Tuesday, July 28, 2026
Science

Rocket or arugula? How a salad vegetable mapped the Italian diaspora

If you watch American cooking shows, you've likely experienced "salad confusion." You see a chef preparing what looks like rocket, but they call it arugula. It's the same plant (Eruca sativa). It has the same peppery bite. So why do English speakers use two completely different names?

Rocket or arugula? How a salad vegetable mapped the Italian diaspora
Image: Phys.org
If you watch American cooking shows, you've likely experienced "salad confusion." You see a chef preparing what looks like rocket, but they call it arugula. It's the same plant (Eruca sativa). It has the same peppery bite. So why do English speakers use two completely different names?

Originally published at Phys.org

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