Request for assistance

[Dr. Goodword]

I would like to do a week-long series of Good Words on the theme of "Foods you wouldn't eat if you knew what they meant". I have three already: burrito, linguini, and vermicelli. I'll be you guys know some more. Let me know.

[skinem]

Ahem...cough...choke...
Mountain oysters
Rooster fries

Yes, they are English words, but still, many folks don't know what they are...

[Perry]

Sweet breads. (Actually I enjoy them.)

[Bailey]

Ahem...cough...choke...
Mountain oysters
Rooster fries

Those are euphemisms.
I think he's looking for more like little burros, worms, little tongues, in another language. Perhaps sweet breads etc. might be unknown to foreign speakers, but the example words are discriptive in a way that's only really palatable in a foreign tongue, however the comestibles are highly eatable no matter what they are called. Escargo wouldn't be eligible as it's exactly what it says it is even thoough Strictly English speakers might not know. He wants words that sound icky, not that ARE icky to us regular folks.

mark was-that-clear-as-mud? Bailey

[Stargzer]

One of my favorite comestibles:

scrapple

SYLLABICATION: scrap·ple
NOUN: A mush of ground pork and cornmeal that is set in a mold and then sliced and fried.
ETYMOLOGY: Diminutive of scrap[sup]1[/sup].


scrap[sup]1[/sup]

NOUN: 1. A small piece or bit; a fragment. 2. scraps Leftover bits of food. 3. Discarded waste material, especially metal suitable for reprocessing. 4. scraps Crisp pieces of rendered animal fat; cracklings.
TRANSITIVE VERB: Inflected forms: scrapped, scrap·ping, scraps
1. To break down into parts for disposal or salvage. 2. To discard as worthless or sell to be reused as parts; junk.
ETYMOLOGY: Middle English, from Old Norse skrap, trifles, pieces. See sker-[sup]1[/sup] in Appendix I. [sub][/sub]

"Everything but the squeal!"

[Stargzer]

More food for thouight, and them some. (Most references from WIkipedia)


Prowling Wikipedia's Pasta entry:

Spaghetti is the plural form of the Italian word spaghetto, which is a diminutive of "spago," meaning "thin string" or "twine". The word "spaghetti" can be literally translated as "little strings."

Gnocchi (pronounced /'ɲɔkki/) is the Italian word for dumplings; in Italian, gnocchi is the plural of gnocco, which literally means "lump".

How about Philadelphia Pepper Pot soup? Sounds offal to some people.

Andouille ... is a spiced, heavily smoked pork sausage, distinguished in some varieties by its use of the entire gastrointestinal system of the pig: for example, traditional French andouille is composed primarily of the intestines and stomach. Though somewhat similar, it is not to be confused with Andouillette.

"People should never see laws or sausages being made."

Head cheese (AmE) or brawn (BrE) is in fact not a cheese, but rather a terrine of meat from the head of a calf or pig (sometimes a sheep or cow) that would not otherwise be considered appealing. It may also include meat from the feet and heart. It is usually eaten cold or at room temperature as a luncheon meat. sometimes also known as soucemeat, particularly if pickled with vinegar.


Historically the cleaned (all organs removed) head was simmered to produce a gelatin (which would form from the bone marrow) containing any incidental meat which came off the head. The more modern method involves adding gelatin to meat, which is then cooked in a mold.

...

In the Pennsylvania Dutch dialect, head cheese is called souse. Pennsylvania Germans usually prepare it from the meat of pig's feet or tongue and it is pickled.

Lamb fries is the name generally given to lamb animelles (testicles) that have been peeled, rolled in cracker meal, fried, and served as food. They are otherwise known as lamb "balls." Lamb fries are often incorrectly confused for Rocky Mountain oysters. Lamb fries are served in many Italian restaurants, particularly in Oklahoma's "little Italy" located in Krebs, Oklahoma.

In Australia, the United Kingdom and other nations once a part of the former British Empire, lambs fries are lamb livers. Normally these are cooked with onions and a gravy is made with the juices. They were once very popular in pubs as low cost meals ("counter lunches"). This meal is making a comeback in the form of a "slow food"-type dish.


