The lower shell or belly meat of a turtle, considered a delicacy and often cooked in turtle soup.
Possibly from Malay or Portuguese terminology related to turtles, paired with calipash as its opposite (upper vs. lower shell). The exact origin remains debated among etymologists.
Calipee and calipash are complementary terms—every part of the turtle was used, and Victorian cookbooks specified which part you wanted, showing how different turtle meats had different culinary qualities.
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