What Bracha should one make on pita chips, Hamotzi or Mezonos ?
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3 Answers
I heard from my Rebbi Rav Menachem Feifer Shlita״h that it depends. If it was made from existing pita it is Hamotzi, but if it is made ' from scratch ' it is Mezonos. Check out this source from a Brachos Site
I was sure it was hamotzi but your question made me doubt and check. It is indeed a machloket and seems to depend on the specific product.
For Stacy's Pita chips, the OU poskim say it is hamotzi but they acknowledge others say mezonot (see here).
dinonline says, like your source and Rav, that it depends if the chips were initially baked as a pita then fried (in which case it is hamotzi) or directly baked as a snack (then mezonot). Most relevant quote from R Yehoshua Pfeffer is
If the pita bread is baked [initially] as regular bread, and can be eaten as bread (even if not well done), it follows that the berachah will remain hamotzi even after it is made into chips. This is because once made into regular bread, the bread will not lose its status by being cut up and re-baked (see Mishnah Berurah 168:62; Minchas Yitzchak 1:71:8; Yaskil Avdi 1:9).
If the initial baking is for the purpose of “chips” then the berachah will be mezonot (see Kehilas Yaakov Berachos 16).
PS. Interestingly, in Israel, some hekhserim will print the bracha abbreviation on the package in difficult cases like these
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FWIW, you see the bracha mentioned on many U.S made products, also. It's esp. common to see on Pesach "cake" the words "birchato shehakol".– DanFFeb 18, 2016 at 15:22
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@DanF interesting. I didn't see it but lived in the US a while back now. Reason I mentioned it is the first link I cited mentions OU doesn't do it– mblochFeb 18, 2016 at 15:50
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@mbloch The hekhsherim are not taking responsibility for the brachot printed TTBOMK. It's just someones friendly opinion– Double AA ♦Feb 18, 2016 at 18:12
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@danf that is just a warning that its not gebrokhts so no flour. Such warnings exist in nearly no other context– Double AA ♦Feb 18, 2016 at 18:12
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@DoubleAA It is mainly to inform people that it's not gebrokhts, but, it also serves to inform of the bracha. Another "context" I have seen is on some "fruity" wines such as sangria and raspberry wine which had the wording "birchato shehakol" as well. Similar idea - it was mainly fruit juice vs. grape juice.– DanFFeb 18, 2016 at 18:34
The star k holds that on commercial pita chips you always make a mezonos.
"You are correct that if pita chips are made from leftover bread then they would be hamotzi. However, commercially made pita chips are not made from leftover bread but rather are produced with intent at the outset to make pita chips. Therefore, they do not have the halachic status of bread and are pas habah bekisnin, requiring a mezonos if eaten as a snack. כן פסק הגרש"ז אויערבאך זצ"ל הובא בספר וזאת הברכה עמ' 21"
Here is the link: star k website It is a list of questions so search for the pita chips question.
