If I had a dime every time someone asked me this, I could stop slingin’ sauce for a living. It’s that many!
This is a really hot topic for a lot of people, it seems (myself not included). Even Facebook has groups created around this heated debate (ex: It’s Gravy Not Sauce, In Eastie We Call It Gravy Not Sauce.
Here’s the gist: the two ways Italians say “sauce” in Italian are salsa and/or sugo. Both words translate as “sauce” but never as “gravy.”
Ragù doesn’t even translate as “gravy” but comes close enough since it involves meat which is what people really mean when they say “gravy” (my personal opinion). Also, the word “gravy” is really, really English!
I’m perplexed though as to how the word “gravy” overpowered the word “sauce” here in the USA. My guess is it’s mostly generational and assimilation plays a big part too, because Italian immigrants wanted to sound more American. From there, I think it just stuck and created the modern day gravy-sauce divide. But “what we eat is [also] shaped by different forces and contexts” according to gastronomic professore Simone Cinotto.
Look, whether you identify as “gravy” or “sauce”, that’s your personal experience and no one has the right to take that away from you.
As a child of Italian immigrants myself, and a full-time saucier, I do sincerely mean this. You do you. BUT please don’t ever tell me I should call our food brand City “Gravery” instead of Saucery, because that would be dumb!
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