asciutto

Asciutto is an Italian adjective meaning dry or lacking moisture. It is used to describe foods that are not moist, weather or environments that are not humid, and texture or moisture levels resulting from aging, curing, or dehydration. The term can function broadly, from culinary descriptions to everyday language about the climate or a stale state of bread.

Etymology and forms: Asciutto derives from the verb asciugare, to dry, which in turn traces back to Latin exsiccare, meaning to dry up. The word appears in masculine form asciutto and feminine form asciutta, with plural forms asciutti and asciutte. It is common in phrases that specify the level of dryness or dryness conventions in recipes and descriptions.

Culinary usage: In Italian cooking, asciutto typically relates to texture and moisture. A well-known usage is pasta asciutta, referring to pasta served with sauce as opposed to pasta in broth. Other culinary phrases include pane asciutto (stale or dried bread) and carne asciutta (dried or air-dried meat). In some contexts, dried or cured products such as prosciutto may be described informally as asciutti to emphasize a dry, cured character, though culinary literature more often specifies the curing method (crudo, stagionato, or affumicato) rather than relying on the generic term alone.

Other contexts: Asciutto also describes dry weather or seasons, such as una stagione asciutta or un inverno asciutto, indicating low precipitation. The term contrasts with umido (wet or damp) and secchio/secchi nei toscano dialects are not standard usages.

Overall, asciutto functions as a versatile descriptor of dryness across food, climate, and texture, rooted in the act of drying expressed by the related verb asciugare.