Some foods have bizarre names, like “bangers and mash” and schlachtplatte(“slaughter plate”), but there are also foods with downright misleading names that don’t make much sense! You might have gotten confused at some point by these culinary misnomers:
Chocolate Truffle
Despite their name, chocolate truffles aren’t actually made with truffles. Truffles are dark mushrooms that are so expensive they’re known as the “diamonds of gastronomy.” Originally, farmers had pigs sniff them out before switching over to dogs. In contrast, chocolate truffles are made up of chocolate and heavy cream formed into a ganache, then coated with cocoa powder or tempered chocolate. They were named after truffles because of the similarity in their appearance. The word “truffle” means “lump,” and both are somewhat round, with chocolate truffles usually rolled into balls. Variations include having cream, nougat, nuts, or fruit included in the ganache.
Century Egg
Century eggs are also called 1000 year eggs. Either way, the name is a misnomer because the preservation process for these eggs only takes less than a year! Duck, chicken, or quail eggs are left in a saline solution with clay, and within seven weeks to five months, they undergo a transformation. The resulting eggs are much darker, with denser, creamier yolks. Although century eggs are an acquired taste because of the pungent smell and strong flavour, they’ve already reached the status of comfort food in Asian countries like China and Hong Kong. Historically, the first salted eggs entered the market 500 years ago, when a farmer in rural China discovered duck eggs in a muddy pool.
Corned Beef
There’s no corn in corned beef! It’s essentially cured beef, and the term “corn” refers to the salt pellets that cover the beef during the curing stage. A kernel of rock salt has around the same size as an oat kernel, so it was called “a corn of salt.” Today, the method is slightly different—the beef is soaked with salt water instead. Salt has been used to preserve meat as far back as ancient times, and the theory is that it originated with people in cold areas, who had to be resourceful because they couldn’t eat fish during winter. In the past, corned beef was strongly associated with the English and the Irish, who exported huge amounts of it.
Buckwheat
Buckwheat isn’t a wheat or even a grain. In fact, because it’s not related to wheat at all, it’s a helpful wheat substitute for people who are gluten-sensitive. As a fruit seed, it’s more closely related to rhubarb and sorrel. Although buckwheat has only exploded in popularity over recent years, it used to be very common throughout the US and Europe as an animal feed. When its health benefits were discovered and made public, people started wanting to eat it. Buckwheat has high nutritional value, packing in a lot of fiber, but it does have a distinct, bitter flavor, and it’s easily mistaken as a wheat because it goes well with granola or porridge.
Buffalo Wings
Buffalo wings come from chickens rather than buffaloes! While this may be obvious, what’s less well-known is that its recipe was invented in Buffalo, New York. As the story goes, Anchor Bar was the first to serve them. One version describes how the bar owners accidentally received wings instead of other chicken parts, and to avoid wastage, they had to come up with a new dish based on wings. Another says that their son had brought friends to the bar and asked his mom to whip up something for them. Buffalo wings are traditionally coated with the sauce, which contains butter, hot sauce, and spices, then deep fried and tossed.
Mince Pies
The name seems straightforward enough—mince pies must be pies with beef mince inside. In reality, they’re sweet pastries with a filling of dried fruits and spices that’s usually served during Christmas. To be fair, when mince pies were first created 500 years ago, they contained plenty of meat. Sweet and savory ingredients were combined in one dish, so fruit and nutmeg were tossed into the beef. They were also large and meant for sharing, and the bread wasn’t meant to be eaten, only serving as a container for the meat. During the Victorian era, spices and fruits were more available, and minced pies gradually became smaller, evolving into a dessert rather than part of the main course.
French Fries
French fries are a fast food staple, and they’re easy to make, too. Just cook potato spuds in grease until they’re golden brown, then pair with ketchup or mayonnaise for additional flavor. To clear up a common misconception, though, French fries didn’t come from France. Instead, they’re from Belgium. Fried potatoes were already a norm in Belgium by the 1600s, since villagers would eat them during winter when they couldn’t acquire fish. American soldiers stumbled on these when they were in Belgium during World War I. Since Belgians mainly speak French, the soldiers named the potato strips “French fries.” In Belgium, fries are paired with mussels or topped with fried egg.
Interestingly, those who coined the names of these foods weren’t trying to mislead us. If we dig deep enough, there’s a perfectly sensible historical reason for these names. Every food has a story, after all. The main lesson here? Don’t judge a food by its name!
