Are you mispronouncing these food names?
Tasty tongue-twisters
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Quinoa
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Chorizo
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Camembert
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Gyro
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Pho
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The spelling of this infinitely slurp-able Vietnamese soup might suggest it’s spoken as “po” or “foe”, though the correct pronunciation is actually “fuh”. The fragrant soup is made with a deep, flavoursome broth to which rice noodles, herbs and meat are added, and is so synonymous with Vietnam it’s widely considered the country’s national dish.
Gouda
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Paella
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Whether it’s seafood-only, a veggie version or has chunks of chicken stirred through it, paella can be as tricky to pronounce as it seems. The double-l is pronounced as a “y” sound, so the right way to say paella is “pie-aye-ya”. Originating in Spain’s Valencian region, the rice dish is cooked in broth and typically has a combination of meat, seafood and vegetables, with saffron giving it a distinctive yellow hue. The name comes from the pan it’s cooked in.
Gruyère
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This Swiss, semi-hard cheese, made from unpasteurised cows’ milk, is pronounced “grew-yeah” in US English or the ever-so-slightly different “gree-yeah” in British English. It’s named after the Swiss town of Gruyères and is known for its nutty, fruity taste. It melts beautifully and is a champion when it comes to adding a delicious richness and depth to recipes, or just transformed into a gooey fondue.
Burrata
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Buffalo mozzarella (pronounced “boof-a-la motz-a-reh-la”, FYI) may be a cool, creamy delight, but burrata takes things up several notches. The king of mozzarellas is a meltingly beautiful marvel made with water buffalo–milk cheese filled with a velvety combination of cream and milk curds. Its pronunciation – “boo-rah-ta” – is almost as gorgeous.
Espresso
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No matter how busy you are, this tiny coffee is not pronounced “ex-press-oh”. It’s easy to see why so many people get mixed up, though, as cups of espresso are made for knocking back speedily – or as the starting point for so many coffee styles from cappuccino to cortado. The single shot of coffee, properly served with a toffee-hued crema or head, is pronounced “ess-press-oh”.
Açaí
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Laphroaig
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Latte
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Viognier
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This floral, honeyed wine, with notes from mango and peach to vanilla and clove, is delicate, complex and sure to impress – unless you stumble over its stilted-looking spelling, that is. It’s pronounced “vee-own-yay”, though “vee-nyay” is often accepted without an eye-roll, too. Viognier originates in southern France and is the only permitted grape in the Rhône Valley wine Condrieu, though it’s widely grown in other wine regions, too.
Sriracha
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Occasionally an ingredient becomes the next big thing despite lots of people having no clue how to say its name. Sriracha is a prime example. The spicy, tangy Thai sauce, made with red jalapeños, garlic, vinegar, sugar and salt, has achieved a cult-like status, with fans drizzling it on prawns, eggs, chips and pretty much everything else. Its name looks like a trip-hazard for your tongue, but it’s actually pretty simple: just drop the first “r” and pronounce it “see-ra-cha”.
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Caipirinha
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This is another of those cocktails that becomes increasingly hard to order the more you’ve had. Brazil’s national cocktail, the caipirinha is a zingy mix of cachaça – a spirit made from sugarcane, incidentally pronounced “ka-cha-sa” – muddled with sugar and lime and served with lots of ice. It’s pronounced “kai-puh-reen-ya” – but try saying that after a few sips.
Jarlsberg
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Dr. Oetker
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Roquefort
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It forms the foundation of many a cheeseboard but, despite the spelling, Roquefort has nothing to do with forts, or any castle for that matter (though it’s probably been served in a few). The “que” has a “k” sound and the “t” is silent, so the name of the crumbly, buttery blue-veined cheese is pronounced “rock-for”. It’s made from unpasteurised sheep’s milk in southern France, where it’s matured in underground caves.
Beignet
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The name of these pillowy, puffed-up doughnuts should be pronounced “ben-yay”. The second syllable is easy to remember once you’ve taken a bite, because it’s probably what your tastebuds want to exclaim. French in origin, beignets have become synonymous with the US city of New Orleans, where they’re usually served buried under a mound of icing sugar and with a café au lait for dipping.
Quesadilla
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Quesadilla is one of those words that can have you panicking while waiting in line at a Mexican restaurant or food truck, because it’s so easy to say its name wrong. The correct pronunciation is “ke-sah-dee-yah” or, in Spanish, “ke-sah-thee-yah”. Meaning “little cheesy thing”, these popular street-food snacks are made with tortillas (“tor-tee-yas”) folded over cheese and sometimes other fillings and cooked on a griddle so the filling becomes a delicious ooze.
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‘Nduja
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Spicy, spreadable and sensational in dishes from stews to pasta sauces and pizza toppings, this Italian pork sausage from Calabria (at the toe of Italy’s boot) has become something of a hero ingredient. Yet it can be a little tricky to say and is often mispronounced due to the “ja”. The name should actually be spoken as “en-doo-ya”, with the “j” melting away like the soft sausage in a frying pan.
Chipotle
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Ferrero Rocher
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From the same Italian company as Nutella, these indulgent bite-sized treats have a similar chocolate and hazelnut flavour. The filling of hazelnut cream is encased in crisp wafer, smothered in chocolate and more hazelnut and wrapped in the signature gold foil. Oh, and the name is pronounced “fur-rare-row row-shey” – but “yum” is also perfectly acceptable.
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Bruschetta
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Bruschetta, an Italian dish of lightly toasted bread topped with garlic, perfectly ripe chopped tomatoes and a drizzle of olive oil, is summer encapsulated in one dish. But its name is as tricky as the dish is to share (cutting up topped toast rarely occurs without spillage). It’s commonly mispronounced with a “ch” sound, which should actually be a “k” – meaning its name is spoken as “broo-sket-tah”.
Nutella
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You’d think this one would be straightforward, but this hugely popular and widely craved hazelnut-chocolate spread isn’t actually pronounced “nut-el-ah” in the US, but “new-tell-uh”. Its surprising pronunciation is down to its Italian origins. The spread was created by Piedmont bakery owner Pietro Ferrero in the 1940s as a way of making pricey cocoa go further.
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