Hatmana on a Cholent Pot
QUESTION: I know that I may not put food on a fire or on a blech on Shabbos, even if the food is fully cooked and dry, because it has the appearance of cooking. Nonetheless, it is permissible to place fully cooked food that is dry on top of a cholent pot because cooking is not done in this manner and it does not have the appearance of cooking. By the same token, would the same leniency apply to hatmana; may I wrap a pot of food before Shabbos and place it on top of my cholent pot to stay warm?
ANSWER: One may not wrap food and place it on top of another pot, even if the cholent pot is sitting on a blech. However, one may wrap food before Shabbos and place it on top of a hot pot that is not on the fire. The Mishnah Berurah (258:2) explains that since the pot is no longer on the fire, it is slowly cooling down, and therefore it is not “mosif hevel” (adding heat). Even though the pot is much hotter than the food that is placed on top of it, since it is gradually cooling down, it is permitted to place wrapped food on it before Shabbos. However, the Mishnah Berurah points out that on Shabbos, the rules of hatmana are more stringent and one may not place wrapped food on a hot pot, even if the pot is off the fire.
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