# Sriracha. Discuss. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 23, 2013, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sriracha-discuss/674649 "2013-11-23T23:56:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2013, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sriracha-discuss/674649/61 "2013-11-25T20:55:10Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > There are two Thai pronunciations. The second one sounds like ‘sree-rah-chah’, with an ‘r’ in the first syllable, which is how I pronounce it; only I emphasise the second syllable: ‘sree-RAH-chah’. Ah, interesting to know. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2013, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sriracha-discuss/674649/62 "2013-11-25T21:00:08Z")
> [@MeanJoe](#): > > It is now the most overused, overexposed condiment ever created. It annoys me to no-end to see chef’s in restaurants (and food trucks… especially food trucks!) trying to be soooo edgy due to the pop-culture trend of Sriracha that they put it into damn near everything. I cannot help but dislike it purely based upon the hipster popularity factor alone. Bah, the anti-hipster is just a hipster in a different fedora. What, you hated it before hating it was cool? Don’t let them control your tastes like that, man! ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2013, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sriracha-discuss/674649/63 "2013-11-25T21:03:07Z")
> [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > Bah, the anti-hipster is just a hipster in a different fedora. My. Feelings. Exactly. (And, yes, with irony noticed, I have to say sriracha is a few years past hipster cred by now. It’s mainstream.) ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2013, 4:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sriracha-discuss/674649/64 "2013-11-26T04:47:07Z")
As for pronunciation, it is Si-Rah-Cha." The “sr” configuration is a holdover from Sanskrit or some other ancient language, but the R is never pronounced in those cases and is always silent. (It’s the same Sri as in Sri Lanka, but never pronounced the same.) The sauce is named after the district in Chonburi province on our Eastern Seaboard where it is made. (Chonburi is the province where Pattaya is located, although Pattaya is in Bang Lamung district.) You see the district itself spelled variously, but most commonly it’s Si Racha or sometimes Sri Racha. The second syllable is not emphasized. (We’re talking two words here anyway, not one: Si Racha). All three syllables seem to have near-equal weight, but there is no noticeable accent on the middle one. There _may_ be a slight emphasis on the first syllable, but it would be slight. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2013, 4:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sriracha-discuss/674649/65 "2013-11-26T04:54:39Z")
Forgot to add: Emphasizing the middle syllable seems be a Western practice. My wife has a three-syllable first name with a slight accent on the first. In the US, my family would automatically put a clear accent on the second syllable, making it sound weird as hell, until they learned how it was actually pronounced. But again, let me emphasize: No Thai would ever say “sree.” Ever. It is always “see.” ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2013, 5:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sriracha-discuss/674649/66 "2013-11-26T05:08:18Z")
Excuse the triple post, but my wife just reminded me it’s more like “See-Raht-Cha,” equal accents but with the middle syllable ending with a slight T sound that precedes the CH sound. (I see mention in this thread of SH sounds, but the SH sound never appears in Thai, ever, only CH. For example, our deposed prime minister and his sister the present PM transliterate their names as Shinawatra, but even they clearly pronounce it as Chin-Na-Wat. For a short while about a decade ago, it started becoming fashionable for younger Thais actually to substitute the SH sound for CH, a practice that drove my wife crazy and prompted others of her generation to decry the downfall of Thai civilization. Really. But I think that has since stopped, not sure.) And [here is the district in question](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amphoe_Si_Racha) where the stuff originated. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2013, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sriracha-discuss/674649/67 "2013-11-26T13:23:03Z")
Thanks **Siam Sam**! I’ve been a “SHREE-rah-cha” guy but will have to change that! ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2013, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sriracha-discuss/674649/68 "2013-11-26T13:55:57Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > Excuse the triple post, but my wife just reminded me it’s more like “See-Raht-Cha,” equal accents but with the middle syllable ending with a slight T sound that precedes the CH sound. > > (I see mention in this thread of SH sounds, but the SH sound never appears in Thai, ever, only CH. For example, our deposed prime minister and his sister the present PM transliterate their names as Shinawatra, but even they clearly pronounce it as Chin-Na-Wat. For a short while about a decade ago, it started becoming fashionable for younger Thais actually to substitute the SH sound for CH, a practice that drove my wife crazy and prompted others of her generation to decry the downfall of Thai civilization. Really. But I think that has since stopped, not sure.) > > And [here is the district in question](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amphoe_Si_Racha) where the stuff originated. Interesting. I only put “sh” in my approximation because that’s what it sounds like to my American ears based on those Forvo Thai pronunciations. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2013, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sriracha-discuss/674649/69 "2013-11-26T16:23:59Z")
