Crossword Genius

Room for keeping a type of food (5)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

halal

'type of food' is the definition.
(halal meat is meat permitted by Muslim law)

'room for keeping a' is the wordplay.
'room' becomes 'hall' (hall is a kind of room).
'for keeping' indicates putting letters inside.
'hall' going around 'a' is 'HALAL'.

(Other definitions for halal that I've seen before include "which food is legal in Mecca" , "slaughter" , "Conforming to Muslim dietary laws" , "authorised food" , "special sort of meat" .)

I've seen this clue in The Times.
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