# Worcestershire Sauce?



## KatyCooks (Sep 27, 2014)

Talking about "brown sauce" on another thread reminds me that I keep meaning to ask everyone about Worcestershire Sauce.   I see it mentioned time and time again on "Diners, Drive Ins and Dives", so clearly it is a well-known ingredient across the pond. 

I have two questions for everyone (and I particularly want to hear from some other Brits as well as everyone else on this one.)  

1.   How do you pronounce it?    (I pronounce it "Wooster")  And I cannot lie, I do smile when I hear it pronounced in all sorts of ways on DD&D.  

2.  If you use it, what do you use it for?    I hardly ever use it, but at the same time, I always have it in my cupboard.  (Strange, but true - every few years I check the sell-by date - realise it is way past and get another bottle.)


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## Addie (Sep 27, 2014)

That is an easy one for those of us who live in Massachusetts as we have a city called Worcester. I too pronounce it Wooster Sheer. And no, I don't use it. I don't think I have ever bought a bottle. 

We also have a town with the same name as in the UK. We here in Boston we pronounce Gloucester as Gloss Ter. So many folks from other states pronounce it Glow (That would be OW with the GL in front) ces ter. I have also heard it pronounced Glue sester. 

A lot of our streets and towns in New England have names from the UK. And I live in a city that has a lot of tourists. During my working days, I would go out for my lunch hour and listen to them talk. No wonder they had trouble finding their way around.


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## PrincessFiona60 (Sep 27, 2014)

I call it, "What's This Here Sauce?" 

I use it in meatloaf, hamburger and on steaks.


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## KatyCooks (Sep 27, 2014)

I don't even use the "sheer" bit Addie.   It's just "Wooster sauce" to me!  (So much easier to pronounce)

So, do you use it to cook with?


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## jennyema (Sep 27, 2014)

It's called Wuster Sheer, to me.  Like Addie says, the second largest city in New England plus "shire."

It's one if those restaurant secrets.  Like soy sauce a little bit adds a lot of umami to pretty much anything savory.


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## Addie (Sep 27, 2014)

KatyCooks said:


> I don't even use the "sheer" bit Addie.   It's just "Wooster sauce" to me!  (So much easier to pronounce)
> 
> So, do you use it to cook with?



Mostly used in meat dishes that I know of. My first hubby was from the UK and he insisted that it be in the house at all times. He used it if he cooked. I never did.


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## KatyCooks (Sep 27, 2014)

jennyema said:


> It's called Wuster Sheer, to me. Like Addie says, the second largest city in New England plus "shire."
> 
> It's one if those restaurant secrets. Like soy sauce a little bit adds a lot of umami to pretty much anything savory.


 
I bought a tiny tub of umami sauce not long ago.  Seems I needn't have bothered as I had the perfect thing lurking in my cupboard already!


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## Dawgluver (Sep 27, 2014)

Woorstasheer here.  Good in Bloody Marys too!  Stews, soups, anything with beef.


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## buckytom (Sep 27, 2014)

yup, wuster sheer.

interesting that everyone puts it on meats. i mostly use it for veggies, both raw and steamed. it's great on steamed peas, or carrots, and it's unbelievably good on raw tomatoes. 

when i was a kid, if you wouldn't eat your veggies, my dad would hit it with a little worcestershire sauce and suddenly they weren't so bad. i can't eat lima beans without a splash until this day.
we would also go into the garden with a bottle instead of a salt shaker and raid the tomato plants.


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## jennyema (Sep 27, 2014)

It's a secret ingredient in my deviled eggs!

I also add it to all kinds of sauces.


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## KatyCooks (Sep 27, 2014)

buckytom said:


> yup, wuster sheer.
> 
> interesting that everyone puts it on meats. i mostly use it for veggies, both raw and steamed. it's great on steamed peas, or carrots, and it's unbelievably good on raw tomatoes.
> 
> ...


 
I love tomatoes, and particularly love them splashed with Balsamic vinegar.  I think I will try them with Wooster!


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## GotGarlic (Sep 27, 2014)

Wooster-sheer here, too. I use it in meatloaf and meatballs and some soups and stews. Never thought of putting it on tomatoes. I'm going to try that. 

Addie, if you look at a map of southeastern Virginia, you'll see lots of familiar place names. Some of the first European explorers found and named towns, rivers, etc., here, including the Elizabeth River right down the street from me.


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## Aunt Bea (Sep 27, 2014)

I always think of Jennifer and Clarissa!  _"Dear old Wooster sauce!"_

We always called it Lee & Perrins, accept no substitutes! 

I use it in most any ground beef recipe and many things that use tomato juice or ketchup, anything that needs an extra _oomph_!


