From: Joseph C.

Dear Rabbi,

This year my wife and I are kashering our home for Passover for the first time. We are now purchasing Passover dishes, utensils, etc. My question is, when we remove the everyday dishes, where do they go? May we put them in the boxes that held the Passover dishes? Is it better that the Passover dishes not come in contact with a surface that was touched by everyday dishes? Do we cover the inside of the cabinets? Do we change the plastic containers in our kitchen drawers?

Dear Joseph,

First of all, congratulations on your first “Kosher for Passover” home. Many happy returns!

You can store clean everyday utensils in the boxes that held your Passover dishes. After Passover, you can put the Passover dishes back into the same containers. Just be careful not to get the dishes mixed up.

It is customary to cover non-Passover cupboards and utensil holders that will be used on Passover. If you can’t do this or can’t obtain new utensil holders, remove the inserts, clean the drawers completely and put the Passover cutlery directly into the drawer.

By the way, I must warn you about one of the mysteries of Passover: The Passover utensils are taken out of a specific amount of storage space, and yet they never seem to all fit back in again! I have never found a rational explanation for this phenomenon! Symbolically, perhaps we too should resist returning to the confines of everyday living after tasting the spiritual liberation of Passover.