words to describe mediterranean food
Bitter. There are, equally, many meat dishes, using chicken, pork, and rabbit. Based in Lancaster, PA. WebstaurantStore is the largest online restaurant supply store servicing professionals and individual customers worldwide. The problem with some words is that, if you don't phrase them right, or if they are said by themselves, they can be taken as insults. Sweet dishes include pastis de nata, custard tarts with cinnamon. Ill admit I have a sweet tooth because I can never say no to cakes, pastries and ice cream. [60][61] Tabbouleh is a dish of bulgur cracked wheat with tomatoes, parsley, mint and onion, dressed with olive oil and lemon juice. [20] A widespread wheat dish from Turkey and the Levant to Iran and India is halva, a dessert of sweetened semolina with butter, milk, and pine kernels. So are you ready to jump into the conversation? Shutterstock. It's not a strict diet, but more of loose guidelines. This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you [9] It spread from there to nearby areas, and has been cultivated since the early Bronze Age (up to 3,150 BC) in southern Turkey, the Levant, and Crete. Brek are made of thin sheets of filo pastry, filled with mixtures such as meat, caramelised onion and sweet peppers. Speaking of their most popular recipes, we definitely have to mention shawarma, a sandwich of sliced lamb or chicken and vegetables, wrapped in pita bread, similar to the Greek gyro. "Mediterranean is a healthier way of eating," he says. Use this expression to say that youd like the food better if the flavors were different. [23] Grape production remains important in the Mediterranean area, with Southern Europe accounting for 21% of the world's harvest. Vegetables have a prominent place in the diet. Use this expression to say so. EVOO . Its really good! Examples of describing food include: artichoke dip - tender artichoke hearts layered between beds of baby spinach, covered with five Italian cheeses beef stew - comforting stew featuring tender beef chunks simmered in a thick, peppery gravy with fresh red potatoes and carrots Heres an easy one. Read More 29 Recipes with Feta and Chicken Thatll Make Your Taste Buds SingContinue, Read More does hummus need to be refrigerated? Crumbly. Plus, a Mediterranean diet may reduce stroke risk in women (up to 20%! And when you're ready to take a break and get silly, see if you can pass off any of these food puns with your favorite foodie friends. [28], On the other hand, Sami Zubaida argues in his book Culinary Cultures of the Middle East (1994) that:[29], The idea of the "standard Mediterranean" is a modern construction of food writers and publicists in Europe and North America earnestly preaching what is now thought to be a healthy diet to their audiences by invoking a stereotype of the healthy other on the shores of the Mediterranean. Bland. In the era of social media, a gorgeously plated dish also makes for great content. It is important to understand that not every meal on your restaurant. Various authors have defined the scope of Mediterranean cooking either by geography or by its core ingredients. 8. The idea of a Mediterranean cuisine originates with the cookery writer Elizabeth David's book, A Book of Mediterranean Food (1950) and was amplified by other writers working in English. Get 40% off + 10 languages + 14 day free trial. However, coming up with something fun and exciting to say about that stunning 100 percent organic beet salad you just photographed for Instagram isnt always easy. Who doesnt need nutrients, vitamins and antioxidants? Most people simply try to keep a balanced diet, which includes eating from each of the main food groups like grains, vegetables, fruits, dairy and meat. Free thesaurus definition of european and mediterranean food from the Macmillan English Dictionary - a free English dictionary online with thesaurus and with pronunciation from Macmillan Education. Mediterranean cuisine refers to the whole range of traditional dishes and cooking methods found all around the Mediterranean basin. The olive tree, the emblematic tree on more than one account, traces the bounds of a frontier of landscapes and lives on either side of which the Mediterranean begins or ends. [79][80] In Naples this is tomato, anchovies and buffalo mozzarella. Well give you 25 ways to talk about food in English, so you can feel comfortable at restaurants, dinner parties or commenting on your friends latest Instagram food post. If you want to participate in these conversations in English, youll need many different descriptive English phrases and words for food and how it tastes. This cake is so moist! ratatouille noun a meal made by cooking tomatoes, onions, garlic, peppers, aubergines, and courgettes together in a pan sauerkraut noun a German food made from cabbage that has been cut into very thin pieces and kept in water with salt to give it a sour flavour tapas noun [81][82], Bouillabaisse is a substantial dish from the French port of Marseille, capital of Provence. The following are the words most commonly used while writing restaurant menu descriptions. My grandma makes amazing cookies, cakes and pies. Among the most distinctive