香醋
xiāngcù
Balsamic vinegar in Mandarin is 香醋 (xiāngcù).
The term is used to refer to a dark, sweet vinegar made from reduced white wine. In a culinary context, it is the term used for balsamic vinegar, but it is also the standard Chinese name for a specific type of aromatic black vinegar used in traditional Chinese cuisine.
Meaning: a dark, sweet vinegar, made from reduced white wine (noun)
What does it mean word for word?
The term literally translates to 'fragrant vinegar', where 香 (xiāng) means fragrant or aromatic and 醋 (cù) means vinegar.
How do you pronounce it?
xiāngcù
Did you know?
- In Chinese culture, 醋 (cù) is a metaphor for jealousy. Someone who is 'eating vinegar' 吃醋 is experiencing romantic jealousy.
- While 香醋 refers to balsamic vinegar, it also describes the famous Chinkiang vinegar from Jiangsu province, which is fermented from rice and sorghum instead of grapes.
- If you wish to be specific about the Italian version to avoid receiving Chinese black vinegar, you should specify 意大利香醋 (yìdàlì xiāngcù), which adds 'Italian' to the name.
Examples in context
- 我需要一瓶香醋来制作沙拉。I need a bottle of balsamic vinegar to make a salad.
- 我需要买一瓶香醋。Wǒ xūyào mǎi yī píng xiāngcù.I need to buy a bottle of balsamic vinegar.
- 这道沙拉加了香醋。Zhè dào shālā jiāle xiāngcù.This salad has balsamic vinegar added to it.
- 香醋的味道很浓郁。Xiāngcù de wèidào hěn nóngyù.The flavor of the balsamic vinegar is very rich.
Example conversation
浩然 and 雨婷 are shopping in a supermarket.
- 浩然 Haoran雨婷，我们要买香醋吗？Yǔtíng, wǒmen yào mǎi xiāngcù ma?Yuting, do we need to buy balsamic vinegar?
- 雨婷 Yuting是的，我们需要做沙拉。Shì de, wǒmen xūyào zuò shālā.Yes, we need to make salad.
- 浩然 Haoran那我们去调料区找找。Nà wǒmen qù tiáoliào qū zhǎozhao.Then let's go look in the seasoning aisle.
- 雨婷 Yuting好的，谢谢你，浩然。Hǎo de, xièxiè nǐ, Hàorán.Okay, thank you, Haoran.