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## KatyCooks (Sep 27, 2014)

Aunt Bea said:


> I always think of Jennifer and Clarissa! _"Dear old Wooster sauce!"_
> 
> We always called it Lee & Perrins, accept no substitutes!
> 
> I use it in most any ground beef recipe and many things that use tomato juice or ketchup, anything that needs an extra _oomph_!


 

The Two Fat Ladies!  (I'm not being offensive everyone, it was the name of a cooking show in the UK).  

And yes, Lee & Perrins.  

It seems to me that instead of watching it sit, like an ugly sister at the side of the room, I should ask it to dance?   

 (We have had a run of Jane Austen on TV lately so apologies for this!)


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## Steve Kroll (Sep 27, 2014)

I've always pronounced it woosta-sheer. I once had a co-worker who lived in Worcester UK. He always called it "our sauce."


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## KatyCooks (Sep 27, 2014)

Steve Kroll said:


> I've always pronounced it woosta-sheer. I once had a co-worker who lived in Worcester UK. He always called it "our sauce."


 
Well he would, wouldn't he!


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## buckytom (Sep 27, 2014)

Steve Kroll said:


> I've always pronounced it woosta-sheer. I once had a co-worker who lived in Worcester UK. He always called it "our sauce."




lol.


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## Hoot (Sep 27, 2014)

Here at Casa de Hoot, we call it what's this here sauce, as the Princess does.
I use it on meats, in marinades, soups, stews, and just a splash in a Bloody Mary.
The preferred brand is Lea & Perrins.


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## KatyCooks (Sep 27, 2014)

Hoot said:


> Here at Casa de Hoot, we call it what's this here sauce, as the Princess does.
> I use it on meats, in marinades, soups, stews, and just a splash in a Bloody Mary.
> The preferred brand is Lea & Perrins.


 
Lea & Perrins. Quite right. (I just checked my current bottle and it is still usable!) 

I am very glad I started this thread - I am going to start using my "Wooster Sauce" in future!


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## Aunt Bea (Sep 27, 2014)

KatyCooks said:


> Lea & Perrins.   Quite right.



Oops, my fault!

Sometimes my fingers can be downright ignorant, lucky I have a smart mouth!


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## jabbur (Sep 27, 2014)

My mom always said war-chester-shire sauce.  I learned to pronounce it properly as wooster sheer like most folks here.  I too use it in marinades for steaks, mix it in hamburgers and meatloaf.  I always splash some in my tartar sauce too.  Most any beef recipe can be boosted with it.  I've never tried it on veggies but will have to give that a go.


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## KatyCooks (Sep 27, 2014)

Aunt Bea said:


> Oops, my fault!
> 
> Sometimes my fingers can be downright ignorant, lucky I have a smart mouth!


 
Just shows how long it is since I last checked my bottle of L&P!  (Or how much notice I take of this really quite useful thing that I have been ignoring all this time!)


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## Andy M. (Sep 27, 2014)

Katy, the sauce is wooster sauce.  So what do you call the city?  

Also, what's umami sauce?


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## taxlady (Sep 27, 2014)

I use all the ways people mentioned, but haven't really tried it on vegis. I'll have to try that. It's good in some salad dressings. I don't much like it on steak.

I pronounce it Wister or Wiste-sher


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## KatyCooks (Sep 27, 2014)

Andy M. said:


> Katy, the sauce is wooster sauce. So what do you call the city?
> 
> Also, what's umami sauce?


 
I don't call the city anything!!!  Never been there!  It's "way oop north". 

Honest answer?   In my head the city is called "Works" - the city is spelt Worcestor, but is abbreviated as "Worcs". 

As for umami, yes, I have paste not sauce.   I doff my hat Sir.


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## Addie (Sep 27, 2014)

GotGarlic said:


> Wooster-sheer here, too. I use it in meatloaf and meatballs and some soups and stews. Never thought of putting it on tomatoes. I'm going to try that.
> 
> Addie, if you look at a map of southeastern Virginia, you'll see lots of familiar place names. Some of the first European explorers found and named towns, rivers, etc., here, including the Elizabeth River right down the street from me.



Jamestown of course was named after King James. And there is Williamsburg, named after King William of Orange. A lot of the folks who came here named their town after the one they came from in England. I know there is more, but right now I am having a senior moment and can't think of them.


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## KatyCooks (Sep 27, 2014)

taxlady said:


> I use all the ways people mentioned, but haven't really tried it on vegis. I'll have to try that. It's good in some salad dressings. I don't much like it on steak.
> 
> I pronounce it Wister or Wiste-sher


 
Now that is a totally new one on me Taxy!


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## buckytom (Sep 27, 2014)

one of my sisters calls it wor -chester-shire sauce.


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## Zhizara (Sep 27, 2014)

I pronounce it wuster sheer, but I abbreviate it for my grocery list worc.