foods of this cuisine are traditional small meze dishes such as tabbouleh, hummus, and baba ghanoush. [46], Egyptian cuisine has ancient roots, with evidence that, for example, cheese has been made in Egypt since at least 3,000 BC. Although menu pricing is important, the words you use to describe your food and how you make your menu could entice customers and increase sales if properly chosen. Can cheese even be part of a Mediterranean Diet? Plus, its rich in fruits and vegetables and low in processed foods and sugars, all of which are highly recommended for weight loss. Mealy containing meal; soft, dry, and friable. If Im too tired to cook, I just make a quick and easy one-pot meal. As well as dishes such as spanakopita (pie filled with spinach, feta cheese, and onion), melitzanosalata (eggplant salad), and a whole assortment of delicious Greek-flavored foods. [6] The archaeologist Colin Renfrew calls this the "Mediterranean triad". Sunny-side up refers to an egg thats been fried on only one side. Join Macmillan Dictionary on Twitter and Facebook for daily word facts, quizzes and language news. It is therefore constrained to a more or less narrow zone around the Mediterranean Sea, except in the Maghreb and in the Iberian Peninsula, where it is distributed more widely, and on the islands of the Mediterranean, where it is widespread. Yes, but not really. Describing the extent to which food is cooked and the temperature at which it is served can be important to help accurately describe it. All Rights Reserved. Consequently, wherever you go, in southern Europe or the lands bordering the southern Mediterranean, you will find a cuisine and gastronomic ritual which is always familiar. [85], Portugal lies on the Atlantic, not the Mediterranean, but it is in the Mediterranean basin, characterised by olive groves and a Mediterranean climate, except on the wetter Atlantic coast. A low-carb diet involves eating less carbohydrate-rich foods such as bread, pancakes and cookies. While Greek food is considered a hallmark of Mediterranean food Are they the same thing? Well, deep-frying uses a lot more oil than frying. Spain. Its just not right for you. Although the Mediterranean diet is not primarily a weight loss diet, its been proven that it can help some people achieve that goal. If something tastes better than you expected, you could use the word wow to express your surprise. If youre a vegetarian, your diet would include only vegetables, fruits and non-meat items such as tofu, nuts, etc. The best way to start learning these words is to hear them in authentic English contexts with FluentU. The historical connections of the region, as well as the impact of the Mediterranean Sea on the region's climate and economy, mean that these cuisines share dishes beyond the core trio of oil, bread, and wine, such as roast lamb or mutton, meat stews with vegetables and tomato (for example, Spanish andrajos), vegetable stews (Provenal ratatouille, Spanish pisto, Italian ciambotta),[1] and the salted cured fish roe, bottarga, found across the region. Creating a bar food menu can be challenging, since some customers just want your standard basket of fries, while others want a unique experience. Some 90% of the fruit production (1996) goes into olive oil. A distinctive element is the family of small flaky pastries called brek. Often used to refer to tart or sour foods as well. Often the fried chicken we get at restaurants is actually deep-fried. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. The tomato, so central now to that cuisine, was first described in print by Pietro Andrea Mattioli in 1544. Many dishes' names probably entered the Greek vocabulary during Ottoman times, or earlier in contact with the Persians and the Arabs. Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc, or its affiliates. [70], Greek cookery makes wide use of vegetables, olive oil, grains, fish, wine and meat (white and red, including lamb, poultry, rabbit and pork). This rectangular-shaped pie combines layers of ground beef with eggplant, bechamel sauce, and potatoes, and is often made at home by moms and grandmas. [4] Some later cooks like Paula Wolfert give a few recipes from Dalmatia, some being Ottoman. [50] Seafood including sea bream and squid is eaten, often in stews, stuffed, or fried, in Spanish, French, and Italian dishes. There are 158 other words to describe mediterranean listed above. You see, Mediterranean food is an umbrella term that, as we mentioned above, encompasses different foods such as Turkish food, Syrian food, and Greek food. Mutton, lamb, and goat are traditional meats. Oriental: having a warm and exotic smell, usually associated with spices or incense. 00:00 00:00 This is a polite way to explain that you don't like the food, without blaming the cook. But what really makes this flavorful oil one of the pillars of the Mediterranean diet is the amount of oleic acid a powerful antioxidant and the vitamins it contains, such as vitamin E, A and K. In addition to olive oil, there are many other ingredients that are a hallmark of the Mediterranean diet, but just to make things easier for you, well separate them into 10 groups: fruits, vegetables, legumes, whole grains, nuts and seeds, fish and seafood, dairy, poultry, eggs, and herbs and spices. Mediterranean cuisine - step by step. The video is from the FluentU YouTube channel, specially created to help you learn English the way its used by native speakers. 