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OED adds new foodie words

OED Words

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.'”

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6 Comments
  • LatteJunkie
    March 31, 2011

    Ohhhh…. I foresee another NZ vs Australia argument – NZ is very proud of the fact that they created flat whites.

    And to be fair having sampled the flat whites on both sides of the Tasman – NZ makes the best ones.

    Great post, I’m keen to try some of the ones I’ve not heard of before πŸ™‚

  • Anne @ Baking Me
    March 31, 2011

    I have only heard of about half of these works, but it’s always fun to learn new “foodie” terms πŸ™‚

  • Lon Kelley
    March 31, 2011

    Here, use this link instead:

    http://oxforddictionaries.com/search?newWord=New%20Words:%20February%202011

    The link you’ve got to the OED is for the most recent, and … doesn’t include many of the words you’ve got listed there.

  • Esther x3baking
    March 31, 2011

    Haha, nom nom is in the dictionary. πŸ™‚ What an interesting list of words. I love pork buns, banh mi, and Ca rolls

  • Hilary @ Cupcake Avenger
    April 2, 2011

    Finally, some foodie recognition going down in history! πŸ™‚

  • Rachel
    April 2, 2011

    Linguistics and food do intersect! I love that they added the ten second rule to the OED.

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