Having a firm, crunchy texture, usually with a thin, hard outer layer, like fried chicken or toast.
From Middle English and related to 'crisp,' which comes from Latin crispus meaning 'curled' or 'wrinkled.' The texture of something crispy has that crinkled, curled quality.
The Maillard reaction—a chemical reaction between amino acids and sugars when food heats up—is what makes things crispy and brown and delicious. 'Crispy' is basically a food lover's way of describing chemistry happening on your plate.
Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.