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Various foods have symbolic meanings in religion. Likewise, most religions place certain restrictions upon the use of food. Although the regulations for fasting placed upon Roman Catholics have been liberalized, many Catholics still abstain from meat on fast days; to them fish and cheese may be associated with denial and penitence. Muslims abstain from eating pork, whereas Buddhists are vegetarians and will not eat the flesh of any animal. Seventh Day Adventists are lacto-ovo-vegetarians; that is, they do not eat meat but they use eggs, milk, nuts, and legumes as sources of protein.

Orthodox Jews adhere to dietary laws based upon tradition and the Bible. Animals and poultry are slaughtered according to ritual, and the meat is soaked in water, salted to remove the blood, and washed. This is known as koshering. Pork and shellfish are prohibited.

Milk, sour cream, cottage cheese, and cream cheese are widely used, but no dairy foods are served at a meal with meat. Usually two meals each day are dairy meals, and one meal is a meat meal. Separate utensils are used for the cookery of meat and dairy products. Fish, eggs, vegetables, fruits, cereals, and bread may be used at all meals; however, no milk or butter may be used with these foods if they are included in the meat meal.

No food preparation takes place on the Sabbath. Religious festivals are celebrated with special dishes, and much symbolism is attached to food. For example, only unleavened bread is eaten during the Passover. Separate sets of dishes are used during the Passover week. On Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement), the most solemn day of the religious year, no food or drink is taken for 24 hours.

Among the foods widely used by Jewish people are borsch (a soup), gefullte fish, blintzes (thin rolled pancakes filled with cottage cheese or ground beef) knishes (pastry with ground meat), lox(salted, smoked salmon), challah (a braided white bread), matzo (flat unleavened bread), bagel (doughnut-shaped hard yeast roll), kuchen (coffee cake), leckach (honey cake served especially at Rosh Hashana, the New Year), and strudel (fruit-filled pastry).

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GENERAL HEALTH