Why are pure and artificial vanilla Haram?
Vanilla is a plant product, however, it is taken from the vanilla bean using alcohol. Vanilla is available in powder or liquid form. If you look at a bottle of liquid pure or artificial vanilla extract, you will find alcohol listed as an ingredient, along with the percentage of alcohol it contains. Some people may feel it is okay to use baked products containing vanilla extract because the alcohol evaporates during the baking process. However, studies have shown that the alcohol does not completely evaporate during baking. Vanilla is also available in a powdered form. In this form, the beans are either crushed without the addition of alcohol, or they are crushed and dissolved in alcohol and then purified. During purification, the alcohol is removed. Powdered vanilla is Halal. For specific products, the label will only list vanilla or vanilla flavouring. In such cases, contact the manufacturer of the product to determine which form of vanilla was used.
