What's in a Name?

Pink peppercorns are not peppercorns. Common black pepper comes from black peppercorns, which along with green and white peppercorns, are all the same berry, (at various stages of ripeness), from a pepper plant.

The pepper plant is a vine native to India and Indonesia. Pink peppercorns are the berries from a rose plant in Madagascar. Likewise, black pepper and chile peppers are entirely different plants as well.

Pork butt (also known as Boston butt) is not a cut of meat from the pig's posterior, but rather the shoulder.

Sweetbreads are not bread. They are the thymus glands, often of veal, but from pork, lamb or beef as well. The two thymus glands are located in the neck and near the heart and play a role in the organism's immune system.

Chinese parsley is not parsley. It's another name for cilantro.

Cream of tartar is not a cream of any kind. It is the crystallized acidic deposit found inside wine barrels. It is used mostly in baking and when added to whipped egg whites will increase their volume.

Peanuts are not nuts. They are legumes, i.e., plants with pods containing edible seeds. Soybeans, green beans, peas, and lentils are also legumes.

Pot roast is not roasted. It is braised, a wet heat cooking method whereby an item is cooked in a small amount of liquid at lower temperatures for an extended period of time. Roasting is a dry heat cooking method performed in an oven or over a fire.

Wild rice is not rice. It is a kind of grass.

Cuttlefish are not fish but a type of cephalopod related to squid and octopi. Cephalopods are a sub classification of mollusks.

Buttermilk does not contain butter. Way back when, buttermilk was the liquid left over after the butter was churned. Nowadays it is made by adding special bacteria to low fat milk.

Head cheese is not cheese. It is a sausage made from meat from the head of a calf or a pig.

Mountain oysters are not oysters. They are the testicles from a calf, sheep or boar. (How gross is that?)

Elephant garlic is not garlic. It is a relative of the leek and notably less pungent than actual garlic.

Allspice is not a collection of spices. It is the berry of an evergreen pimiento tree native to the West Indies and South America. Its name is derived from the fact that it tastes like a mixture of cloves, nutmeg, and cinnamon.

Lemon grass, although somewhat lemony in taste, is not a lemon. It is an herb.

Idaho potatoes are not necessarily from Idaho. The proper name is a russet potato. They have become eponymously named for the state of Idaho since it is a major producer. Some believe russets from Idaho are superior to other geographic locations.

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