Question:
Can I use the same stove top grate for milchigs and fleishigs? If, for example, I boil milk in a pot, can I use the same grate for then cooking something in a fleishig pot? If some of the milk would spill out of the pot and onto the grate, is it sufficient to wipe it off before a fleishig pot is used there? Thank you!!
Answer:
It is definitely better to have a different stove top for milchigs and fleishigs. This ensures that such mishaps shouldn’t happen. If however one cannot have separate stovetops, it is still permitted to use the same grate for milchig and fleishig. He reason is because the part of the grate that is under the pot comes in direct contact with the fire and any milk that spills on it gets burned up and kashered. Therefore it would be sufficient to wipe up any spilled milk, so that the grate is dry when a fleishig pot is placed on it. It is important to note that this will only apply to the part of the grate that comes in contact or is very close to the fire. The parts of the grate that are not close to the fire may actually be trief, and food that falls on it should be regarded as touching something that is hot and trief.
Sources:
Halichos Shlomo Pesach 3 ftnt. 9, Yivakesh Torah 11.