[edit] Pop culture references
In the movie Funny Farm, the main character breaks the local record for eating lamb fries, only to discover what they really are and spit the last serving out in revulsion.

He did still leave as the new record holder!

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lamb_fries"

Quinto quarto.


Animelles.

Carbonara is a traditional Italian pasta sauce. Carbonara comes from carbone, which is Italian for coal, and many believe the dish derives its name because it was popular among charcoal makers. Others believe, however, that the dish is called carbonara simply because of all the black, freshly milled pepper that is used.

Another way to get butterflies in your stomach:

Farfalle is a type of pasta.

Commonly known as "bow-ties", the name derives from the Italian for butterfly, farfalla. The "e" at the end of the word is the Italian feminine plural ending, making the meaning of the word "butterflies." ... A larger variation of farfalle is known as farfallone.

Orecchiette is a type of pasta native to Apulia, whose shape is approximately that of a small ear (in Italian, ear is "orecchio"). In the Taranto area it is still called by the synonym "chiancarelle".

Strozzapreti is the name of a variety of regional Italian specialty from the Emilia-Romagna and Tuscany regions.

The name is Italian for "priest choker"; there are several legends to explain the origin of the name. One is that gluttonous priests were so enthralled by the savory pasta that they ate too quickly and choked themselves, sometimes to death. Another explanation involves the "azdora" [the name for the housewife in the Romagna's dialect], who ‘chokes’ the dough strips to make the strozzapreti: "... in that particular moment you would presume that the azdora would express such a rage (perhaps triggered by the misery and difficulties of her life) to be able to strangle a priest!" Another legend goes that wives would customarily make the pasta for churchmen as partial payment for land rents (In Romagna, the Catholic Church had extensive land properties given in rent to farmers), and their husbands would be angered enough by the venal priests eating their wives' food to wish the priests would choke as they stuffed their mouth with it.

Lumache Snail shaped From lumaca, meaning snail

Capellini (literally "thin hair") is a very thin variety of Italian pasta.

Agnolotti ('priest hats' in Italian) ["Lambs ears" in another reference] is a kind of ravioli made with a small round piece of flattened pasta dough, folded over with a meat and vegetable stuffing inside.

Spätzle, German, sometimes explained as being a diminutive of Spatz "small sparrows") are similar to noodles and much used in southern Germany (Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria), western Austria, Switzerland, Alsace and sometimes also in Italy (in South Tyrol and other northern regions in which there they are named in italian "Troffi"). Until the 1950s, Spätzle were also consumed in Malta, where they were called pezzelati,

From the Barilla FAQ:

What is the origin of Tortellini?
Legend claims that Tortellini was inspired by the goddess Venus’ navel. An Italian medieval legend tells how Venus and Zeus, weary one night after their involvement in a battle between Bologna and Modena, arrive at a tavern in a small town on the outskirts of Bologna. After eating a hearty dinner and becoming slightly drunk, they decide to share a bedroom. The innkeeper, captivated after watching them, creeps to their room and peeks through the keyhole of the bedroom door. However, all he can see through the keyhole is the naval of Venus. This vision leaves him spellbound – so much so that he immediately rushes to the kitchen and creates a pasta inspired by Venus’ navel…and so was born the Tortellini.

[Dr. Goodword]

Excellent suggestions. Thanks. I think I will do one a week for about 10 weeks--if I remember.

[tcward]

Here's a website with a thread that goes into too many food names to list again... but I know many of us here would enjoy reading it.

Funny Food Names

[Perry]

Not a food item, but Italian slang for a very weak espresso is [sp?] pichata di Monica (nun's pee).

[Stargzer]

Not a food item, but Italian slang for a very weak espresso is [sp?] pichata di Monica (nun's pee).

I have a French-English dictionary that translates "pet de nonne" (which is literally "nun's fart") as "donut."

[Bailey]

Not a food item, but Italian slang for a very weak espresso is [sp?] pichata di Monica (nun's pee).

I have a French-English dictionary that translates "pet de nonne" (which is literally "nun's fart") as "donut."

yum, yum!

mark at-complete-loss-for-words Bailey

[gailr]

doh!