Nigella Lawson’s pronunciation of ‘microwave’ has become a ‘defining moment of 2020’

The celebrity chef was preparing some mashed potatoes when she offered the playful variation on the word

Nigella Lawson has whipped fans into a frenzy over her unique pronunciation of “microwave”.

The celebrity chef spoke of the common household appliance during Monday night’s episode of her BBC2 series Cook, Eat, Repeat.

The 60-year-old domestic goddess was preparing some mashed potatoes when she offered the playful variation on the word.

Splashing some full fat milk into the pan, Nigella explained that she had warmed it in the “meecro-wa-vay”.

The utterance swiftly sent Twitter into meltdown, with one fan describing it as a “defining moment of 2020”.

“Henceforth, 'mecrowavay' shall forever be in my vocabulary and microwave will cease to exist Queen @Nigella_Lawson has spoken,” another user joked.

“Eternally grateful to Nigella Lawson for letting us know we've all been mispronouncing microwave for the last 50 (or so) years,” tweeted another.

And podcast host Scott Bryan commented: “Nigella pronounces microwave as “micro-wav-ay” so that is how we all should pronounce it now. Those are the rules.”

Nigella later confirmed that she was familiar with the correct pronunciation, but chose to give the word her own flavour.

One viewer tweeted: “Am I the only one who thought @Nigella_Lawson was being sarcastic when she pronounced Meecro-wavé?! Now, I’m starting to think she really pronounces it like that?”

Nigella replied: “Well, I do say it like that, but not because I think that’s how it’s actually pronounced.”

A spokesperson for the presenter later put out a statement to put the matter to bed. 

"In a nutshell, it's how Nigella refers to the microwave at home," they said.

"It's a bit of a family joke."

It is not the first time Nigella’s cookery show has captivated viewers long after the programme has aired. 

Last month she divided fans with her detailed instructions on how to make “double-buttered” toast.

While some social media users loved the decadent recipe, others considered it over-indulgent.

One user tweeted: “I think it’s reasonable to say only Nigella could get away with teaching us how to make toast.”

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