Most Commonly Mispronounced Food Words

 
(Source Anonymous)A Texas food critic says unless you want to run the risk of getting slapped, be very careful if you decide to correct someone who's saying any of the following words incorrectly.
 
Chipotle: By far the most common response, which surprised me given the proliferation of the chain restaurants named after the smoked pepper. Proper pronunciation: chi-poht-ley.
 
Foie gras: Any attempt to impress your date by ordering this fine food will fall flat when you ask for "foy grass." Proper pronunciation: fwah grah.
 
Gnocchi: As with gyros, you can go one of two ways here. *Proper pronunciation: nyawk-kee if you want to be Italian; nok-ee or noh-kee if you're American.
 
Espresso: A long-time pet peeve, this is neither spelled nor pronounced with an "X" anywhere in it. Proper pronunciation: e-spres-oh.
 
Quinoa: Pronunciation isn't the only thing about quinoa that people often get wrong; it's not a grain, as is so often assumed. It's actually a chenopod, like epazote and spinach. Proper pronunciation: keen-wah.
 
Caipirinha: The equally difficult-to-pronounce cachaça (kuh-shah-suh) is a main ingredient in this popular Brazilian cocktail. Proper pronunciation: kai-pee-reen-ya.
 
Açai berry: As with cachaça, the trick with Açai is in the ce cedille (that "C" with a tail on it) that's pronounced as a soft "S" instead of a hard "C" sound. Proper pronunciation: ah-sigh-ee.
 
Beignet: No one wants Ben-Gay with their chicory coffee. Get this pastry right. Proper pronunciation: ben-yey.
 
Guanciale: One of the most difficult cured meats to wrap our American lips around, this one is most definitely not pronounced "gwan-see-ale." Proper pronunciation: WAHN-chall-eh (hear it yourself).
 
Coppa: Seeing as how there's about to be a restaurant with this name -- it's replacing the now-closed
Catalan -- here's your chance to learn how to pronounce this delicious cured meat. Proper pronunciation: KOH-pa (hear it yourself).
 
Gyro: Depending on how correct you want to get, you can pronounce this the more accepted American way or like a true Greek. Proper pronunciation: yee-raw, if you're Greek; jeer-oh or zheer-oh if you're American.
 
Kibbeh: Although it's tempting to barrel through this one like you're saying "kibble," there's a subtle stop between the two "B"s in this word. Proper pronunciation: KIB-bay or KIB-beh (hear it yourself)
 
Sriracha: The red rooster sauce seems be in every refrigerator and in every peppery mayonnaise sauce these days, but people still get confused when trying to say it aloud. Proper pronunciation: According to the official website, it's shree-ra-cha.
 
Bruschetta: Contrary to popular belief, bruschetta is not a mixture of tomatoes, garlic and onion, nor is it pronounced "broo-shet-uh." It's roasted bread rubbed with garlic and olive oil, topped with any number of different items. Proper pronunciation: broo-sket-ah.
 
Espresso: A long-time pet peeve, this is neither spelled nor pronounced with an "X" anywhere in it. Proper pronunciation: e-spres-oh.
 
Haricot vert: Upscale restaurants love to use this French term for thin, green string beans, even if they're just serving regular old green beans. Proper pronunciation: ah-ree-koh VEHR.
 
Bouillabaisse: Like vichyssoise (vee-shee-swahz), this is a soup that can be difficult for an American to get right. So many consonants Proper pronunciation: boo-ya-bes.
 
Jalapeño: How can Texans go so wrong with our own state pepper? It's all right there in the tilde, folks. Proper pronunciation: hah-luh-peyn-yoh.
 
Quesadilla: And yet, even with all of the mispronunciations of jalapeño, the butchering of quesadilla stands out even more. Kweez-a-dill-uh? Madre de dios. Proper pronunciation: key-suh-dee-uh.

Pho: This Vietnamese soup is pronounced almost exactly like the French word for fire, feu for which it's named. It is not "foe." Again, with dipthongs it's difficult to get it exactly right, but you'll get close. Proper pronunciation: f??, or like the word "fur" without the "R" at the end,.