[Ana laura]

Hi,


I would like to know the difference between these words when describing food:

A) Crispy

B) Crunchy

C) Crusty

D) Crumbly

E) Flaky

Thank you in advance

[susan53]

The use of these words is generally the same when applied to food as to anything else, so I've given examples outside food when I thought it would make it clearer.

A) Crispy - hard, but light and brittle in consistency. For example, Kellogg's Rice Crispies or potato crisps - chips for anyone outside the UK? Oh well, Pringles.

B) Crunchy - hard, fairly but not very solid, and makes a noise when you bite it. Eg a nutty bar, most biscuits (OK,OK, cookies) a raw carrot, or a stick of celery.

C) Crusty - a crust is a hard outside layer. When you bake bread it has a hard crust - but inside it's still soft. A pie has a pastry crust surrounding softer ingredients. The Earth also has a hard crust surrounding a molten centre.

D) Crumbly - easily breaks up into little pieces. Eg some cheese; shortcrust pastry after you've rubbed the fat into the flour but before you add the water.

E) Flaky - breaks up into very, very thin pieces (like snowflakes). For example a scalp with dandruff (yuk - sorry), or old painted surfaces - the paint flakes off. One type of pastry is flaky after it's been cooked.

Hope that's clear.

[Ana laura]

Thank you very much. It has been really helpful.