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Котлета
If you look up the word котлета in some Russian-English dictionaries, you will find the word cutlet as a translation. If you do, take your black pen and cross that line of the dictionary out. In modern American English a cutlet is a piece of meat, but it is NEVER ground meat.¹ In Russian котлета means a patty of ground meat.
You can have all sorts of ground meat patties, of course, from all sorts of animals:
| котлеты из говядины | hamburger patties lit. patties of beef |
| котлеты из курицы | chicken patties lit. patties of chicken |
| котлеты из рыбы | fish patties² lit. patties of fish |
Ground meat patties are very common in Russian cafeterias and on the table in Russian homes. Here are some sample sentences:
| — На каком масле лучше жарить котлеты? — Если мясо достаточно жирное, то не нужно никакого масла. |
“What kind of oil is it best to fry meat patties in?” “If the meat is fatty enough, you don't need any oil.” |
| Мама всегда добавляет чеснок, лук, соль и перец в фарш для котлет. | Mom always addes garlic, onion, salt and pepper to ground meat patties. |
| — Ты любишь котлеты? — Нет, я мясо не ем. — А рыбные котлеты? — Ну, да, против рыбных котлет я ничего не имею. |
“Do you like ground [meat] patties?” “No, I don't eat meat.” “What if they are made from fish?” “Well, yes, I don't have anything against fish patties.” |
| — Я сделал американский сэндвич из говяжей котлеты и двух тостов. — Какой ты невежда. Это называется «гамбургер». |
“I made an American sandwich with a beef patty and two pieces of toasted bread.” “You are such an ignoramus. That's called a ‘hamburger’.” |
¹ If you look at certain dictionaries, e.g. the current definition of cutlet at dictionary.com (mirror) includes something like “a flat croquette.” That is not a current meaning of the word in the US.
² Although “fish patties” is a perfectly grammatical phrase in English, I don't think I've ever had a fish patty in the US in my entire life. The phrase sounds bizarre to the average American ear.
4 comments
I've also occasionally heard 'patty' used for a fish filet, if we're intending to use the filet on a sandwich.
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