ragout

DEFINITION

noun
1. well-seasoned meat and vegetables cooked in a thick sauce;
2. mixture, mélange.

EXAMPLES
1.The movie is an ill-conceived ragout of fantasy, science fiction, and old-fashioned romance.
2. “Chef Tin Huynh is cooking up a menu of northern and southern Italian favorites—think pappardelle topped with pork ragout and balsamic-glazed octopus.” — From a restaurant review by Bao Ong in Gotham Magazine, November 19, 2013.

DID YOU KNOW?
If you need a word in English for a random assortment of things, there’s no shortage of options on the menu. If you’re in the mood for a stew, there’s “hodgepodge” (formerly “hotchpotch”), “olla podrida,” or “gallimaufry.” Perhaps you’d rather start with a palate cleanser, like “macédoine” or “salmagundi.” We also have “gumbo” or “jambalaya,” if Southern cooking is more your thing, or “smorgasbord” if you prefer words of Swedish descent. Then there’s today’s word, “ragout,” which comes from French “ragoûter,” meaning “to revive the taste,” and ultimately from Latin “gustus,” meaning “taste.”