Chapter 7. List of Kitniyot

Regarding the reason for the prohibition of kitniyot, the Tur  [1] wrote: “There are those who prohibit eating rice and all kinds of kitniyot in cooked dishes, because types of wheat become mixed in with them.” And in the Semak the reason is given as follows: “Since it is possible to make dough from them, one may come to confuse it with other dough that is chametz”  [2] . As for the definition of kitniyot, the Rambam  [3] wrote: “Seeds are divided into three categories, etc.; the second of them is what is called kitniyot, and these are all seeds eaten by people other than grain, such as beans, peas, lentils, millet, rice, sesame, poppy, safflower and the like.” It is clear from the Rambam that the definition of kitniyot refers to edible seeds. The Taz wrote: “And the reason appears to be that mustard grows in pods, similar to the growth of kitniyot; therefore, it is included in the prohibition of kitniyot.”

[The kitniyot enclosed in square brackets are subject to halachic discussion. Spices — most of them are not kitniyot and do not appear on the list. General note: there are products considered kitniyot because kitniyot oil is mixed into them. Pearl barley is not kitniyot; regarding chametz, see its law above under the entry “Pearl barley.”]

Peas, rice, [peanuts], sunflower seeds [and pumpkin seeds], millet, chickpeas, mustard, fenugreek [since it grows in a pod], buckwheat [not spelt, which is a type of grain], cumin [even for those who eat kitniyot there is a concern with this, because oats resemble cumin], [rapeseed, as well as canola oil produced from rapeseed  [4] ], soy [see below regarding corn],  lentils, fava beans, poppy seeds, quinoa, sesame, beans, lupin, corn [even though it is a new species that was not known at the time of the decree]  [5] .

[1] Siman 453.
[2] Cited in the Taz (there, subsection 3).
[3] Laws of Kilayim (chapter 1, halachah 8).
[4] See Avnei Nezer (Orach Chaim, siman 373).
[5] Mishnah Berurah (siman 453, subsection 4)