I like your pronunciation best, Katy and I'm going to call it wooster sauce from now on.  Like you said, it's easier to pronounce,


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## TaraWildes (Sep 27, 2014)

In my part of the southern US, we call it worster-Shire.  Emphasis on the second syllable.  Eat it on steak, add it to hamburger meat before cooking, in stews (especially a good shake into a Brunswick Stew) and mostly in Bloody Marys.


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## buckytom (Sep 27, 2014)

i can definitely hear that with the southern accent, tara.


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## Mad Cook (Sep 28, 2014)

KatyCooks said:


> Talking about "brown sauce" on another thread reminds me that I keep meaning to ask everyone about Worcestershire Sauce. I see it mentioned time and time again on "Diners, Drive Ins and Dives", so clearly it is a well-known ingredient across the pond.
> 
> I have two questions for everyone (and I particularly want to hear from some other Brits as well as everyone else on this one.)
> 
> ...


I read recently that the US version of Lea & Perrins is slightly different to ours but it didn't specify how it was different. 

Despite the sell-by date it lasts forever. When we broke up our student flat when we graduated we divvied up the kitchen stores and the bottle of Worcestershire sauce was part of my share. I finally finished it 3 years later. I swear it had got better with age. I expect the makers put a sell-by date to cover themselves.

I use it in lots of things, not just bloody Mary's - stews, ragu, soups, even curry, you name it, it goes in. A little goes a long way. Not good for vegetarians in it's original version as it contains anchovy.

Lee & Perrins is my choice of Worcestershire sauce. "Wooster" is my pronunciation too - as in Bertie!


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## Mad Cook (Sep 28, 2014)

Andy M. said:


> Katy, the sauce is wooster sauce. So what do you call the city?
> 
> Also, what's umami sauce?


The city is Wooster, the county is Woostersh-er although it's spelled as if it rhymed with "fire". The sauce though is Wooster.


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## Andy M. (Sep 28, 2014)

Mad Cook said:


> The city is Wooster, the county is Woostersh-er although it's spelled as if it rhymed with "fire". The sauce though is Wooster.



I don't understand why the differences but then you guys have had a lot longer to mess with the language than we have.


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## Roll_Bones (Sep 28, 2014)

I love the stuff and always have it on hand.
Good to know it lasts very long as Costco sells it by the two bottle package and the bottles are big.
One bottle could last two years no problem.  We keep open bottles in the fridge.
I have a friend that uses it as a marinade for steaks.
While it tastes fine, it really darkens the meat and produces an almost black outside on the steak.
I used to marinade one side of the steaks with Worcestershire and the other half with Italian dressing.
I don't marinate steaks anymore.  Just salt and pepper and a very very hot grill.


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## Zagut (Sep 28, 2014)

Whoosh-ta-sure. That's the best way I can describe my pronunciation of this wonderful sauce.

I try it in everything. 

For some things it works  and others it doesn't. 
Beef and beans are where it's magical properties shine.



Aunt Bea said:


> [snip]Lee & Perrins, accept no substitutes! [snip]


 
If it's not Lea & Perrins it's not Worcestershire Sauce. 

I just wish they hadn't changed the label.
My Grandfather always asked how many tines it said Lea & Perrins on the bottle and no one ever got it right. 
Just doesn't work with the new label.


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## Roll_Bones (Sep 30, 2014)

Which one has the new label?  Looks like the one on the right? Right?


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## bethzaring (Sep 30, 2014)

going on memory here, never a good thing, but I think the difference in formulation between the UK and US product was the US one has/had high fructose corn syrup. I have had to abandon Lea and Perrins for a brand that does not add HFCS; Annies.

My pronunciation has evolved over the years but usually has 5 syllables.

I use it in many dishes. Today I added some to small batches of egg salad and tuna salad.

edit...I see where Lea and Perrins stopped using high fructose corn syrup in 2011.  Maybe I will go back to them.


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## KatyCooks (Sep 30, 2014)

Andy M. said:


> I don't understand why the differences but then you guys have had a lot longer to mess with the language than we have.


 
It's just one of those things Andy.   And let's not forget you have a few oddities of your own!    For example - Kansas and Arkansas.   Now to my English eyes, these two should be pronounced the same - Kansas and then Kansas with an R sound in front.   But Arkansas is pronounced ArkanSAW!  What's that all about??


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## KatyCooks (Sep 30, 2014)

Zagut said:


> Whoosh-ta-sure. That's the best way I can describe my pronunciation of this wonderful sauce.
> 
> I try it in everything.
> 
> ...


 
Oh, completely different!  I just have the one with the orange label.


