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MeggPhaggSioux Posted 15 years ago
Grammar
4 Tablespoons Oil
A step in a cooking recipe reads:
"Cook the pasta in the boiling water until tender but not mushy. While the pasta is cooking, purée 11/2 cups of the herbs with 4 tablespoons oil, the garlic and some salt and pepper in a mini food processor or blender; leave the sauce rough or add a little water if you want it smoother. Drain the pasta, reserving about a cup of its cooking liquid. Toss the pasta with the herb sauce and most of the remaining herbs, adding the reserved liquid if the mixture seems dry. Top with the meatballs, garnish with Parmesan and the last of the herbs and serve."
How come it is "4 tablespoons oil" and not "4 tablespoons of oil"?
"Cook the pasta in the boiling water until tender but not mushy. While the pasta is cooking, purée 11/2 cups of the herbs with 4 tablespoons oil, the garlic and some salt and pepper in a mini food processor or blender; leave the sauce rough or add a little water if you want it smoother. Drain the pasta, reserving about a cup of its cooking liquid. Toss the pasta with the herb sauce and most of the remaining herbs, adding the reserved liquid if the mixture seems dry. Top with the meatballs, garnish with Parmesan and the last of the herbs and serve."
How come it is "4 tablespoons oil" and not "4 tablespoons of oil"?
Top answer
Hi, Recipes commonly include phrases that are abbreviated English. Clive
- Hi, Recipes commonly include phrases that are abbreviated English.
- Clive
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2 Answers
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Hi,
Recipes commonly include phrases that are abbreviated English.
Clive
Recipes commonly include phrases that are abbreviated English.
Clive
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It is a standard shortcut when writing recipes. It is odd (and should have been corrected) because there are no other such omissions in the narrative recipe that you have. In bulleted and semi-bulleted recipes, the practice is common, and so it is in the mindset of recipe writers generally. Here is an typical example (ellipted words in bold):
Ingredients
- 1 3/4 cups
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