25 Delicious Phrases for Talking About Food in English, just talking about food might make you healthier, Marcus Samuelsson talks about how food cuts across cultures, subscribe to the FluentU English YouTube channel, https://www.fluentu.com/blog/english/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2022/06/tastes-great.mp3, https://www.fluentu.com/blog/english/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2022/06/really-good.mp3, https://www.fluentu.com/blog/english/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2022/06/wow-this-food-is-amazing.mp3, https://www.fluentu.com/blog/english/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2022/06/yummy.mp3, https://www.fluentu.com/blog/english/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2022/06/flavorful.mp3, https://www.fluentu.com/blog/english/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2022/06/mouthwatering.mp3, https://www.fluentu.com/blog/english/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2022/06/this-food-is-too-flavor-for-my-taste.mp3, https://www.fluentu.com/blog/english/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2022/06/it-could-use-a-little-more-or-less.mp3, https://www.fluentu.com/blog/english/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2022/06/this-tastes-different-i-think-I-prefer-something-else.mp3, https://www.fluentu.com/blog/english/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2022/06/vegetarian.mp3, https://www.fluentu.com/blog/english/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2022/06/trying-to-lose-weight.mp3, https://www.fluentu.com/blog/english/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2022/06/low-carb-diet.mp3, https://www.fluentu.com/blog/english/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2022/06/a-balanced-diet.mp3, https://www.fluentu.com/blog/english/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2022/06/fast-food.mp3, https://www.fluentu.com/blog/english/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2022/06/home-cooked-meal.mp3, https://www.fluentu.com/blog/english/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2022/06/one-pot-meal.mp3, https://www.fluentu.com/blog/english/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2022/06/dessert.mp3, https://www.fluentu.com/blog/english/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2022/06/to-have-a-sweet-tooth.mp3, https://www.fluentu.com/blog/english/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2022/06/to-eat-healthy.mp3, https://www.fluentu.com/blog/english/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2022/06/fried-or-deep-fried.mp3, https://www.fluentu.com/blog/english/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2022/06/grilled.mp3, https://www.fluentu.com/blog/english/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2022/06/crunchy.mp3, https://www.fluentu.com/blog/english/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2022/06/scrambled.mp3, https://www.fluentu.com/blog/english/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2022/06/poached.mp3, https://www.fluentu.com/blog/english/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2022/06/sunnyside-up.mp3, How to Start Talking About Money in English Better Than Your Banker, How to Talk About Rock, Pop, Indie and Country Music in English, Learn English Through Movies and Film: The Complete Guide, How to Speak English Fluently: 27 Simple Tips for Reaching Your Language Goals, English Speaking Online: Top Courses, Tutoring Platforms and Practice Resources for 2023, How to Greatly Improve Your English Pronunciation in 15 Steps, Improve Your English Listening Skills: 19 Tips for Getting Better Faster. Speaking of antioxidants, do you know what they are also good for? One of the most characteristic dishes of the region is couscous, a steamed, small-grained wheat semolina, served with a stew. You may ask. The ingredients of Mediterranean cuisine are to an extent different from those of the cuisine of Northern Europe, with olive oil instead of butter, wine instead of beer. The standard dish of Greek cuisine is moussaka. Well, that weight loss happened because whole grains and pulses are naturally filling, which may incline people to eat less. In fact, you could say that Turkey boasts a highly diverse cuisine with many world-famous dishes, such as baklava (a dessert made of filo pastry filled with chopped nuts or pistachio paste), dolmas (grape leaves stuffed with rice and seasoned with spices and lemon), and kfte (beef or lamb meatballs mixed with spices). Jock Zonfrillo, judge on MasterChef Australia, chef and author, has died at the age of 46. Oh, noI opened Instagram before lunch again. One major change was the introduction of many foods by the Arabs to Portugal, Spain and Sicily in the Middle Ages. Mouthfeel - I don't want to imagine what the inside of your mouth feels like. List of Words to Describe Food. The name even pleased