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## Steve Kroll (Sep 30, 2014)

KatyCooks said:


> It's just one of those things Andy.   And let's not forget you have a few oddities of your own!    For example - Kansas and Arkansas.   Now to my English eyes, these two should be pronounced the same - Kansas and then Kansas with an R sound in front.   But Arkansas is pronounced ArkanSAW!  What's that all about??


There's a good reason. 
Why We Pronounce 'Kansas' And 'Arkansas' Differently - Business Insider


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## KatyCooks (Sep 30, 2014)

Steve Kroll said:


> There's a good reason.
> Why We Pronounce 'Kansas' And 'Arkansas' Differently - Business Insider


 
Steve, that is brilliant! Thank you for posting the link! 

Not sure I agree it's a "good" reason, but now at least I understand it! 

(I blame the French personally....) 

(And totally kidding about blaming anyone - needless to say!)


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## taxlady (Sep 30, 2014)

Steve Kroll said:


> There's a good reason.
> Why We Pronounce 'Kansas' And 'Arkansas' Differently - Business Insider





KatyCooks said:


> Steve, that is brilliant! Thank you for posting the link!
> 
> Not sure I agree it's a "good" reason, but now at least I understand it!
> 
> ...


It gets "better". The Arkansas River can be pronounced either way, depending on where you are. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arkansas_River#Pronunciations


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## Mad Cook (Sep 30, 2014)

KatyCooks said:


> *I don't call the city anything!!! Never been there! It's "way oop north". *
> 
> Honest answer? In my head the city is called "Works" - the city is spelt Worcestor, but is abbreviated as "Worcs".
> 
> As for umami, yes, I have paste not sauce. I doff my hat Sir.


Oh no it isn't (in best pantomime style). It's down south (anything south of Birmingham is "down south" from oop here)  

From Henri in the north of England


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## Mad Cook (Sep 30, 2014)

Steve Kroll said:


> There's a good reason.
> Why We Pronounce 'Kansas' And 'Arkansas' Differently - Business Insider


 Thanks, Steve. I've wondered about that since I was a little girl.


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## Zagut (Sep 30, 2014)

Roll_Bones said:


> Which one has the new label? Looks like the one on the right? Right?


 
Give that contestant a prize. 

Guess some marketing genius figured it would sell more but it took away a nice trivia question. 

KatyCooks, How many times does it say Lea & Perrins on the bottle?


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## Addie (Oct 12, 2014)

I thought I would "bump" this one more time. Here in Massachusetts, as stated before the sauce is pronounced Wooster sheer. But in the legalese of our state, the city is called The Shire of Worcester, in the County of Worcester. Every city and town is referred to in legalese as a Shire. And every Shire is located in a County. Just one of those stupid things I remember from when I was a legal secretary. 

We sure do like to hang onto our English habits of yore.


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## Roll_Bones (Oct 14, 2014)

Okay.  I bought the anchovy paste. Now, what to do with it........


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## buckytom (Oct 14, 2014)

do you mean in general, or to make worcestershire sauce?

in general, iadd it to the evoo and garlic when first toasting it to make tomato sauce. it dissovels in to the oil giving the sauce a umami thing.

it's also good in greek salad dressing. (greek olive oil, greek oregano, anchovy, lemon zest and juice, red wine vinegar).

for worcestershire sauce, i once met a guy from worcestershire, england who said it was partly made from rotting tomatoes. i'm not sure if i believe that though. the guy was hammered at the time (i was in a pub in leitrim).


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## KatyCooks (Oct 14, 2014)

Zagut said:


> Give that contestant a prize.
> 
> Guess some marketing genius figured it would sell more but it took away a nice trivia question.
> 
> KatyCooks, How many times does it say Lea & Perrins on the bottle?


 
I had no idea my question would last so long. 

Anyhoo, I am looking at my current bottle of L & P and counting....

and I count 7! 

But I bet I missed one! (or more?)  This is a trick question, right?


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## Zagut (Oct 14, 2014)

KatyCooks said:


> I had no idea my question would last so long.
> 
> Anyhoo, I am looking at my current bottle of L & P and counting....
> 
> ...


 

Katycooks, It's not a trick question at all. 

Look very closely at the square border on the label. 

If you're an old fart like me you might need a magnifying glass. 

I don't know the answer but I do know it's more then seven.

I think the answer depends on the size bottle you have and the size of the label. 

My Grandfather always got a real kick out of asking this question.


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## PrincessFiona60 (Oct 15, 2014)

Roll_Bones said:


> Okay.  I bought the anchovy paste. Now, what to do with it........



Do not try brushing your teeth with it...big mistake.


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## Dawgluver (Oct 15, 2014)

PrincessFiona60 said:


> Do not try brushing your teeth with it...big mistake.




Indeed.  The tomato paste in the tube works much better.


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## Sir_Loin_of_Beef (Oct 15, 2014)

I call it War-Chester-Shire sauce, but that's just to piss people off.


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