Americans love talking about food almost as much as they love eating it, and to describe it, English speakers partake of an impressive spread of fascinating words. 100 Words for Foodies presents a delectable sampler of these words, words that grace the tables of restaurants and are bandied about the kitchen at home.

The words selected for this book cover the whole gamut of foodie terminology. There are words for implements and vessels, like mezzaluna and tagine, alongside the names of techniques, like macerate, and methods, like deglaze. There are spices, like epazote and fenugreek, sauces, like nuoc mam and rouille, and dishes from almost every cuisine imaginable: baba gannouj (Egyptian), gado gado (Indonesian), sancocho (Latin American), yakitori (Japanese), and zabaglione (Italian).
Each entry has a definition and a pronunciation. Some entries are enhanced with recipes, and others have word history notes that tell surprising backstories. For instance, did you know that coriander and cilantro come from the same plant? Or that pho, the name of the quintessential Vietnamese soup, isn’t a native Vietnamese word, but comes from French, feu, “fire,” probably from the phrase pot au feu (borrowed into English for another kind of soup)?

Hip and informative, 100 Word for Foodies is one delight you won’t be able to resist. Bring it to your next dinner party. You’ll see smiles all around.