The Oxford English Dictionary has been updated with a handful of new words in the last month. Popular texting terms like “LOL” made headlines, but the OED added a number of foodie terms – and I’m not just referring to the phrase “muffin top,” which was added both as meaning the top portion of a muffin and as something much less flattering!
Foodie terms include quite a few items that you’re probably familiar with. It’s a little strange to think that not all of these terms were in the dictonary when they’re often found in culinary dictionaries, but if it weren’t for the food culture of the internet and the fast pace at which food trends seem to spread these days, many of these items would still be regional specialties that we never would have heard of.
- Babycino: A drink of hot milk that has been frothed up with pressurized steam, intended for children.
- Banh mi: A Vietnamese snack consisting of a baguette filled with a variety of ingredients, typically including meat, pickled vegetables, and chili peppers.
- California Roll: Sushi roll containing cucumber, imitation crab stick, and avocado.
- Chermoula: In North African cookery, a sauce or marinade for fish or meat, typically containing olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, and cilantro.
- Crème de cassis: A sweet, dark red liqueur that is made from blackcurrants
- Doughnut hole: A small spherical piece of dough cooked as a doughnut
- Eton mess: A dessert consisting of a rough mixture of whipped cream, pieces of meringue, and fruit, typically strawberries.
- Flat water: Ordinary tap or bottled drinking water, as opposed to sparkling water.
- Flat white: A type of coffee made with espresso and hot steamed milk, but without the froth characteristic of a cappuccino (Australian).
- Gremolata: A dressing or garnish made with chopped parsley, garlic, and grated lemon zest, served as an accompaniment to meat or fish.
- Kleftiko: A Greek dish consisting of lamb marinated with lemon juice and herbs and cooked slowly in a sealed container.
- Momo: In Tibetan cooking, a steamed dumpling filled with meat or vegetables.
- Nom nom: Used to express pleasure at eating, or at the prospect of eating, delicious food.
- Pork bun: A Chinese snack consisting of steamed or baked bread dough filled with barbecued pork.
- Pulled pork: Tender, slow-cooked pork that is pulled apart into pieces and often prepared with a barbecue sauce.
- Rugelach: A bite-size cookie made with cream-cheese dough rolled around a filling of nuts, poppy seed paste, chocolate or jam.
- Sammich: A sandwich
- Spiedie: An Italian-American dish consisting of marinated pieces of meat cooked on a skewer, and often served in a roll.
Perhaps the most interesting addition is that of “the ten- (or three-, five- etc.) second rule that ‘allows for the eating of a delicious morsel that has fallen to the floor, provided that it is retrieved within the specified period of time.'”