The Italian Language

Learn about the Italian language, grammar, vocabulary and culture

Updated 14 November 2009

Food Terms


	Radicchio rosso di treviso

Italian	English
amaretto	a liqueur made with almonds.
amaro	an after-dinner drink.
biscotti di Prato	Hard almond biscuits, typical of Prato, usually dunked in vin santo.
bottarga	the roe of the female mullet.
cantucini	Hard almond biscuits, typical of Prato, usually dunked in vin santo.
consum	Romagna style griddle dumplings
conza	the filling of sfinucini
crescentina	Bologna style focaccia with bacon
digestivo	any after-dinner drink.
finochiona	moretadella type sausage with fennel flavouring.
focaccia	a flat type of bread.
fontina	a cheese from northern Italy.
funghi porcini	boletus edulis, a type of wild mushroom.
gorgonzola	a blue cheese from northern Italy.
grana padano	a cheese typical of the Po valley.
grappa	a distilled drink made from the discarded peel of grapes.
mantovana	olive oil bread
maraschino	a liqueur made from marasca cherries.
marsala	a fortified Sicilian red wine.
mortadella	a large pork salami.
mozzarella	a round, soft cheese typical of Campania.
ossobuco	veal shanks (in Milanese, bone with a hole).
pancetta	a cured, bacon-like byproduct of pork.
parmiggiano-reggiano	Parmesan cheese, typical of the Parma and Reggio-Emilia region.
pecorino	ewe milk cheese.
piadina	flat griddle bread
prosciutto (di Parma)	Parma ham. Any type of ham cured with salt. From prosciugare, to dry.
prosecco	a type of dry, bubbly wine.
radicchio rosso	a red cabbage-like bitter vegetable.
ricotta	a by-product of cheese, used for pasta stuffing and desserts.
robiola	a type of soft cheese.
salame	salmi.
scaloppine	very thin slices of meat, usually veal.
sfinucini	stuffed pizza Palermo style
spumante	sparkling wine.
stracchino	a type of soft cheese.
taleggio	a type of cheese.
vin santo	a fortified Tuscan white wine.
zucchina	zucchini.