What is How To Pronounce Worcestershire Sauce?
Audio For How To Pronounce Worcestershire Sauce
Phonetics For How To Pronounce Worcestershire Sauce
worcestershire sauce
woo/stə sauce
A Quick Overview Of How To Pronounce Worcestershire Sauce
WORJust say worcester sauce. Don't pronounce worcestershire sauce with 'shire', drop the '-shire' and forget about it. You say the name in full if you are referring to Worcestershire County in England. If that hasn't made your head hurt, remember that the town of 'Worcester', pronounced like the sauce but not spelled like it, is also the capital or 'Seat' of the County of Worcestershire. To be clear we are talking about England in the United Kingdom.
For non-UK people, the difference in the spelling and pronunciation of Worcester is puzzling enough, leaving the 'shire' off when it comes to the sauce is inexplicable. It's not yet another British pronunciation quirk, it's simply custom to shorten the name when referring to the sauce. Always say 'Worcestershire Sauce', don't shorten it to 'pass me the Worcestershire'.
How to use Worcestershire Sauce
Use it like Tabasco or HP Sauce: on bacon and eggs, sausages, anything made of beef including stews and steaks, pork, and it's great for marinades. It also adds zing to Bloody or Virgin Mary cocktails.
How Not To Use Worcestershire Sauce
You don't use worcestershire sauce on fries or fish, it's not a ketchup substitute. It's savory so don't even think of putting it on anything sweet unless you are a glutton for punishment or vengeful.
It's made with anchovies, vinegar, tamarind, salt and spices left to mature and ferment, and the recipe is a closely guarded secret. Lea and Perrins is 'The Original' though it has stiff competition from Holbrooks. Fermented fish may not sound appealing but reserve judgment until you have tried it.
The sauce was reputedly discovered by accident. A customer asked the chemists Mr Lea and Mr Perrins to rustle up a sauce similar to one he tried in Bengal (now Bangladesh). The result was unappealing, but when one or the other came across the sauce after it had matured, they discovered it had beome delicious. By 1866 it was on the market and an instant success.
Worcestershire sauce contains fish, so it's not strictly vegetarian and it's definitely not vegan. There are vegan versions, though they don't entirely capture the flavour of fermented fish.
Worcester is a town in Worcestershire, England which is where the sauce was first concocted.