ENGLISH 101: 10 COMMONLY MISPRONOUNCED FOODS AND DRINKS

Chipotle 

Often pronounced how it seems to be spelt, ‘chip-ottle’; we’re told by the team at Mission Burrito that this smoke-dried jalapeño is pronounced ‘chip-pot-lay’. It’s used in Mexican and Tex-Mex dishes, and gives sauces and rubs a heady, smoky spice. The word is thought to come from the Aztec ‘chilli’ and also ‘poktli’ - named after the smoking process.

Chorizo

If you’ve been saying it ‘cho-RITZ-io’, ‘chor-RITZ-o’ or ‘chor-IZZO’ then you’ve been saying it wrong. Moises Almenara, of La Tasca restaurant in Windsor is Barcelona-born, and sets the record straight for us. While in many parts of Spain it’s pronounced ‘cho-ree-tho’ it some parts of the country and in other Spanish-speaking countries the ‘z’ is pronounced like ‘s’. To pronounce it the way he does, say ‘chor-EESS-o’. Roll the tongue slightly on the ‘r’ and the ‘o’ should sound sharp, as in ‘hot’ not as in ‘toe’.

Espresso

Don’t be surprised if your barista looks slightly irritated when you ask for an ‘expresso’. The drink might be quick to make, but it’s actually called an ‘espresso’. According to legend, in 1903 an Italian named Luigi Bezzera became frustrated over the length of time it took to brew a coffee. He decided to force pressurised water through the coffee, making a short but full-bodied drink. And so the first ‘espresso’ (‘express coffee’) was born.

Sherbet

This mispronunciation was made famous by Mike Myers as Austin Powers in the hypnosis scene with Christian Slater as Dr Evil’s guard. But it’s not actually pronounced ‘sher-bert’; there’s no ‘r’ in the second part of the word. It’s definitely ‘sher-bet’. The word is said to come from ‘serbet’ or ‘sharbet’, a sweet drink served in the Middle East since Medieval times. Smashing, baby.

Paella

This Spanish dish is often mispronounced here in the UK. Most of us call it ‘py-ella’, named after the type of pan it is cooked in. But if you want to pronounce it like a native it should be pronounced ‘pa-eh-ya’. Moises from La Tasca also let us in on another possible origin of the word. He told us that in Spain, Sundays used to be traditionally a day for hunting. The huntsman would bring home his catch and cook paella for the woman of the house. In Spanish, ‘for her’ is translated as ‘para ella’ and so it’s believed the word was shortened over time to represent the dish.

Mascarpone

It’s spelt ‘mascarpone’ but a lot of people still slip in an extra ‘r’ in the first syllable and pronounce this Italian cheese ‘mars-ca-po-neh’. According to the team at Italian restaurant chain Carluccio’s: “the name is said to come from mascarpa, a milk product made from the whey of stracchino”. They confirm that it should be pronounced ‘mas-car-POH-neh’.

Quinoa

Many of us look at this word and think it’s pronounced ‘kwin-oh-ah’. But this bead-shaped crop is actually pronounced ‘keen-wah’. It was grown by the Incas in South America for thousands of years, and is now regarded as a superfood for its health benefits. The Incas called it ‘chisaya mama’ (‘mother of all grains’).

Jalapeño

OK, so is it ‘jala-peeno’, ‘hala-pen-o’ or ‘jala-penyo’? According to the folks at Mission Burrito, it’s none of them. They tell us that this spicy chilli pepper is most definitely pronounced ‘ha-la-peyn-nyo’. It’s thought that the jalapeño chilli originated from the Mexican city of Xalapa, also sometimes spelt ‘Jalapa’. The ‘eño’ was added on the end of the word to mean ‘from’, as in ‘from Jalapa’.

Pancetta

Pan-chetta or pan-setta? We called on Carluccio’s to set the record straight. Pancetta is pork belly cured with salt, and in Italian, derives from the word ‘pancia’, which means ‘belly’. They tell us it’s pronounced ‘pan-CHETTA’ and literally means ‘little belly’. But it’s often pronounced ‘pan-SETTA’ in Spanish-speaking countries. However, Moises from La Tasca told us that as it was originally an Italian word, he thinks it should really be pronounced the Italian way.

Crêpe

This crispy, thin French pancake isn’t pronounced ‘kreyp’. In fact, the best way to pronounce it is a bit like ‘krep’. The French ‘r’ isn’t pronounced as in English – the sound comes from the back of the throat like a little gargle. According to the Epicurean website, crêpes were first made in Brittany in north-west France and their name comes from the Latin ‘crispus’, meaning ‘crisp’.

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