> [@WordMan](#): > > Thanks **Siam Sam**! I’ve been a “SHREE-rah-cha” guy but will have to change that! > [@pulykamell](#): > > Interesting. I only put “sh” in my approximation because that’s what it sounds like to my American ears based on those Forvo Thai pronunciations. The thing is though, incorrect as they may be, those are probably the pronunciations they’re known under over there. Start pronouncing it correctly and other Americans probably aren’t going to know what you’re asking for. It’s like MacDonald’s in Thailand. Ask a taxi driver to take you MacDonald’s, and he’ll scratch his head in puzzlement. But say Mac-Doe-NAHLD’S, and he’ll take you straight there (I’ve seen it happen). ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2013, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sriracha-discuss/674649/70 "2013-11-26T16:32:20Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > It’s like MacDonald’s in Thailand. Ask a taxi driver to take you MacDonald’s, and he’ll scratch his head in puzzlement. But say Mac-Doe-NAHLD’S, and he’ll take you straight there (I’ve seen it happen). (Actually, you’d have to leave off the S at the end too.) ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2013, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sriracha-discuss/674649/71 "2013-11-26T16:32:29Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > The thing is though, incorrect as they may be, those are probably the pronunciations they’re known under over there. Start pronouncing it correctly and other Americans probably aren’t going to know what you’re asking for. The second recording on the earlier link, by a male in Thailand, does have an ‘r’ in the ‘Sri’. (It also has a -1 vote.) I think most people I’ve heard talking about it in meatspace just call it ‘rooster sauce’. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2013, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sriracha-discuss/674649/72 "2013-11-26T16:35:51Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > The second recording on the earlier link, by a male in Thailand, does have an ‘r’ in the ‘Sri’. (It also has a -1 vote.) I think most people I’ve heard talking about it in meatspace just call it ‘rooster sauce’. I just listened to that link twice, and no, the first Thai male does not pronounce the R. No Thai would anyway. The second one is saying Siri Racha, which I find completely bizarre, but at least Siri is a word. He’s not saying Sree though. The first recording is the correct pronunciation. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2013, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sriracha-discuss/674649/73 "2013-11-26T17:02:41Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > The second one is saying Siri Racha, which I find completely bizarre, but at least Siri is a word. He’s not saying Sree though. Right, the first one doesn’t pronounce the ‘r’. The second one does sound like ‘siri’, but I put that down to an Asian pronunciation of ‘r’. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2013, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sriracha-discuss/674649/74 "2013-11-26T17:14:27Z")
“Sri” has sort of a holy connotation. In Sri Lanka, I believe they say Shree. But Thais don’t use SH or even SR without the H, so while the spelling in Thai retains the letter R, the letter is silent and the word became Si. Since they include the letter in Thai writing, they tend to transliterate it over into English too. There’s a southern province called Nakhon Si Thammarat, and that Si is sometimes spelled Sri also. I think Siri is another form, used in many names, along the lines of Angela having an angelic connotation in the West. For example, the Thai queen’s name is Sirikit. Why that one guy would be saying Siri Racha, I don’t know. The sauce is famous here, everyone knows it. I can only think his may be a local dialect, but I’ve never heard Siri Racha before. ---
**Author:** ![asterion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4da419/32.png) [@asterion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asterion)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2013, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sriracha-discuss/674649/75 "2013-11-26T17:20:52Z")
It’s not bad, but it’s not what I would go out and buy. I’d rather have a bottle of Tapatio or maybe Tabasco’s chipotle sauce. I generally prefer to have actual chile in my food instead of hot sauces as well. ---
**Author:** ![Lukeinva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lukeinva/32/17872_2.png) [@Lukeinva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lukeinva)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2013, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sriracha-discuss/674649/76 "2013-11-26T18:55:52Z")
> [@Labrador\_Deceiver](#): > > Vinegar is not crappy, nor is it a filler. Agreed. However, when using a vinegar-based hot sauce as an ingredient it tends to make the final concoction too vinegary. Except tabasco in V8 which is a perfect match. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2013, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sriracha-discuss/674649/77 "2013-11-26T20:18:23Z")
Which is why I have so many different hot sauces. Sriracha works in Asian food, but I like the more vinegary Tabasco on my eggs and hashbrowns. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2013, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sriracha-discuss/674649/78 "2013-11-27T19:54:45Z")
> [@dropzone](#): > > Everything? Since it has a slight kick and lots of flavor I prefer it on bland things, like eggs, which serve as sriracha delivery systems. Stock up now because some people in Cali are trying to shut the factory there because it makes the neighborhood smell too good. We had that problem with a chocolate factory in Chicago. People forget about the days before the EPA when factories just made towns stink. > > [HuffPost - Breaking News, U.S. and World News | HuffPost](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/23/sriracha-shortage-threat_n_4330274.html) A judge has [ordered](http://www.wtop.com/209/3513872/Judge-orders-cool-down-at-Calif-hot-sauce-factory) a partial shutdown of the factory while they try to mitigate the smell. The company says the problem should be over now that the season for grinding the jalapenos has passed. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2013, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sriracha-discuss/674649/79 "2013-12-15T00:42:45Z")
Meanwhile, [Phillips Distilling Company](http://phillipsdistilling.com/) has come up with a [Sriracha-flavored vodka](http://www.uvvodka.com/products/sriracha). This sort of reminds me of the Prairie Fires we used to drink in West Texas. A Prairie Fire is a shot of tequila with several shakes of Tabasco sauce in it. Seven shakes I think it was that marked a real man. ---
**Author:** ![Johanna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johanna/32/8318_2.png) [@Johanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johanna)\ **Post date:** [December 16, 2013, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sriracha-discuss/674649/80 "2013-12-16T00:20:58Z")
ศรีราชา _S®i Racha_ is the Thai form of the Sanskrit phrase श्री राजा _Śrī Rājā_ (pronounced [ʃriː rɑːdʒɑː], “shree” as in “shriek” minus the -k, raah-jaah), which means ‘Glorious King’. The honorific _Śrī_ literally means ‘light, luster, radiance, glory, beauty, grace, loveliness, prosperity, welfare, good fortune, success, auspiciousness, wealth, treasure, riches, high rank, power, might, majesty, royal dignity, the Goddess Lakṣmī, lotus flower, intellect, understanding, speech, cloves, chir pine, bael tree, a kind of drug, name of a Buddhist goddess, the 5th musical raga, diffusing light or radiance, splendid, radiant, beautifying, adorning’. (Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sriracha-discuss/674649.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sriracha-discuss/674649.md?page=5)