Welcome to all things related to halal cooking, eating, and of course the halal kitchen itself. I’m Yvonne Maffei, the Publisher and Founder of this site.

I hope you will join me in sharing and exchanging delicious halal recipes for all seasons and all meals you can prepare any day of the week. So, what’s all this halal talk about?

Let’s get to it…

What is Halal? Muslims who follow the Islamic dietary standard of eating will consume halal (means ‘permissible’ in Arabic) foods and beverages. These are considered pure foods ordained for mankind by Allah (God) in the Holy Qur’an and Hadith (sayings of the Prophet Muhammed (peace be upon him). Commonly recognized items that are not halal are pork and all its by-products as well as any type of intoxicating drink, or even drugs. That said, an observer of Islam (i.e. a Muslim) doesn’t drink alcohol or eat pork or foods with their by-products or derivatives. For example, boxed jello and marshmallows usually contain gelatin, which is often derived from pork and therefore not halal (but it could be if halal ingredients are used). Additional non-halal things include birds of prey, carrion, carnivores, blood and human body parts (i.e. hair, which is becoming a common ingredient in processed foods like bread).

Why the need for MyHalalKitchen.com? To create a platform for readers (regardless of religious or ethnic background) where I would be able to showcase the tasty recipes I’ve learned to make or that others share with me, all of which are tested to ensure accuracy. Additionally, it was created to share kitchen tips, stories about cooking, thoughts on food, information on what’s happening in the food industry and where you can find all the same things I do to create my halal meals.

What is the Mission of MyHalalKitchen.com?

The mission of My Halal Kitchen is to provide home cooks with the tools to prepare completely halal meals, including those with the necessary substitutions to make every dish halal and without having to filter a recipe for non-halal ingredients. It aims to make the lives of readers better by expanding the list of available recipes that are wholesome, healthy, delicious, economical and halal.

Over the last several years, I’ve tried fervently to educate myself on the source of food by-products so that I could avoid ingesting anything that’s not halal, but also to enjoy my favorite traditional and ethnic foods, only now with halal (permissible) substitutions. For example, I’ve learned to master my own chicken Parmesan, beef tacos and veal stew because there isn’t a halal restaurant I know of who will serve it up the way I’m used to eating it. I have also gathered a small collection of trusted companies and stores that offer not only halal products, but ones that are also healthy for us. This has proven to be a challenge when it comes to things like sausages or veal meat because not only are they rare fare finds at halal restaurants, but few grocers provide a good variety of raw and/or deli meats (without all those unhealthy ingredients) from which to buy and make the dishes myself. My journey has taken me on a mission to re-create our family favorites of Puerto Rican, Mexican, Sicilian and all other types of Mediterranean dishes, while avoiding as much pre-packaged and low quality food items as possible. I’ve also gained the desire to make more foods from scratch, simply because then I am guaranteed to know more about what it is that we’re eating.

The result has been simply delicious, simply pure, simply… halal.

What’s on the Horizon for My Halal Kitchen?

As the site evolves to showcase more topics on halal food and home and to reflect the changes in my own life, I hope you will enjoy and benefit from it as much as I enjoy creating it for you. You can look forward to more information on DIY projects, crafting, creating, sustainable living, homesteading, raising animals and more. I can’t wait to share it all with you!

Peace to all and thank you so much for visiting.