Halal food guides

Plain answers to the questions people ask most about halal food — what is in it, why it is or is not halal, and what to check on the label.

• How to check if a product is halal — A step-by-step way to check a food: halal marks, the ingredient list, additive codes with a hidden animal origin, vegetarian labels and manufacturers.
• Is gelatine halal? — Gelatine (gelatin) is halal or not depending on its source: pork, beef or fish. What scholars say, the istihalah debate, and where gelatine hides in food.
• Is ginger ale halal? — Ginger ale is a soft drink, not a beer. What is in it, which ingredients are halal, and the one open question: ethanol in natural flavours.
• Is hummus halal? — Hummus is chickpeas, tahini, lemon, garlic and oil, all plant-based. What can make a shop-bought tub doubtful, and how to read its label.
• Is oyster sauce halal? — Oyster sauce is made from oyster extract. Three of the four schools of Islamic law permit it; the Hanafi school does not. What else to check on the label.
• Is Red Bull halal? — Red Bull's taurine is synthetic, not from bulls, and the drink has no alcohol or animal ingredients. What is in the can and the sugar-free versions.
• What does mushbooh mean? — Mushbooh means doubtful: neither clearly halal nor clearly haram. Where the word comes from, which additives carry it and what removes the doubt.
• Which food additives are haram? — The short list of additives rated haram (E120, E542, E904, E920, E921), the doubtful families people confuse with them, and the scary names that are halal.