Although the first blessing on rice is “Mezonot”, his last blessing is “Bore Nefashot”. Does this rule change when he ate both foods and rice? Does “Al Hamichia” on foods exclude rice?
Question:
As we know, rice is considered a nutritious food and is blessed Mezonot, but nevertheless, since it is not really food, the last blessing on it is Bore Nefashot.
From this, two questions arise:
In retrospect, if he blessed the eating of rice “Al Hamichia”, did he acquitted of his way?
If i ate a variety of mezonot and rice, does the blessing “Al Hamichia” that he blessed over the Mezonot foods, exempt the blessing of the rice even though his blessing is a Bore Nefashot?
Answer:
We will first address the first question (what is the ruling in retrospect when he blessed rice “Al Hamichia”):
The “Shearei Teshuva” (208:9) says, that although initially the last blessing on rice is “Bore Nefashot”, in retrospect, if he blessed “Al Hamichia”, he’s acquitted [and this is a big Chidush, because usually, if he blessed by mistake, “Al Hamichia” instead of “Bore Nefashot” he did not acquitted , as explained in the Mishnah Berura (208:62) (“There is no blessing of the “Berach Meen Shalosh” that exempts “Bore Nefashot”, and vice versa”), but here the matter is different, because rice feasts and satiates, and is read at least in retrospect. “Michia vekalkala”.
And now we will address the second question (the one who eats various Mezonot foods as well as rice, and blessed “Al Hamichia” on the foods, did he recite the last blessing on the rice):
The Shearei Teshuva (ibid.) adds and reiterates that although “Bore Nefashot” blesses rice by itself, but the one who eats rice and various foods, and blesses “Al Hamichia” over the types of foods, thereby exempts the rice (because as mentioned, rice feeds the heart, and although by itself they did not fix a blessing for it “Al Hamichia”, which was specific to a type of grain, but if he has already blessed the “Al Hamichia” over another type of grain, he also exempts the rice, therefore he will not bless the rice that “Bore Nefashot”.
The Possekim differed on a fundamental question, whether it should be avoided in the first place. And further clarification: it is true that if one has already blessed “Al Hamichia” over the types of food, one will no longer bless “Bore Nefashot” over the rice, and as explained, but the question is whether it is not better to first bless “Bore Nefashot” over the rice, thus avoiding the same “swallowing” of the blessing of the rice in the blessing “Al Hamichia” ” of the extra food.
As mentioned, the Possekim were divided. Some say that this is how it should be done even in the beginning, that is, to precede the blessing “Al Hamichia” of the other species and to exempt the rice, and this is how the Ben Ish Chai believes Ben Ish Chai, Kaf Hachaim, Yalkut Yossef 208, and on the other hand, some say that it is better to precede “Bore Nefashot” over the rice, and only later to bless “Al Hamichia” of the other species, and in this way the blessing “Bore Nefashot” of the rice will not be “swallowed” by the blessing Bore Nefashot of the other species (or, alternatively, he precedes the blessing on the “Al Hamichia” of the other foods, but will direct that he does not want to exempt the rice). And that’s how deciding answers208 is decisive. In fact, it is difficult to decide this dispute and everyone will act according to their Rabbanim.
