jew is performing a shlichut on your behalf. Even though we do not regard a non-Jew as a shaliach, with regard to melachot Shabbos, we are stringent. (Rashi, Tractate Shabbos page 153a).

3. This is a rabbinical prohibition that was initiated to distance a Jew from performing a melacha on Shabbos. Since if it were permissible to command a non-Jew to do a melacha on Shabbos, then it might extend to a Jew doing it himself (Rambam Hilchot Shabbos Perek 6 Halacha 1)

However, in our case, since the non-Jew is not doing a melacha directly, since the time-switch will only turn on in a quarter of an hour, we say that in this case it is permitted.

It is important to note that the solutions mentioned above are only permitted in a case when all the food is hot and fully cooked. If however, it still needs cooking or if it cooled off then it would be forbidden.

1. Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim 253
2. Rashi, Avodah Zarah 15a
3. Rashi, Tractate Shabbos 153a
4. Rambam Hilchot Shabbos Perek 6 Halacha 1