Shhhhhhh! Please say it correctly!
Brew-sket-ta
Bruschetta!!!
Who am I upset with, then? All the tools, dip shits and marketing moguls who are not pronouncing and/or using the word correctly in the media. You learned it from watching them, after all.
Most of all, I am upset with anyone who owns an Italian restaurant and pronounces bruschetta wrong.
There is just no excuse.
If you are charging people for an Italian dish (with a 500% profit margin!) you should throw in the f%#@king proper pronunciation! No excuses.
Don't make me pull a Gordon Ramsay, ragazzi! Give me a camera crew and a feed budget and set me loose on Italian restaurants anywhere outside of Italy. Bring it on! I want to talk some smack!
I've been on my soap box for years on this topic.
And worse, it is being thrown around as if it were a single ingredient instead of an actual dish in itself (one of the chain restaurants in the USA is making "chicken bruschetta pasta." I'm refraining from using the F word here. I've got it! Phuck them!
Watch this video about Il Rifrullo with the proper bruschetta pronunciation! (And the lovely Carolina Gamini!)
Traditional Balsamics of Modena & Reggio Emilia (DOP CERTIFIED) aka The Real Thing!
These contain no wine vinegar and have been made for over 1000 years by families in
Modena & Reggio Emilia.
IGP Certified Balsamics:
The ones I've chosen are very good, but not the real thing, due to less aging or ingredients.
Mostly cooked grape must and some wine vinegar added.
Saba (sweet, cooked grape must) - an affordable substitute for traditional balsamics if you want to treat yourself every day but on a budget. Most of the flavor, but less of the health benefits, since it is lacking the naturally occurring antioxidants and acidity of the real, DOP balsamics. These were, and still are, traditionally produced in the same region as balsamic vinegar. Often, families who didn't have the means to make traditional balsamics made this quicker and easier condiment.
&
White balsamic condiments - fantastic on salads, fish and poultry, grilled veggies, fruit! There are lots of white balsamic condiments out there and the flavor varies quite a bit. I'm including two that are sweet but not too sweet, and just the right amount of vinegar kick.
Let’s Talk About Bruschetta
By Toni Mazzaglia from Florence, on October 23rd, 2007Watch GeoBeats videos of Toni
Ok. I have tried my hardest to hold my tongue, but somebody has to do this: Do you know how to pronounce bruschetta?!!
I am asking since it has become a popular item on menus around the world, and lots of people are pronouncing it incorrectly.
Chefs, waitstaff, and restaurant owners are pronouncing bruschetta wrong, so how is everyone else supposed to know how to say it?
I have even seen a chef on the Food network mispronounce bruschetta.
Basta. No more. I am going to single-handedly end this!!!
To hear the correct pronunciation of bruschetta, please see the Rifrullo video in Florence, Italy. The host, Carolina, says bruschetta as she is describing the antipasto platter.
Notice, she is not saying “bruShetta,” because it is not pronounced bruShetta.
BRU-SCHET-TA. The important thing here is the CH. The S is what is throwing everyone off!!!
In Italian, when a C or G is followed by and H, the H protects the C or G from an E or I that follows… In other words, the H keeps the C or G hard.
Examples that most people already pronounce correctly:
Chianti.
spaghetti.
And now, please repeat, bruschetta. (brew-sket-ta).
Other words you have seen around that might have scared you with their H’s:
Ghirardelli (the chocolate)
Ghirlandaio (the Renaissance artist)
chiave (key)
*END OF ORIGINAL BLOG ENTRY FROM 2007*
Let me know your thoughts.
Friends don't let friends mispronounce bruschetta!
And please know, this is only a drop in the bucket. There are plenty of other words that need to be defended. Bruschetta is essentially my poster child for this cause.
Nobody wants to be that snob who corrects people while they're speaking. I'm going for preventative snobbery.
It's a lost battle, my friend! Media's language will coniugate wrong for ever and new wrong words will be in future menus!
ReplyDeleteLove this! As an Aussie I was saying it the 'wrong' way but consider me taught and I'll spread the word. Looking forward to learning more on our tour with you in March.