Italian government officials, who made one modification: changing from dieta word which has always seemed punitive and therefore unpleasantto Mediterranean cuisine. When Zarhoul moved to America, Mediterranean food was considered by Americans as mostly Italian. To meet the needs of your guests, listing typical bar foods as well as your own inventive recipes are both great ideas. If you say something tastes amazing, youre saying it tastes even better than great or really good. ", "Mediterranean diet pyramid: a cultural model for healthy eating", "The Basics of Mediterranean-Style Eating", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mediterranean_cuisine&oldid=1150804162, Pages containing links to subscription-only content, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 20 April 2023, at 07:29. Below, we break down the key components to menu writing and offer a list of descriptive words for food to get you started. The only way my son will eat eggs is if I make themsunny-side up. The favorite ingredients for cooking its best-known recipes are eggplant, chickpeas, fava beans, garlic, fava beans, cabbage, cucumbers, tomatoes, pistachios, and lamb and sheep meat. [93] The American Diabetes Association writes about "Mediterranean-Style Eating", mentioning "the traditional Mediterranean lifestyle of eating healthfully together among family and friends", and asserting that "Mediterranean cuisine is plant-based", citing the ingredients "whole grains, fruits, vegetables, herbs and spices, beans, nuts, seeds, and olive oil", and stating that most foods "in a Mediterranean diet come from plants". It comes in many versions, and may contain a mixture of chicken, pork, rabbit, or shellfish, sauted in olive oil in a large shallow pan, with vegetables, and typically round-grain rice[84] (often of the local albufera, arrs bomba, snia varieties or similar) cooked to absorb the water and coloured with saffron. The dish is popular across the whole of the Eastern Mediterranean and North Africa. Food is universal. [50], Certain foods are pan-Mediterranean, such as bottarga, the salted, cured roe of fish such as the grey mullet. Browse these words to describe all the best aspects of summer. Does it bring a positive image to mind, or is it unappetizing? Much of Greek cuisine is part of the larger tradition of Ottoman cuisine, the names of the dishes revealing Arabic, Persian or Turkish roots: moussaka, tzatziki, yuvarlakia, keftes and so on. Couples tartness with sweetness. This is a fresh meal thats made and eaten at home. And the beauty of it all is that its a dish that is extremely simple to make since it needs few ingredients without any kind of cooking. Everything from your budget to the time it takes to prepare your staff can change depending on which recipes you choose. But kebab isnt its only noteworthy recipe typical Turkish food goes far beyond that. How EU integration is shaping food tastes in Sofia and Belgrade in the 21st century", "Recette de Salade nioise traditionnelle", "Custard tart fight: can the British version ever compete with Portugal's pastis de nata? Browse these words to describe all the best aspects of summer. Heres something else you could say instead of delicious. Regardless of what part of Spain you're in, you can always count on garlic and olive oil setting the stage for a flavorful dish. Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page. Some writers also include areas not touching the Mediterranean Sea or supporting olive cultivation, including Serbian, Macedonian, and Portuguese cuisine. [47] The major culinary regions of the Mediterranean Maghrebi [ edit] Main article: Maghreb cuisine Tagines slow-cooking on a Moroccan street Mediterranean Maghrebi cuisine includes the cuisines of Algeria, Libya, Morocco, and Tunisia. Although we use the terms Greek food and Mediterranean food interchangeably on this side of the world, they are technically not the same thing. Click here to get a copy. Sign up for Scary Mommy's daily newsletter for more stories from the trenches. Olive oil? Yes + 19 Low Carb Tuna RecipesContinue, Read More What is Thai Food? With this in mind, it's important to be precise and thorough when choosing words to describe your food's flavor. Texture is also an important part of the overall description of food items. So, if you want to prepare a true Mediterranean dinner, make sure to replace any type of butter with quality extra virgin olive oil, dont forget that lemon can be your best friend in most recipes, and last but certainly not least dont, and we repeat, do not overcook fish or any type of seafood. By offering original catering recipes, you can take your company to the next level and leave a lasting impression on your guests. Learn some common cooking terms to sound like a real culinary master. I could see the chocolate filling slowly oozing out as I cut through the layers of crispy, flaky pastry. "[95], Since David wrote about Mediterranean food in 1950, and indeed since dietary researchers showed in the 1950s that people around the Mediterranean had less coronary heart disease than the peoples of northern Europe, the traditional Mediterranean ways of life and of eating have changed.