ReplyDeleteTina
Language situation could be extenden also to the italian word "burrata". This evening I ate instead a "buratta", from the menu. SOB
ReplyDeleteextended (e.c.)
ReplyDeleteWe are having a pronunciation class at Pulcinella's this week just in case! Love it!
ReplyDeleteYou know how many times I bite my tongue and try not to correct people while we do the tasting, don't you? Thanks for saving my tongue from further bites then! <3
ReplyDeleteC.
How exciting to have so many comments!
ReplyDeleteI'm glad to see that Pulcinella's will be working on their pronunciation of menu items!
Tina, Thanks for writing in! See you in March!
C- I know!
At this point I should also add the fact that Italians use English in all kinds of weird ways, too. To be fair, I'll do a blog entry on it. There are all types of fun phrases, like "avere feeling", which I have adopted and sometimes use even when speaking in English.
Grazie a tutti!
T
I have a question about bruschetta.
ReplyDeleteIs it better to let it sit for a little while before you eat it, or should it be eaten freshissimo?
Tiohn,
ReplyDeleteThat is a great question! How do you prefer yours? Dry or a combo of crunchy and slightly moist?
Bruschetta varies a lot according to each individual and family- some people prefer it eaten as soon as it has been made, but it really depends on personal taste.
There are two important things for making bruschetta that will be good even if it sits around for a while (like at a party):
1)Don't cut the bread too thick! More or less the width of your pointer finger at most. Too much bread with any style of crostino or bruschetta means the topping will be battling it out with the bread- and it will fill you up too fast.
2)Be sure you have toasted or grilled the bread enough that it will maintain crispness even if it gets a little bagnato (wet/soggy) in the middle from the tomatoes.
3)Most of all, fresh high quality ingredients are fundamental. Be sure your tomatoes are flavorful but not bordering on that fermented flavor they sometimes get... and good olive oil will turn a normal bruschetta into a little slice of heaven. Remember: olive oil should be fresh (no more than 16 months old! For best oil: Extra virgin of Tuscany or Umbria less than 6 months old).
I like to make the tomato topping about an hour ahead of time when possible to be sure the oil, tomatoes, garlic and salt mingle a bit and make the topping as tasty as possible. Then I top the bread slices just before serving.
But, remember, most Italian foods are based on simplicity. Don't stress yourself out over it.
PS- I've met several Tuscans who toast/grill the bread, douse it with oil, rub it with fresh garlic, then actually rub the tomatoes directly onto the bread (usually ripe cherry tomatoes). Salt & a little pepper and that's it.
Try this version and see what you think.
Toni,
ReplyDeleteMy Sicilian grandparents would agree with you,as do I. But I wonder if that sibilant "sh" as in the mispronounced "bruschetta" might be a dialect problem. You live in Italy; is "bruschetto" pronounced with a hard c everywhere, or is it only Sicilians that know how to speak correcly? :-)
Another Italian word that is associated with dining that has been mispronounced for at least a century is the "maraschino" cherry. Like "bruschetta" which in America is more often pronounced "brussshetta" than "brusKetta", "maraschino" is almost universally pronounced as "marassshino" instead of "marasKino".
DeleteDid you know there is a restaurant in New Jersey name Bruschetta. I called for a reservation, and the host answered the phone with "Brussshhheetta's". Since I wrote a book about bruschetta, I hung up. Later I called them back to help them with the pronunciation, and they were rude. Anyway, for those interested, go to Amazon.com for Pellegrino's Simply Bruschetta: Garlic Toast the Italian Way. The publisher says it is sold out, but for some reason Amazon.com has some as well as used ones.
ReplyDeleteCiao...
Brava!
ReplyDeleteThis mispronunciation has driven me wild ever since I started enjoying pane grillato con pomodori. Even my Berlitz Italian (enhanced with conversational over the years) would get it right. You may also be pleased to know that Joe Regalbuto tried to correct this once as his character "Frank Fontana" in the old Murphy Brown TV series. Alas, to no avail.
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ReplyDelete